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Dental handpieces are not cheap. The costs of continually replacing and repairing turbines and contra angles can quickly mount up and put a big dent in a practice’s budget. With some basic understanding of how dental handpieces work and how best to look after them, handpieces can maintain efficiency for longer, have a greater lifespan and ultimately reduce your outgoings.
High Speed Turbines
How do high speed turbines work?
High speed turbines are dental handpieces powered by air. They remain the most widely used type of handpiece in dental practices. In these handpieces, the turbine is the only moving part. The turbine is made up of a set of two bearings, two O rings and a spindle/chuck. Situated in the head of the handpiece, the upper and lower bearings are supported beneath them by O-rings. These provide vibration and noise dampening.
A typical bearing is made up of an outer race and an inner race. The races create a track for the ball bearings to travel around in. A bearing retainer, also known as a cage, keeps the balls from banging into each other and keeps them straight and smooth. This is the key component in any handpiece and is what normally breaks and causes the handpiece to stop working properly. Any trapped debris in the bearings can cause the races and retainer to wear away and the rotation of the bur to get sloppier.
In the centre of the turbine head is a chuck which holds the dental bur. Wrapped around this is the bur tube, an outer sleeve that is supported by the two bearings at either end. Pressed onto the outside of the bur tube is the rotor. The rotor is what makes the bur tube spin when compressed air is applied.
How To Maintain Your High Speed Turbine
Air pressure
Correct air pressure is critical to handpiece longevity for two reasons. The first relates to the precision bearings located inside the handpiece head which have a recommended pressure that should not be exceeded. Applying air pressure past these recommended limits will cause handpiece failure at a quicker rate. Handpiece repair companies will likely want to know your air pressure to see if it is set too high. Most dental units come pre-equipped with an air pressure gauge. These however are not always the most accurate at measuring pressure because they do not account for the loss of air pressure that occurs as air travels from dental unit to handpiece.
Gauges can be purchased that screw directly into the dental unit tubing and connect to the handpiece to provide an accurate, inline reading of air pressure. Most dental chair service engineers should be able to provide this. Most dental units have settings on them to allow the pressure of each individual handpiece line to be controlled. All handpieces manufacturers should be able to provide details of what this optimum pressure should be. If air pressure is too low, the handpiece will not be as efficient at cutting.