Got Foam?

Dear friends,

So you have decided to go out and purchase a brand new metal removal fluid for your shop, and after filling your machine you’re expectations are high! Good cutting performance, machine cleanliness and bio-stability are all promised by the metalworking fluid manufacturer. So you go to fire up the machine and decide try out that new high pressure pump you just paid a bundle for, and presto!  Foam all over the shop floor! Great… Now what do I do? Well there are a few things you can do; first you might try adding anti-foam additives to help control the foam. You can try making up your coolant with hard water if you are lucky or unlucky enough to have it available. You might even consider reducing the pressure on that nifty new high pressure coolant system; but that tends to negate the whole purpose of having high pressure coolant doesn’t it? So what is causing the problem? Why do coolants foam? Well there are numerous reasons that can lead to metalworking fluids foaming.

1.        Air entrained into the fluid can cause the coolant pumps to cavitate and create additional foam, which leads to even more foam the longer the coolant pumps runs.

2.        Higher coolant pressures (1000psi plus), pushing fluid through small tool orifices with high RPM spindles can entrain air into the fluid (High pressure/low volume).

3.        Inadequate sump volume and/or poor sump design can lead to foam build up.

4.        High cutting fluid turn over, with inadequate dwell/rest time for the fluid to release entrained air.

5.        High fluid temperature; the more the fluids temperature increases so does its potential to foam.

6.        Excessive coolant concentration; running the coolant concentration higher than the manufacturer recommends.

So as you can see there are many potential causes for foam build up. The big question is - what can you do about it? Other than adding anti-foam additions to the sump which can be very costly; the best solution is to refer to your metalworking fluid manufacturer and purchase a coolant which is designed for high pressure coolant systems. So… got foam? Give your coolant representative a call and get the right fluid for the job.

Stay tuned for more useful coolant tips, from The Coolant Guy!

Best regards,

Brett Reynolds, CMFS

Brett Reynolds, “The Coolant Guy” works for Blaser Swisslube Inc.

If you would like more useful information regarding metalworking fluids, or would like to find out more information about Blaser metalworking fluid products,

Please contact Brett at 801-722-4095 or via

E-mail at b.reynolds@blaser.com

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The Oil Baron Bulletin is not affiliated with Blaser Swisslube Inc. or its subsidiaries