5 Best Hydraulic Cylinder Repair Tips

The hydraulic cylinder is an integral part of every hydraulic system, being a mechanical actuator hydraulic cylinders provide a unidirectional force that eliminates the need for gears and levers. Because they are one of the simplest parts of a hydraulic system, hydraulic cylinder repair is relatively easy to do.

Hydraulic systems can be found in all types of applications from vehicle auto steering systems, marine applications heavy earth moving equipment, industrial and agricultural machines, construction and industrial used. The most common applications for all these devices are picking, lifting and gripping.

A normal hydraulic system will contain pumps, a drive mechanism, pipes, filters, cylinders valves and pressure switches. Anyone who has a basic understanding of how a hydraulic system works can undertake a hydraulic cylinder repair.

Usually before making a repair it’s wise to find out the cause of the failure, this could be a number of things such as:

• Damaged seals
• This can happen as a result of incorrect fitting
• Corrosion
• Having an inappropriate metal work clearance
• Misalignment of the cylinder and load
• Contaminated fluid
• Extreme temperatures
• Chemical attacks

It’s important to clean the whole area before you start working to avoid contamination. Disconnect all the pipe work, remove any plugs and drain all the fluid for the cylinder and associated parts of the system.

Then you can begin repairing the damaged hydraulic cylinder. The tools required are a rubber mallet, screwdriver, pliers, punch, emery cloth ‘torque wrench and a proper seal kit. The most common issue after a hydraulic cylinder repair is that it will leak.

The steps are:

• Disassemble the cylinder
• Diagnose the reason for the failure
• Rep[air or replace any faulty parts
• Reassemble or rebuild the cylinder

While working on the repair consider the following tips:

1. When you disassemble the hydraulic cylinder make a thorough inspection of all associated components to ensure there are no other problems
2. Ensure you fit the guide ring (sometimes called the wear brush or wear bands) as these help reduce the metal to metal contact
3. Inspect the rod for bends as a premature seal failure can indicate there is a bend in the rod. When replacing seals don’t measure the existing seal size as they can compress or expand depending on the environmental conditions
4. Always use the correct fitting tools as metal tools can scratch the cylinder’s surface which can create corrosion problems
5. When working on large sized hydraulic cylinders be careful as they are often assisted by high tension springs which can present a danger to the inexperienced

It’s important when doing any type of hydraulic maintenance process to check the rods, bearings and seals. If you find the rods are roughened or pitted this can become a likely cause of a breakdown because of a probable increase in friction. The rod will need to be polished to lower the friction.

If you follow these maintenance tips you will find you have less breakdowns in the future.

When making a hydraulic cylinder repair the first thing that should be done is ensure everything is properly cleaned. Then make an assessment of the damage and begin the repair.

Mobile Hose Fixers & Hydraulics is an Australian based company providing 24 hour 7 day Emergency Mobile High Pressure Hydraulic Hose Repair service.