Leaking Connection .. What to do?

JoelD · Apr 23, 2014

My experience with flair and double flair joints is that snugging up hasn't worked and I've needed to re-do the flare. Worth pulling appart, taking a close look and then putting back to together, if upon tear down you don't see anyting obvious maybe it was just a bit loose. i've not had to replace an o-ring on a fitting but seems like a straight forward thing to try, nothing to loose on the connector bit.

Highgear · Apr 23, 2014

In post #4 Pic.#2 I see 3-different types of fittings . Each fitting has a different solution to fix ! So - where is the leak ?

KiotiKowboy · Apr 24, 2014

Alright, took a look at the leaks today.

I looked inside the underside couplers and spotted what I believe was the o-ring. This was an extremely narrow ring, buried back in the female connector. Not sure what kind of dental instruments would be required to dig this thing out for replacement. I did notice a small amount of debris inside the connector that "may" have prevented a complete seal. I cleaned this out and will have to see what happens. If it still leaks, I'm pretty sure the culprit would be the female side ( labeled as KWANG PT 3/8 ) and I'll just have to replace it.

As for the fittings on the FEL arm. I removed the mounting bracket to spread the lines a bit and was able to get wrenches on the fitting. I can tell you, it was not meant to leak - lol. I absolutely could not budge it in either direction. Makes me wonder if it is not "over" tight - perhaps resulting in a split flare. Didn't have anything in the way of a cheater for more leverage, so I'll revisit this later.

Thanks for all the input. I'll update in a few days as to my progress.

Coyote machine · Apr 24, 2014

KiotiKowboy said:
Alright, took a look at the leaks today.

I looked inside the underside couplers and spotted what I believe was the o-ring. This was an extremely narrow ring, buried back in the female connector. Not sure what kind of dental instruments would be required to dig this thing out for replacement. I did notice a small amount of debris inside the connector that "may" have prevented a complete seal. I cleaned this out and will have to see what happens. If it still leaks, I'm pretty sure the culprit would be the female side ( labeled as KWANG PT 3/8 ) and I'll just have to replace it.

As for the fittings on the FEL arm. I removed the mounting bracket to spread the lines a bit and was able to get wrenches on the fitting. I can tell you, it was not meant to leak - lol. I absolutely could not budge it in either direction. Makes me wonder if it is not "over" tight - perhaps resulting in a split flare. Didn't have anything in the way of a cheater for more leverage, so I'll revisit this later.

Thanks for all the input. I'll update in a few days as to my progress.

It sounds like you are onto the solution to the main valve body under the right side station floor. Getting out any debris is the first step in the solution.:thumbsup:
You wouldn't want to further over-tighten the FEL flare fittings. Sounds like you may have a damaged flare or cap causing that leak? Can you tell which piece of the fitting is leaking?

KiotiKowboy · Apr 24, 2014

Coyote machine said:
Can you tell which piece of the fitting is leaking?

Not yet. The whole thing was coated in grime, so I cleaned the fitting and the surrounding area today. After I get a chance to use it again, I'll check periodically to see if I can at least determine the side of the problem. Weird thing is I never see it dripping - but, I even get hydraulic fluid on the hood! I can only guess operational loads increase the pressure enough to force an intermittent discharge.

Coyote machine · Apr 24, 2014

Try wrapping sections of the fitting, separated by tape and possibly plastic to isolate where the leak is occurring.
Are you sure the fitting you're at is the leaking fitting, and not one up or downstream from the one you showed us?