In one aspect, an apparatus is provided for a conveyor belt system. The apparatus includes a conveyor belt cleaner having an elongate support and a pair of mounts configured to position the elongate support to extend across a conveyor belt. The apparatus includes a cleaner blade configured to be operatively mounted to the elongate support and engage a conveyor belt. The apparatus further includes a sensor configured to detect at least one characteristic of the elongate support as the elongate support vibrates during conveyor belt operation. A processor of the apparatus is configured to use the at least one characteristic of the elongate support to predict at least one property of the cleaner blade.