Conveyor Belts Buying Guide

Conveyor belts have an extensive and storied past, although much of the invention’s origins are lost to history. Some historians argue that early conveyor belts began to appear in the 18th century as rather crude, hand-operated combinations of wood and leather intended to move agricultural items short distances. However, there’s no doubt that the late 19th century saw the rise of more recognizable conveying machines. When inventor Oliver Evans constructed an automated mill, he included a conveyor belt system made of wood. In 1891, Edison Ore-Milling Company employee Thomas Robbins crafted a heavy-duty conveyor belt to aid in his duties and went on to win awards from the Paris Exposition, the Pan-American Exposition, and the Saint Louis Exposition. 

Today, technology has advanced, and a rubber conveyor belt is hardly cutting edge. This Conveyor Belt Buying Guide will address the most popular types of conveyor belts and what you should know before you purchase one. 

Popular Types of Conveyor Belts 

Like many machines, conveyor belts are relatively simple at their core, and if you’re wondering how to make a conveyor belt, you should know that they really have only three components: a carrying medium (think of a belt) that moves an object, a pair of pulleys around which the carrying medium goes, and a source of power to turn the pulleys. However, conveyor belt manufacturers have produced many different kinds of conveyor belts over the years. Following you will find some of the most popular types: 

• Flat Belt: When you think of a conveyor belt, this is probably what springs to mind. This relatively cheap conveyor belt design is also quite simple, consisting of a slow-moving array of pulleys with a continuous loop of material that they turn. Today, flat-belt conveyor belts are typically found in many manufacturing contexts. 
• Modular: Modular conveyors are very similar to flat-belt systems, but they have one significant difference. Their belts are constructed out of linked, braided, or woven material designed to tolerate harsh environments. They are also typically easier to clean.  
• Sanitary and Washdown: Sometimes modular conveyor belt systems are created with food-safe materials specifically designed to function in food and beverage manufacturing contexts. Models may include integrated washdown systems and metal detectors to ensure that no inorganic material makes it into consumables.  
• Trough: A variation on flat-belt conveyors, trough systems include rounded-up sides designed to keep loose materials from spilling off of the belt. This type of belt is popular in mining applications. 
• Incline/Decline: Many different kinds of conveyor belts can include an option to change the system’s elevation. 
• Cleated: A subset of flat-belt conveyors and incline/decline conveyors, cleated systems include raised ridges or some sort of cleat that’s designed to secure a load and help carry it up an incline. 
• Roller Bed: This is the sort of conveyor belt you typically see in airport baggage claims. The conveyor belt design is elevated, with a series of individual rollers replacing the traditional fabric or rubber belt. Sometimes these are simply called “rollers.” 
• Screw Type: Also called an auger conveyor, screw conveyors use a shaft with an external, spiral-shaped blade to move granular material through a tube. They are typically employed in moving bulk materials that are of a granular shape. If you’ve ever purchased exotic grains or coffee beans from a gourmet grocery store, then you’ve seen a screw-type conveyor in action. 
• Table Top: Table top conveyors are somewhat similar to roller beds, but instead of employing metal cylinders, they use flat lengths. This provides an even surface so that conveyed objects won’t fall over.  
• Steel Slat and Chip: This type of conveyor is related to the table top conveyor, as it also creates a flat surface on which materials can securely move. However, steel slat and chip conveyors are often used in automotive manufacturing and are built out of materials that can resist oil, grease, and other potentially harmful substances. 
• Vibratory Feeders: Rather than feature some sort of moving pathway, vibratory feeders combine shaking with the power of gravity to move objects down a sloped incline. While effective and able to use a number of power sources such as electricity and pneumatics, vibratory feeders are susceptible to abrasion and static-charge buildup.  
• Oscillating: Oscillating conveyors are a subset of vibratory feeders. While they work on the same principle, they use a subtly different kind of motion, one that’s more appropriate for small-grained particulate matter such as sand. 
• Bucket Elevator: Sometimes known as a grain leg, bucket elevators are conveyor systems that move materials vertically. A pulley will move a belt or chain to which a series of buckets are affixed. The two most common types of bucket elevators are centrifugal (high speed with widely spaced buckets) and continuous (low speed with closely spaced buckets). 
• Magnetic: Sometimes producers and manufacturers need to efficiently move loose items while keeping them clumped together in specific batches. If the loose items will respond to magnetic force, then a magnetic conveyor is an ideal solution. Regularly spaced magnets placed underneath a conveyor belt move ferrous materials in distinct groupings. 
• Curved: Most conveyor belts are designed to move loads in more or less a straight line. Curved conveyor systems allow heavy-duty loads to move at relatively rapid speeds. Modular angles typically include 30°, 45°, 60°, 90° and 180° angles. 
• Retractable: Situation on sliding rails, retractable conveyors allow for flexibility of function and ease of access, and are able to expand or contract in relatively short periods. Retracting systems may be used to deposit products that don’t pass quality control into a reject pile, shunting product onto another line, and for ease of personnel movement throughout a facility. 
• Portable: Wheeled conveyor systems appropriate for field work and other temporary applications come in multiple sizes and configuration types.  
• Specialty: Specialty conveyors combine any number of factors from the above conveyor types to create unique systems designed to meet unique needs. These bespoke conveyors may be altered to deal with extreme temperatures, acidic or alkaline products, higher than normal speeds, abrasive materials, and more.  

What to look for when buying Conveyor Belts  

Business owners and managers looking to buy conveyor belts or who are considering a used conveyor belt often think that the popular types listed above are all they need to choose. That’s far from the truth, though. There are numerous other issues to examine. Some of these are: 

General-Purpose Belts: Despite their name, general-purpose belts are anything but generic. Examine the material out of which they’re made and determine if they have any special classifications (e.g., food-grade construction, oil resistance, tolerance of high temperatures). 

Portability: Some conveyor systems are specifically designed to be portable, while others are permanent installations. Still others sit somewhere in the middle. The nature of your operations will determine which is most ideal. 

Ease of Repair: Like any technical piece of equipment, different conveyor belts require different levels of effort and expertise to repair. 

Access to Replacement Parts: When looking for used conveyor belts for sale or a conveyor belt replacement, understand that purchase price isn’t everything. If you buy a conveyor belt that’s no longer in production and cannot easily find replacement parts, the cost of downtime and specialty replacements might prove very expensive. 

Ease of Maintenance: Similarly, highly technical conveyor systems may require frequent and expensive maintenance. 

Flexibility: If your operations change over time, it may help to have a flexible conveyor system that can offer the same adaptability rather than purchasing a new one. 

Configuration Options: Some conveyor belt designs allow for multiple functions and configurations (e.g., portable designs, curved designs). 

Dimensions: Ensure that you have all of the necessary clearances in your operating space prior to making a purchase. 

Product Specifications: Products such as food ingredients, pharmaceuticals, ores, gravels, and timber will impose different requirements on your conveyor belts. 

Belt Specifications: Determine if a belt’s thickness, width, and length are appropriate for the end use. Similarly, industry standards classify belts into categories based on their working load per inch. This standard measurement takes the belt’s width into account and helps you match it with your application.  

Maximum Operating Speed: How fast can the belt go in this system configuration? Do you have a motor that operates at its intended level? 

Minimum Pulley Size: If you’re buying your conveyor system piecemeal, you’ll want to know the required pulley size for your desired belt. 

Operating Temperature: Some conveyor belts run hot, which can lead to safety issues with certain kinds of transported material.  

Decline/Incline Requirements: Only specialized conveyor systems can handle elevations, and the required slope or vertical lift will naturally narrow your options. 

Environmental Conditions: Systems that need to operate outdoors, in extreme heat or cold, with particularly acidic, alkaline, or abrasive product material will need special construction. 

Real-Life Applications of Conveyor Belts 

Conveyor belts have numerous real-world applications, and they center around tasks such as packing, sorting, assembling, inspecting, and transporting. Some industries and tasks that use belt conveyors include: 

• Mail Sorting 
• Airport Baggage Systems 
• Manufacturer & Assembly Lines 
• Airport Security 
• Food Production 
• Automated People Moving Systems 
• Mining 
• Pharmaceutical Production 
• Food Service 
• Retailing 
• Assembly Lines 
• Automobile Manufacturing 
• Gravity Flow Systems 

Accessories for Conveyor Belts 

Because belt conveyors are so customizable, they come with numerous accessories. When looking to buy a material conveyor belt or any other kind of conveyor belt, consider some of the following:  

• Conveyor drums 
• Metal detectors 
• Conveyor rollers 
• Conveyor roller stations 
• Mechanical belt fastener 
• Permanent magnets 
• Polyurethane belt scraper 
• Corrugated sidewalls 
• Sidewalls 
• Cleated belts 
• Impact beds 
• Fingered belts 
• Belt fasteners 
• Pillowed belts 
• Belt scrapers 
• Lace and splice materials 
• Troughed belts 
• Elevator buckets 

Primary Belt Material 

Conveyor belt materials are far more diverse than those offered a mere century ago. From increased robustness to high heat tolerance to resistance to cutting and abrasion, there are countless options available. Some of these include the following: 

• Aramid 
• Polyvinyl chloride 
• Cotton/Canvas 
• Silicone 
• EPDM 
• Kevlar 
• Neoprene 
• Nitrile 
• Polyester 
• Polyurethane A23 
• PVC 
• Rubber 
• Steel  

Are you looking to purchased used conveyor belts and their associated equipment? Find out what Surplus Record has available! Just enter “belt conveyors” in the search box at the top of Surplus Record’s website to see the available selection. 

Popular manufacturers for conveyer belts include Dorner, Nercon, American, Bmi / Benda Mfg, and Intralox.

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