Belleville Spring Stacking Arrangements

A Belleville spring is a conical shaped disc that will deflect (flatten) at a given rate. A single Belleville spring has a specific load and deflection. Belleville springs in stacked arrangements provide increased load and/or deflection. For instance, two springs stacked in parallel doubles the load of a single spring with no increase in deflection. Two springs stacked in series doubles the deflection of a spring with no increase in load. As a leading manufacturer of Belleville Spring Washers and DIN/Disc Springs, Solon Manufacturing Co. offers washer stacking solutions and resources for OEMs, distributors, and most industrial bolting applications.

Learn more about imperial & metric Belleville spring stacking guidelines below. Additionally, Solon offers technical expertise and customer support capabilities. Contact us with any questions about which Belleville stacking arrangement is best for your application, and click here to read our technical article: Optimizing Belleville Washer Stacks.

Belleville Spring Stacking/Series Examples

Belleville Spring Stacking Arrangements: Parallel Stacking & Stacking in Series

Single Spring

A single Belleville spring has a specific load and deflection. The specific load and deflection depend on the size of the washer and which type of spring (Imperial, Metric and Din/Disc spring washer) is being used. Belleville springs in stacked arrangements provide increased load and/or deflection when compared to this single arrangement.

Parallel Stacked Spring

In a Parallel stacking arrangement, all springs are stacked the same way. Two springs stacked in parallel doubles the load of a single spring with no increase in deflection.

As each Belleville washer in a column performs separately, it is important to consider interface friction
when parallel stacking, as the lifespan of your parallel arrangement largely depends on the lubrication of spring interfaces. Additionally, it is advised not to exceed 3 springs in any stacking arrangement. Contact Solon and let us help find the right parallel stacking arrangement for your needs.

Series

Two springs stacked in series doubles the deflection of a spring with no increase in load. In a stacking series, all springs are stacked opposite each other.

In a series disc spring arrangement, Disc springs at the end of a stack can deflect more than springs in the center, causing over compression and premature failure. It is advised that the length of stacked disc springs shouldn’t exceed a length equal to 3 times the outside diameter (OD) of the disc spring. ‘Stepped” arrangements require additional considerations.

Parallel-Series Combination

The parallel-series arrangement is a combination of parallel and series. The parallel-series combination results in the load of the parallel spring arrangement and the deflection of the series arrangement. It is important to minimize the number of springs in the stack in a parallel series combination.
Consult a Solon application engineer to better determine which stacking arrangement is right for you.

Additional Belleville Spring Resources

Learn more about our selection of Belleville washers, industrial applications, materials, finishing options and any other design considerations prior to choosing a Belleville Washer or stacking arrangement for your application requirements. 

• Belleville Washer Products
• Material & Finishing Guide
• Washer Applications
• Technical White Papers

Contact Solon Manufacturing Co. 

Contact us for more information on conical spring washers.