What to do to make sure you are operating with high quality hydraulic oil
Posted on: 3 November 2015
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If you're operating hydraulic equipment, you are aware of the importance of the proper use of hydraulic oil. In any sort of transporting, or construction equipment, the hydraulic system needs to be working at top condition for the vehicle to be able to perform at its maximum capacity. There are things you can do to make sure your hydraulic oil serves the system in the best way possible.
Constant temperature
The first thing you should be concerned about is the temperature of the oil while it's running through your system. The temperature needs to be consistent at all times, while being properly vented air that is dry and clean. The temperature should not go over 130 degrees at any time while the oil is being transported through the system. During these conditions, the life length of the oil can be prominently increased and thus increase the life length of your hydraulic system. If the temperature of the oil is fluctuating between high and low a lot, you can get problems with moist in your hydraulic system, which can cause the system to malfunction. The first solution to this is to use good quality hydraulic oil. Oil without waxes or other additional substances flow easier and will be able to keep the temperature at an appropriate level.
Oxidation stability test
You can do a oxidation stability test to establish the quality of your hydraulic oil. The test is based on how many hours an oil can last in higher temperatures. If the result shows that the oil can perform 5000 hours or more in elevated temperatures, this means you are using high quality oil. If you don't get a result at all, the performance of the oil probably wasn't good enough to mention. If you want to perform further testing on oil showing this result, you could try operating it in a system with a temperature just above freezing. This is not a common temperature for hydraulic oil to operate in, but it can make you establish the quality of the oil. High quality oil should be able to operate even under these uncommon circumstances.
Manufacturer's advice
The best oil to use is often the oil that is recommended by the manufacturer of your machine. If your hydraulic oil isn't qualitative enough even if you use the oil recommended for your machine, you should talk to the manufacturer of the hydraulic system. They will probably be able to recommend alternative oil you can use for your hydraulic system.