Field Note
Cab Pressurisation: Cooling Is Only Half the Job
Why a cold cab can still be a dusty cab, and what to inspect.
01 / Detail
The detail
Operator protection depends on positive cab pressure keeping dust out. That requires an intact fresh-air path, a clean filter and sound door, window and floor seals.
When seals fail, dust enters and hot air infiltrates, so the cooling system runs harder and still loses. Seal and grommet inspection belongs in every HVAC service on mining equipment, not just in cab refurbishment.
02 / Applies To
Machines this applies to
Surface haulage
Haul Truck Air Conditioning
Rigid and articulated haul trucks running long cycles in open heat and dust.
Surface loading
Excavator Air Conditioning
Tracked excavators loading trucks and working benches in continuous duty.
Surface dozing
Bulldozer Air Conditioning
Track dozers pushing material in high-vibration, high-dust conditions.
Surface loading
Wheel Loader HVAC
Front-end loaders on stockpiles, tips and plant feed duty.
Underground loading
Mining Loader HVAC
Underground loaders and tramming machines in confined, humid workings.
Underground loading
LHD Air Conditioning
Load-haul-dump machines in narrow-reef platinum development and production.
Drilling
Drill Rig Air Conditioning
Development and production drill rigs, underground and surface.
Underground fleet
Underground Mining Equipment HVAC
The full underground fleet — loaders, utility rigs, carriers and support machines.
03 / More
More field notes
Field note
Preparing a Mining Fleet for Rustenburg Summer
Why HVAC failures cluster in October and November, and the four checks that prevent most of them.
Field note
Dust, Condensers and Lost Cooling Capacity
How platinum and chrome dust destroys heat rejection, and what cleaning actually needs to achieve.
Field note
Why Refrigerant Top-Ups Are Not Repairs
A system that needs regular gas has a leak — and what proper leak work involves.
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