Page 123 - Machinery Component Maintenance

106 Machinery Component Maintenance and Repair

methods, which include the use of a single wedge (not recommended);
double or parallel wedges; a jack screw; and a shim pack with chock to
level the pump baseplate. A single wedge supports the pump baseplate
with line contact, which could shift the level during the grouting process.
Using parallel wedges provides surface contact, an improvement over the
single wedge, but the use of wedges complicates the grout form design.
Provisions must be made to pull the wedges and fill the voids made by
the wedges. The reversed jack screw shown in Figure 3-21 is used by a
major European manufacturer to support reciprocating compressors dur-
ing grouting and remains in the grout. Method four, the shim pack with
chock, is used by many U.S. manufacturers to support large, heavy, ro-
tating equipment (see Figure 3-22).

Figure 3-21. The four most common methods used to level pump baseplates are a single
wedge, double or parallel wedges, jack screws, and shim packs with chocks.

The major complaint about using these methods to level and support
the pump baseplate is that if left in the grout, the sharp corners of the
wedges and rectangular steel plates will cause the epoxy grout to crack.
Also, grout is designed to be in 100 percent contact with the underside of
the pump baseplate and the concrete foundation. Think of the grout as an