Kegel FLEX 17-5801, Operator'S Manual

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38
Lane Maintenance 101
Overview
Bowling lane maintenance is more than just pushing a button on a lane machine and
applying oil to the surface. It also requires giving attention to the approaches, gutters and
capping which all get dusty. Maintaining all of this area on a daily schedule is important to
provide the best service to your customers. Your lane machine also benefits from keeping
these areas clean. Here are a few suggestions that should be followed to maintain your
bowling center.
1. One of the first things that should be done each morning is a walk across the
approaches. This is when you find out if the lanes, gutters and approaches were dusted
the night before. This is also great time to inspect the approaches for any kind of
possible problems that just jump out at you.
2. Walking the lanes each morning also gives you a chance to see what the left over oil
looks like in the applied area and what it looks like on the back-ends as well. It is
possible to see many things, from unusual amounts of dirt to possible cleaning problems
with the lane machine. Who knows what can be found?
3. Dust the gutters, caps and division rails each and every day. This greatly reduces the
amount of dirt the lane machine pulls into the conditioning compartment. It sounds like
a lot of work, but so what, it makes your life easier the more you run the machine. If you
want to provide the best conditions it will take time.
4. Dust your approaches no less than three times a day… if not four. Some areas of the
country or world will require this just to keep them from looking like they were just
plowed and ready for planting.
5.
Dusting your lanes between conditioning is another big bonus that seems to be a lost
art. High lineage and dusty lanes are a bad combination, especially if your lanes are
synthetic.
6. The approaches are very important to good customer satisfaction and you should pay
close attention to them. Besides frequent dusting, using a rotary buffer will improve the
slide consistency and cleanliness of your approaches when done regularly.
7. Keeping your lane machine spotless will help you find problems before they become
nightmares.
8. Other areas that affect the cleanliness of your lanes is your pinsetters and ball returns
(anything that the bowling ball comes in contact with). Dirt comes from these things,
along with grease and oil that is very difficult for the lane machine to clean off the
surface.