6 Causes for Hydraulic Hose Failure

Why You Need Hose Repair

Hydraulic hose failure can be extremely damaging for your vehicle and dangerous to the technicians that work on them. L & R Transmissions performs expert hydraulic hose repairs and understands why these components frequently fail. Here’s what we commonly see during our work and how you can avoid these failures from happening to your vehicle.

Abrasion

Hoses don’t just sit still in the vehicle. They are always moving, stretching, and contracting with pressure changes. If hoses rub against other objects, the friction can cause damage to the hose. Contact with metal edges is especially dangerous. When the outer cover wears away completely, it exposes the reinforcing wires, which might eventually lead to leaks.

Plastic guards can be used to prevent abrasion in specific problem areas.

Poor Routing

Understanding that an abrasion is a particularly dangerous situation for a hydraulic hose, as it’s important not to lay a hose near potentially harmful areas. Hoses shouldn’t be routed through extremely high-temperature spots in the vehicle or at pivot points that could cause buckling, kinks, or eventual failure.

Longer hoses, alternate routes, and different fittings can improve the routing to prevent abrasions and bends.

Heat Aging

When hydraulic hoses are exposed to extreme temperatures, they may stiffen and crack. Those cracks may lead to leaks, but if evidence of heat aging is caught ahead of time, the hose can be safely replaced.

We avoid laying hoses near extreme heat to minimize the impacts on the tube and coating. Heat guards can be used in problem areas to prevent cracking.

Tube Erosion

A common cause of hydraulic hose failure is tube erosion, which occurs when fluids inside the hose gradually erode the inner tube. A leak may develop as a result.

Finding the right size hose will minimize the risk of tube erosion.

Fitting Failures

A hose may be bent too much near a fitting, poorly routed, or too heavy where the hose and crimp seal meet. This may result in failure.

Bend restrictor support the hose near the fitting and prevent failure from bending.

Improper Assembly

A lot of care must be given in hydraulic hose repair and assembly. Only trust an experienced professional to clean, cut, flush, clamp, or otherwise work on hydraulic hoses.