Hose life

orezok · Mar 1, 2015

My B7800 was 10 years old last fall. It has spent it's entire life outside in the brutal Mojave desert sun. When doing routine PM yesterday, I inspected all the hoses.

I could not find any indication of abrasion, cracking, bubbling, seeping etc. on any of the hoses. How long do OEM hoses usually last?

woodlandfarms · Mar 1, 2015

1 week to 50 years.

You might want to look at stiffness (flexibility) as an additional guage but some of my hoses get replaced after 2 or 3 years, others have been on since the beginning.

J_J · Mar 1, 2015

Too many variables to predict.

EddieWalker · Mar 1, 2015

woodlandfarms said:
1 week to 50 years.

You might want to look at stiffness (flexibility) as an additional guage but some of my hoses get replaced after 2 or 3 years, others have been on since the beginning.

So true. Seems like some hoses just don't last at all, while I have some that are original to my tractor that look like they should burst any second, but just keep on working. An ugly hose does not mean it's a bad hose, and a perfect looking hose is no guarantee that it's not ready to start leaking.

I would never replace a hose based on how it looks or how old it is. Just wait for it to leak, then deal with it.

Eddie

Walkin Horse · Mar 1, 2015

Just remember what you see on the outside is not where the pressure is. I have two on my thumb that are 3 months old. I have skinned the rubber back to expose the braided hose. That may be the first place it leaks though.

woodchipper · Mar 1, 2015

So many manufactures, with so many different pressure ratings... I have bought some hoses two years ago, and they were weather cracked after one year! Rubber components differ a lot from supplier to supplier. But the addage "you get what you pay for", certainly applies to hydraulic components.
Unless I brake a hose/fitting, or it starts to leak, I leave it alone as well.