What type of brush do I use for my industrial floor scrubber or industrial floor sweeper?

02 September 2019

There are plenty of different types of brushes for industrial sweepers and floor scrubbers. What kind of brush or sweeper should you be using? Use the information below to make the perfect choice. You’ll even find out what about the different types, patterns and materials.

Brush types

The range at TVH contains different types of brushes:

brush Side broom
A side broom pushes debris in front of your sweeper for the main broom to pick up.

Main broom
The main broom is built around a heavy-duty core, with staple-set tufts aligned in spiral rows. This design keeps bristles on the floor at all times. It increases the efficiency of your vacuum and improves pickup.

Rotary brush or “side scrubber”
A rotary brush or ‘side scrub; is designed to spin and loosen debris from the ground. It has dense, stiff bristles.

Cylindrical scrubber or “main scrubber”
A cylindrical scrubber or ‘main scrubber’ uses a full-fill design to keep the bristles on the floor at all times. It guides your cleaning solution to the centre of the scrubbing path as the bristles loosen debris from the ground. The length of the filaments mean this brush is considered to be a ‘scrubber’; the bristles are too short to ‘flick’ or ‘sweep’ the debris off the ground.

Pad driver or pad drive board
The pad driver is set with stiff 1/2” long polypropylene bristles. They are trimmed unevenly and widely spaced to give them a firm grip on floor pads. Wondering which kind of floor pad you need? You’ll find everything you need to know here.

Row patterns

TVH also has a huge range of row patterns:

Single row

The single row pattern is ideal for sweeping applications in dusty and/or sandy conditions. It is also known as the ‘full-fill’ or ‘high-density’ pattern. It is designed to pick up fine debris, but not bulky items.

Double row

The incredible versatility of the double row pattern makes it the most popular pattern for sweeping applications. The design gives enough space between the rows to trap bulky items, while the bristles pick up finer debris such as dust and sand.

Patrol brush (V-pattern)

The patrol brush has a V-pattern. It is designed primarily for high-speed sweeping in large areas. With fewer rows and more tufts per row, there is more space between rows, perfect for picking up medium to large debris such as cans, paper and leaves, even at higher speeds.

Types of brush materials

There are many different types of materials used for brush bristles:

Nylon

Nylon has an excellent brush lifespan when used for sweeping in dry conditions. It performs well on rough surfaces and in high-temperature environments because of its durability and high melting point. Characteristics in most applications: excellent lifespan, good wear resistance, low to moderate absorption of water (3% to 9%) leading to only a temporary reduction in stiffness, excellent bend recovery rate, resistance to most common solvents and even suitable for use with weak acids.

Polypropylene

polypropylene As the most popular filament in scrubbing applications, ‘poly’ is efficient when used with most soils and surfaces. Although poly is more economical than nylon, it is not recommended for sweeping high-temperature debris.

Proex

proex Proex is highly efficient as an all-purpose filament for indoor and outdoor sweeping applications, including damp or humid environments. It is not recommended for high-temperature sweeping applications. Proex is made of polypropylene; it derives its name from the X-shape of the bristle.

(Steel) wire

(Steel) wire is a highly durable material. It is highly abrasive and not suitable for every type of surface. Steel wire is most appropriate for work on steel and iron, but may also be used on wood, aluminium, brass and copper.

Union fibre

Comprised of a mixture of Tampico and Palmyra fibres, this material is excellent for dust control and sweeping fine debris. A natural fibre, Union has a shorter lifespan than synthetic materials.

Grit

Grit is nylon filament impregnated with silicon carbide particles. Grit comes in different sizes: .070”/46, .050”/80, .035”/180, .022”/120, .018”/500. The first number in the size refers to the diameter of the filament; the larger the diameter, the stiffer the bristle. The second number is the particle size. The smaller the grit number, the more aggressive the scrubbing. Grit brushes reduce/eliminate the need for black stripping pads. Grit filaments offer excellent performance over a long lifespan.

sweepers & scrubbers catalogue All brushes and other spare parts and accessories for your scrubber or sweeper can be found in our catalogue “Replacement parts for scrubbers & sweepers” (REF 40905935).