Looking to save money on dental handpiece repairs? This post will help you get the most optimal life out of your handpieces. You can finally say goodbye to costly repairs and frustrating moments caused by a malfunctioning handpiece; and save your practice thousands!
Dental handpieces are one of the most critical components in operating a successful practice. You hold them more than you hold your own spouses hand! You use them every single day, and you do not want to get bogged down with constant non-functional equipment. It truly is a love/hate relationship; on one hand, they make your life so much easier and can make routing operations a breeze. On the other hand, they can be some of the most expensive, finicky, and the downright most frustrating piece of equipment that you own.
Below, I will go into detail on the following steps that will save you money on your dental handpiece repairs:
- Proper Maintanence
- Quality Repair Technician’s
- Quality Repair Components (Ceramic bearings!)
- Maintenance Routines
- Supporting Equipment
- When to Replace Rather than Repair
Now, no matter what you do, they are going to break; there is just no way around it. This post will help you reduce the dental handpiece repair costs; Instead of them breaking twice a year and costing you thousands to repair; they will break less than once a year, and cost you less than hundreds every repair.
Dental Handpiece Repair and Maintenance
Dental handpiece repair, and dental handpiece maintenance go hand-in-hand, and have a simple correlation. The more you properly maintain, the less repairs you get. See? Simple! Imagine buying a brand new car the same time that I do. Let’s say that I change the oil in my car every 5,000 miles, and follow the owner’s manual maintenance guide word-for-word. Now you… You want to save some money and “Oil, Shm-Oil, who needs?”. Well sure, you will save money for a while as you are not paying the $100 a couple times a year on oil changes. But it will inevitably catch up to you. You are 100% going to have premature engine troubles that are going to cost you thousands to repair. And I will be honking and waving as a pass by the mechanic shop in my perfectly working car. This is a direct analogy to handpiece maintenance! Yeah, it can be a total pain in the butt, but in the long run; repairs will cost fractionally less than what they otherwise would, and your handpiece life will last much longer.
Not only will maintenance greatly increase your handpieces life, but so will the work being done by your repair technician. Just like everywhere else, you have cheap vs. expensive. Cheap is cheap, they are built to save you money, not built to last. Expensive parts last much longer, and need to be treated as a high quality component. If your repair technician is using high quality components, but your handpiece life hasn’t increased, it is likely due to irresponsible/lackluster repair techniques. Did you know: The oil on Human skin can cause premature bearing failure in dental handpiece bearings? This is one simple thing that can cause premature failure. Find yourself a high quality, reputable repair technician that you can trust in to use high quality parts to avoid premature failure.
Lastly, one simple trick that can increase handpiece turbine life by up to 30%. Ceramic Bearings! As mentioned above, expensive parts last much longer. Ceramic bearings are more expensive, but they are: Lighter, stronger, more reliable, and longer lasting. Some companies charge extra for Ceramic Bearing repairs, and that is understandable. TruTouch uses ceramic bearings in every qualifying repair, at no extra charge!
Tips to Ensure the Maintenance of your Dental Handpiece
A properly maintained handpiece is less likely to need major repair work, and will save you money on each repair. Creating an everyday routine is amazing for us humans, as it: Makes us more efficient, creates structure in our lives, saves us time, makes us accountable, and more. With the longest lasting handpieces I have seen, they are all from offices that have an everyday maintenance routine. It is undeniably helpful to create a routine that ensures the handpieces are getting the proper treatment both before, and after they have been used. If you want to make your life even easier, get one of the dental handpiece maintenance systems.
If you want to double check that maintenance is being done properly on your handpieces, feel free to send one in to TruTouch. We will take it apart, run diagnostic tests, and examine the interior of your handpiece to ensure that it is being properly cared for; at no charge!
Not only is it important to maintain your handpieces, but your other equipment as well. Starting farthest away from the handpiece and working towards it: The air compressor, the air lines, the dental cart, and the handpiece coupler (If applicable).
- The air compressor should be checked for proper oil levels, and proper air quality (No water or oil in the compressed air).
- The air lines should be check to ensure that they air is pure and not contaminated with oil or water. Whatever is in your lines is pumped directly into your handpieces while being run. If there is oil, or water, your handpiece bearings will be contaminated, dry out, and fail prematurely.
- The dental cart/Delivery Unit should be tested to ensure that the handpiece is receiving air pressure in accordance to its optimum running level. Not enough air causes a slow running handpiece that won’t cut as intended. Too much air pressure does not increase performance, but rather hinders it; as well as the handpieces life.
- The handpiece coupler should have its external o-rings changed often. Old or dry o-rings can cause air leakage and will cause a sluggish handpiece. They will also cause water leakage from the bottom of the handpiece.
Checking these things will save you from sending in a handpiece prematurely for a problem that wasn’t necessarily the handpiece ,but from the equipment before it.
Should You Repair Your Handpiece or Replace It? Which One is Cheaper
There comes a time in every handpieces life where it is more beneficial to replace it than it is to fix it. How do you know when that is? Well if you have a handpiece that is just causing problems every couple of months; the repair technician has tried everything, and it just won’t last. The cost to repair dental handpiece is more expensive than just purchasing another. It may be time to think about replacing it with a new one. Or purchasing new handpieces is no simple task; There are tons of options, and they definitely cost more than what it costs to repair. Make sure to do your research to get exactly what you want. Some come with warranties for 1-3 years. With the warranty alone, you can save money over the reoccuring repairs.
When you replace your old handpieces with new ones, don’t throw them away! Contact TruTouch or your repair technician to see if they are worth anything. We purchase used handpieces for parts, or to resale/donate. You can make money on your old handpieces rather than tossing them in the trash. This can help offset the high cost of purchasing new.
- If you would like an inside review of the top highspeed handpiece brands, you can look here.
- If you are considering going electric or purchasing electric handpieces, you can read more here.
- Or if you want a high quality, american made handpiece with a 1-year warranty at a fraction of the cost of name brands, click here.
The Benefits of Choosing us for Dental Handpiece Repair
We have helped thousands of dentists decrease their repair frequencies by nearly 30%! We have repaired tens of thousands of dental handpieces. We have seen nearly every make and model, and heard every excuse as to why they don’t last long. Not only are we a repair company that stands by our work with the highest integrity, we are also a repair company that wants to get to the bottom of why your handpieces are breaking too frequently. We are not in it for extra money as other companies are. We can tell you what the problem is likely caused by and how to fix it, you can choose where you take that information. Handpiece repairs and failures shouldn’t be frequent and frustrating. Contact us to get a free diagnostic on your handpiece problems.