Small openings…Often wrong…

Small openings…big differences

One of the formulas (among many we carry around in our heads) is that if you double the diameter of a pipe’s diameter it quadruples its’ flow rate. That means that 25% increase in the opening size of a rinse jet will increased its flow by 100%.

In the case of a rinse jet orifice, that small diameter increase is hard to visually detect. But the effect of an eroded opening is pretty hard to miss when we look at the spray pattern that results from it.

Instead of a nice 45-degree fan pattern we’re likely to see something that looks more like a pencil steam. And of course that results in final rinsing that’s anything but great. The understandable result is unremoved detergent residue that leaves glassware and flatware looking unattractively hazy.

And on the other end of the spectrum we see the more common issue of lime scale reducing the effective orifice diameter and building up on the jets’ surface and interfering with the pattern. There the fix is as simple as deliming them and clearing and unremoved scale from the orifice with a wire. As a final thought, maybe our tool bag needs to have a few spare jets so that we can replace them when it’s really the way to go.

Next up: How big is that sink?

 

Often wrong…Never in doubt

Some folks never learn from their mistakes or come to appreciate that just because they think something doesn’t necessarily make it the gospel truth. The problem is some of those folks are occasionally our best customers.

The real issue is what to do when we’re confronted with one of their “truth” that doesn’t comport with the facts. Like when they decide that the reason the flatware is hazy looking isn’t because the operator refuses to use the utensil cups. Or the laundry operator who’s certain that the brown stains (that are really drier scorch) is a problem with your products.

In those examples and most like them, what we can’t do is directly challenge their mistaken notion. The better approach is to treat it similarly to a sales objection: Acknowledge that their idea certainly looks reasonable and may even be correct, but then pose a possible alternative that might be the real cause.

That doesn’t guarantee success, but like that sales objection – where we take a detour around it rather than crashing into it, it’s the way to go. That might not be the easy way, but it might just get them to reconsider what they were so sure was correct.