Had a seam roller wheel completely seize up on me mid-job yesterday

I was working on a big living room in a new build over in the Westgate area, about halfway through rolling the seams on this dense commercial grade stuff. The roller just stopped turning, like it was glued in place. I tried to force it and the handle started to bend. Turns out, the little bearing inside the wheel housing was packed with dried adhesive and carpet fibers from my last job, a really fuzzy berber. I had to run to the truck, grab my can of adhesive remover and a pick, and spend a good 20 minutes cleaning it out before I could finish. It was a total pain and threw my whole afternoon off schedule. I guess I got lazy and didn't clean my tools properly after that last messy install. Do you guys take your seam rollers apart for a deep clean often, or is this just a weird fluke?

3 comments

3 Comments

finley_price245d ago

Read something a while back about how that gunk acts like a grinding paste once it dries... it's not just stuck, it's actively wearing down the bearing surfaces every time you try to force it. My buddy had the same thing happen, but his wheel shattered from the pressure. He said it sounded like a gunshot in the quiet house. Now I make a point to run a pick around the axle after every job, even if it seems clean. It only takes a minute, but it saves that headache later.

hollyl456d ago

Yeah, that "dried adhesive and carpet fibers" is the worst, I had a roller lock up on me last week too.

the_wyatt6d ago

Used to think a quick rinse was fine until I lost a whole sleeve to that gunk. Watched a brand new roller seize solid halfway through a door frame, had to cut the carpet. Now I drop them in a bucket of water right after use, no exceptions. That sticky mess turns into concrete if you let it sit.