Pool areas offer unique conditions for carts and trolleys that have casters. These surfaces are often smooth concrete, which needs to be taken into consideration. Yet the surface can easily be wet which could cause problems with some wheel materials. To ensure that you have a safe environment around your pool, you want your equipment to have the casters that will let you move without fear of slipping.
It is also important to consider the resistance your caster will need against water and other harsh conditions, so a sealed caster can be your best friend to help prevent performance problems on wet decks.
Pneumatic and Semi-Pneumatic Wheels: Grip and Use on Soft Surfaces
While a good grip on the smooth tile or concrete around a pool is important, you might also need to push a cart across a section of the lawn as well. This is where pneumatic and semi-pneumatic casters can be helpful. They offer a good grip on wet concrete, and still move easily across the soft lawn. Since they have a large footprint, they will not sink or make large ruts.
Pneumatic wheels are much like a standard car tire with an outer rubber wheel that is attached to a rim with air forced inside of the wheel to provide pressure to give shock absorption over uneven or bumpy surfaces. A Semi-pneumatic wheel can look very much like a pneumatic wheel but these wheels are a dense, molded rubber that has a hollow core. The hollow of the semi-pneumatic wheel is not under pressure, which is why the outer rubber is much thicker.
Here are some wheels to consider from a variety of our manufacturers:
- Blickle Wheels with Pneumatic Tires and pressed Steel Rims: The Blickle P-wheel series have pneumatic tires with ribbed or zig-zag profiles, 2 or 4-ply rating and inner tubes. Rim options include pressed steel that is bolted or welded with a tubular steel hub, zinc plating or blue passivation. These wheels are resistant to many aggressive substances—except oils, and have operating temperatures of -25C to 50C and with a reduced load capacity that can handle maximum speeds of up to 16 km/h. Bearings are either plain bore which is corrosion resistant or roller bearings which are lubricated with long-life grease. Wheel diameters are 180 – 300mm with load capacities of 75 – 180kg.
- Darcor Pneumatic Wheels: These fully pneumatic wheels come with a separate inner tube and wheel discs of heavy gauge metal. Lubrication is applied through a nipple in the hub. There is also an option to have a polyurethane filling. Maximum air pressure to apply differs by the size of the wheel. Wheel diameters include 8”, 10”, 16” & 18” with respective load capacities of 300 lbs., 350 lbs., 750 lbs., and 900 lbs. The 8” and 10” models come with roller bearings in the wheel disc and the 16” and 18” come with tapered bearings.
- Albion Semi-Pneumatic Casters: These are recommended for light or medium duty dollies, bottlers trucks, hand trucks or other manually operated units. Options include swivel lock, face contact brake and foot activated swivel lock. Semi-pneumatics are high-profile, solid centre cushion rubber tires mounted on stamped centers with lug base rims that provide protection for equipment by providing a heavy-duty cushion. Wheel diameters are 6”, 8”, 10” and 12”. Load capacities range from 200 – 540 lbs.
- Algood Semi-Pneumatic Wheels: These wheels provide a smooth ride and good floor protection with options of red, black or zinc core, black and soft rubber tread wheels. These are excellent for dollies and light-duty stock trucks. Wheel sizes include 6”, 7”, 8”, and 10” with wheel width that ranges from 1 ½” to 2 ¾”. The load capacities ranges from 70 – 250 lbs. The steel hub and ball bearing provide quiet movement and can operate in temperatures from -30F to 130F.
Hard Wheel Materials for Heavy Objects
If you have a cart on a smooth concrete pool deck, and especially if the load it carries is heavy, then you may also want to consider a hard wheel material. On smooth concrete, the most common wheel with high capacity and is cost effective, will be thephenolic that is hard. Meanwhile rubber, pneumatic or semi-pneumatic, or polyurethane casters work better on rough concrete, uneven decking, or asphalt because the softer material rolls better on rough surfaces.
These hard wheel materials roll well on the smooth surface. However, they do require some weight behind them for a good grip. Here are a few casters to consider for smooth concrete pool decks:
- Bassick Honcho AS/AR Series: Built by Shepherd Caster Corporation to carry a lot of weight while remaining strong and dependable, these heavy-duty casters are perfect for heavy and abusive applications including outdoors use. Wheels are 2” wide and come in material options that include Phenolic or Polyolefin. Wheel diameters of 3”, 5”, 6” and 8”, with a capacity of up to 1,200 lbs. is available for moving larger loads.
- Colson Kinpinless Enforcer Swivel and Matching Rigid: The Enforcer casters from Colson have material options that can make these casters extremely temperature resistant. Some examples of wheel material options that are good for outdoors include: Mold-on rubber, performa rubber and phenolic resin. These casters include a zinc plated finish that is attractive and durable, as well as the kingpinless swivel design that eliminates swivel section failure due to shock and stretching of the kingpin. Wheel diameters come in 6”, 8”, 10” and 12”. Caster capacities range from 680 – 4,500 lbs. to suit any needs you may have.
When You Want the Right Casters for Pool Use Call Douglas Equipment
When you have a specific requirement like those needed for pool applications, you want to make sure you have the right caster in place for safety, reliability, and performance. This is where the team at Douglas Equipment can help. We have been in the business of quality casters and material handling equipment since 1955. In this time, we have learned what it takes to find the right caster for you the first time. Our dedicated service team can help with all the questions you have at anytime.
If you are local to South Florida call us at 305-888-3700, and national customers can call us toll free at 800-451-0030. Since we are located in Miami, we can easily service the entire United States. We can also quickly supply our customers in South America and the Caribbean as well. If you would prefer to contact us via email, one of our team members will get back to you as soon as possible.
