Broken hose, lift stuck in air

[BeezFun]

Got 'er fixed. The new line is 45' long and cost me $215, but that's at the Parker dealer so parts are top notch and they have everything in stock. Here's a picture of how I lowered the boom, I attached the new hose to high pressure on the base and then draped the line up to the cage and got on the ladder to attach it to the valve body. That allowed me to lower it to a convenient position to install the new hose:





And here it is all fixed with the new line routed properly. The failure occurred because the bundle of hydraulic lines had slid around over the years and reduced the slack that's needed to allow cage movement. One of the lines got stretched tight against a sharp edge. I reorganized all the lines into the proper location and fastened them securely so the bundle stays where it's supposed to be. Here's the victory lap:

 

[BeezFun]

The cylinders have check valves that require fluid pressure to operate. It’s not going down without fluid. If the blown hose isn’t essential to lowering maybe you could cap it then lower the boom

I could have capped it because the high pressure line comes out of a manifold that powers the base controls separately from the cage. But I had to go to the same place to get the hose or the cap, so I figured I'd just do a temporary hookup with the hose.

 

[BeezFun]

the drivable version have valve to release all pressure,lowering the boom

It would be interesting to see where in the circuit they install that and how they secure it against unintentional use. On my lift the check valves are mounted on the cylinder, so you'd have to T into that short line between the check valve and the cylinder inlet fitting to be able to relieve the pressure.

If I was up in that basket I'd have the world's biggest padlock locking out that pressure relief valve.

 

[Diggin It]

So, if that happens while somebody is in the cage while higher up than whatever ladders you have, how do you get them down?

Seems like a PROPER system would allow a slow, controlled descent without hydraulics.

 

[grsthegreat]

At least it didnt brake 40 feet up in air. I rented a similar unit to paint my house, all battery operated. No engine. Loved it. Electric self leveling legs. Completely silent. No idling engine noises.
wouldnt mind buying one…but there super spendy.

 

[grsthegreat]

Onthe older gas engine genie units i worked with as an electrician, there was a manual down bypass valve to lower unit in an emergency. Located at base of unit. Id be pissed being stuck 45 ft up there with wife running around finding parts to fix it.

 

[BeezFun]

Onthe older gas engine genie units i worked with as an electrician, there was a manual down bypass valve to lower unit in an emergency. Located at base of unit.

Do you remember how it was implemented? I can only envision an extra hydraulic line plumbed between the check valve and the cylinder that gets carried down to the base of the unit. Or an electrically operated valve that dumped the high pressure side of the check valve to tank. Hopefully they had some way to lock it out...

Id be pissed being stuck 45 ft up there with wife running around finding parts to fix it.

I was lucky, I was working about 20' in the air and was coming down for lunch when the hose popped. Had to have the wife bring an extension ladder and was just lucky it was long enough. It's a little embarrassing to think how long it took me to figure out what was going on. It was spraying hydraulic fluid all over me and the lift but somehow my brain just wasn't registering. Finally I shut the engine off.

This happened to be the only high pressure hose running up to the cage that can incapacitate the whole machine. If it had been a hose on one of the cylinders, I could at least have operated all the other cylinders.

I'm going to call the manufacturer next week, they have a really good tech support line. Maybe they have some clever idea I haven't thought of.

 

[grsthegreat]

No idea, it was a simple turn valve, like a hose bib, that would lower the boom in an emergency.

 

[4570Man]

No idea, it was a simple turn valve, like a hose bib, that would lower the boom in an emergency.

Some lifts have turn valves and some lifted have batteries backup pumps but I don’t think either setup will unlock the check valve without pressure.

 

[David Wayne]

I thought all lifts had a manual override both in the basket, and on the ground so no one would get stranded.

David