Water in Fluid

[Tgunn]

Hydraulic rookie here. I just aquired a backhoe that fits my old Kubota. (Tractor L2550, Backhoe L4530 A) It does not run off of the tractor hydraulics but on a pto pump. I hooked it up & it works pretty good. Several leaks but nothing major. Then I noticed that the leaks started looking milky. I drained the oil tank & it was half full of water. How do I proceed to insure I get all water out of all parts of the system?
There is a spin on oil filter that I can't tell if its original or "customized". I'll check with my Kubota dealer to try to get a fit for that.
Please be specific & kind. I am a total rookie at dealing with hydraulics.
Thanks for your help,
tgunn

 

[texasjohn]

Good that the hydraulic systems are independent... so your tractor is not contaminated.

Yes, milky = water in the hydraulic fluid.

I had a similar problem with a dump trailer... milky color as well as a highly clogged up filter.

I would drain all fluid, remove the tank/clean inside it as well as you can. Be sure to replace the filter... depending on how contaminated the system is, you may have to replace/clean it off several times.

It is possible to blow air thru the system for those components that you can get to and disconnect so all fluids are expelled.

That's what I did for my dump trailer.... and I need to replace the fluid again to further remove remaining h2o.

Good luck!

 

[Tgunn]

Thanks! From what I have read searching this forum, I understand that there is no need to bleed anything, that it will do that as I cycle everything? Is that correct?
And, that any water that is now in the lines will be pushed back into the tank, therefore change it as many times as it takes?
Sounds like even I can handle that.
Thanks!
Travis

 

[Tgunn]

As long as I'm asking dumb questions, how is the best way to clean out the tank?
Thanks

 

[kennyd]

The best you can do at this point is to retract all the cylinders, then drain the tank and replace the filter. This may take two or three flushes to get all the water out so you may want to get some cheaper fluid at first. Also check the vented cap well as that's probably the source of the water getting in.

 

[texasjohn]

Kennyd, in my dump trailer, the vented cap lets air enter the tank... and I assume that this is where the moisture enters... when high humidity... then ( I assume) condenses out as water. The pump and tank are in a metal enclosure so that rainwater cannot enter that area (unless lid is left up). Is this condensation the "source of water" you are referring to? If so, how can it be prevented since the tank is supposed to be vented.

In my case, there was a lot of white goop... mayonaise kinda stuff... all over the filter and elsewhere in the system. It's this contamination that sticks in the hoses and elsewhere you are trying to remove. Ummm gets kinda expensive to repeatedly drain multiple gallons of hydraulic fluid... in my area 5 gallons is about $27 for the cheap stuff.

In my case, the tank could be completely removed (unbolted) and when the pump was removed from the tank there was a large opening that I could get my hand into and use rags to completely remove all the gunk clinging to the sides and bottom of the tank.

 

[whodat90]

As said, retract all the cylinders, drain the tank, and refill with cheap hydraulic fluid. Add a couple bottles of HEET or similar gas line antifreeze stuff you'll find in the autoparts section. It's basically pure alcohol, which is both water soluble and petrochemical soluble, so it'll kind of dissolve all the water into the hydraulic fluid. Operate the controls a bit to get all the old stuff out, then retract and drain and refill again. That should get most of it at once.

 

[kennyd]

Kennyd, in my dump trailer, the vented cap lets air enter the tank... and I assume that this is where the moisture enters... when high humidity... then ( I assume) condenses out as water. The pump and tank are in a metal enclosure so that rainwater cannot enter that area (unless lid is left up). Is this condensation the "source of water" you are referring to? If so, how can it be prevented since the tank is supposed to be vented.

I meant to check the cap to make sure that no water can run into the tank-he said that his tank was "half full of water" so I am assuming that this not just a condensation issue.

Ummm gets kinda expensive to repeatedly drain multiple gallons of hydraulic fluid... in my area 5 gallons is about $27 for the cheap stuff.

I understand hydraulic fluid is expensive, but there is no other way to flush the system short of completely disassembling every component.

 

[texasjohn]

KennyD... understand, agreed, thanks!

 

[SkunkWerX]

I understand hydraulic fluid is expensive, but there is no other way to flush the system short of completely disassembling every component.

And, for a moment, let's say you did break down the tank, hoses, and cylinders to individually clean them, in the end, you would still end up doing at least 1 full flush-fill after re-assembling, and probably two flush n fills to ensure you got everything purged.

Walmart is probably the cheapest place.

If you knew the source, I wonder if you could get away with using Once-used hyd-fluid from a clean tractor, for the first Purge , while using the HEET additive? Then follow with another Purge of brand new, and then finally, your fill-up with more new.

Good Luck.