Hard time to hook up hydralic hoses.

[rasorbackq]

Is it just me that has a very hard time to attach hydraulic hoses.
The only attachment with hoses for me is a back hoe. I have a power beyond set up ( I was told ). Most times I am 45 min to an hour to get the hoe attached . 10-15 min to set up the 3 point set up and the rest fighting with the 2 hoses. Some times I can get the pressure released by lifting the lever up on the power beyond . I can almost never get the hoses pressure released. Any ideas how I can speed this up?

 

[MIKE R]

I tap the end of the male fitting with a block of wood to depress the thing in the center that holds the presduse in. This releases the pressure and they couple together like nothing.

 

[GaryM]

You've got pressure building up in the attachments hydraulic system. All you need to do is release the pressure but depressing the protruding part of the male disconnect. Of course I'm assuming that there is no parts of the hoe hanging down putting pressure on the system. As long as no one is moving the hoe's valves there shouldn't be a problem.

That said, when you depress the tip to relieve the pressure, fluid will squirt out. So wrap the end of the disconnect in a piece of cloth so you don't get any in your eyes or on your pants.

 

[Ken45101]

With the engine off, cycle the controls through all the positions to relieve the pressure.

 

[ovrszd]

Another thing that adds to this problem is heat. If you unhook during cool temps and then try to rehook at hotter temps the oil has expanded. A way to help with that problem is to unhook immediately after use. The oil is warm and has expanded then. When you come back to rehook it will have contracted and there will be no pressure.

As Ken said, engine off, backhoe parked in unhook mode, move all levers to relieve pressure before unhook hoses. I do this when unhooking my FEL as well.

Oh, and as Gary said, cover the coupler tip with a rag of something, otherwise you are going to be wearing hydraulic fluid..... Don't ask how we know this....

 

[rasorbackq]

Thanks guys.

 

[michael.white]

Another thing that adds to this problem is heat. If you unhook during cool temps and then try to rehook at hotter temps the oil has expanded. A way to help with that problem is to unhook immediately after use. The oil is warm and has expanded then. When you come back to rehook it will have contracted and there will be no pressure.

As Ken said, engine off, backhoe parked in unhook mode, move all levers to relieve pressure before unhook hoses. I do this when unhooking my FEL as well.

Oh, and as Gary said, cover the coupler tip with a rag of something, otherwise you are going to be wearing hydraulic fluid..... Don't ask how we know this....

And because it'll no longer be under pressure, if you have cheap quick disconnects they will start to leak oil all over the floor. Not an issue if it's outside, but messy if parked on a concrete slab. As Richard said, don't ask how I know...

 

[ray66v]

If you want to spend the money to change them, they do make connect under pressure quick connects.

I bleed the pressure off by taking two wrenches and loosening one connector.

 

[Treesanddust]

One other suggestion that may help. A short hydraulic hose with the female couplers on both ends. When you disconnect from the tractor plug into the hose. It should prevent pressure building up and will also keep the male ends cleaner. Shouldn't cost that much for a short length of hose and two female couplers for each circuit.

 

[ovrszd]

One other suggestion that may help. A short hydraulic hose with the female couplers on both ends. When you disconnect from the tractor plug into the hose. It should prevent pressure building up and will also keep the male ends cleaner. Shouldn't cost that much for a short length of hose and two female couplers for each circuit.

On my 3rd function couplers I run one male, one female on the tractor. No confusion about hooking up backwards. So when I unhook an attachment I plug the two attachment hoses together to keep them clean. Does nothing toward preventing pressure buildup in the attachment.

 

[Guesseral]

Yea I have the same problem with pressure on my grapple. I haven't mounted the connectors solid yet so it may be easier after they are mounted, but I have to loosen a hose fitting also. It is a real pain and I made sure to get the flat face coupling to match the grapple also. Is there any in line bleeder that can be installed I think someone has mentioned them before but I don't want something that is huge and bulky and looks hideous.

 

[Treesanddust]

I was suggesting the extra length of hose to allow the fluid somewhere to expand into.
If it was causing me a lot of trouble (and having to grab a couple of wrenches to loosen the fitting qualifies for me) I'd buy two quick connectors, a couple of short pieces of pipe, a T fitting and a ball valve to build a small manifold of sorts.
So with a simple turn of the ball valve I could release pressure on both lines.

 

[Ken45101]

I'd buy two quick connectors, a couple of short pieces of pipe, a T fitting and a ball valve to build a small manifold of sorts.

Make sure all those components are rated for 3-4000 PSI. You don't want anything breaking apart with flying shrapnel.

 

[Treesanddust]

Make sure all those components are rated for 3-4000 PSI. You don't want anything breaking apart with flying shrapnel.

I doubt that it would build up that much pressure just from the fluid heating up or compression of the hydraulic cylinders.
I'm talking about after you disconnect the hoses from the tractor, you connect them to this for storage. That way you can relieve any pressure via the ball valve, when you go to hook back up to the tractor without a struggle or getting soaked with fluid when you push that little ball in to relieve the pressure that's keeping you from hooking up to the tractor.

 

[Ken45101]

I doubt that it would build up that much pressure just from the fluid heating up or compression of the hydraulic cylinders.
I'm talking about after you disconnect the hoses from the tractor, you connect them to this for storage. That way you can relieve any pressure via the ball valve, when you go to hook back up to the tractor without a struggle or getting soaked with fluid when you push that little ball in to relieve the pressure that's keeping you from hooking up to the tractor.

Okay, I misunderstood, I thought it was going to be inline while operating the tractor.

 

[newbury]

Cool liquids, both internal and external
If you've got a handy source of cool water you can just run it over the hoses and cylinders at low pressure. I used a garden hose.

 

[ovrszd]

I was suggesting the extra length of hose to allow the fluid somewhere to expand into.
If it was causing me a lot of trouble (and having to grab a couple of wrenches to loosen the fitting qualifies for me) I'd buy two quick connectors, a couple of short pieces of pipe, a T fitting and a ball valve to build a small manifold of sorts.
So with a simple turn of the ball valve I could release pressure on both lines.

I agree if it's a huge problem, something like this could be rigged up. Surplus Center has valves that will stand the operational pressure of hydraulics. If a person has the space this could be assembled and left on the attachment. When I first built my tree puller and grapple I had a lot of trouble hooking/unhooking and considered doing this. Then I started thinking ahead and avoid most problems. Rarely do I have a problem now.

For example if I'm using my Grapple today and this evening think I might use the puller tomorrow, I unhook the Grapple in the heat of the day and after use so the fluid is hot. Then when I come back to rehook at a later date the fluid has cooled and contracted.

 

[SPMMD]

Attaching and removing my front end loader has left me fighting the same fight 2 seasons in a row. Dismounting the FEL in winter to put on front mount snowblower easy. In spring however, impossible to connect hydraulics for FEL. System so highly pressurized that you can't depress the male end/plunger to decompress. Have had to loosen one of the rigid hydraulic line couplings with wrenches to decompress the system, then couplings work fine! It's all about the temperature as others have stated. It is usually 30 to 40 degrees colder when the FEL is taken off, compared to spring temps when I put it back on. Oh and yes, even with rags, gloves, and glasses, it is still a little messy!. Once you have been through it once or twice, it becomes second nature and putting on your BH will be that much easier!

 

[rasorbackq]

Finally had a chance today to reattach the BH. Released the hose pressure with a rag and tapped them on the frame They were on in 10 sec Not 15-30 minutes like before. Thanks again.

 

[IXLR8]

Finally had a chance today to reattach the BH. Released the hose pressure with a rag and tapped them on the frame They were on in 10 sec Not 15-30 minutes like before. Thanks again.

You should use a piece of wood or something soft to tap the fitting on. Using something hard like the frame can put a dent in the sealing ball and could cause leaks in the future. Glad to hear you were able to get things hooked up.