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Posted on: 21 July 2015

Hydraulic seals may be a small part of a hydraulic system, but they play an important role in its proper function. While seals will fail over time, there are still steps that you should take to prolong the life of your seals. When the inevitable day comes that your seals do fail, there is a proper way to go about making repairs. With a little education, you should be able to avoid the problems associated with damaged hydraulic seals. 

Causes of Seal Failure

One of the main causes of seal failure is contamination, which can come in three different forms:

1. External Sources: Dust and grit can stick to your hydraulic rods while extended. When your rods slide back into the cylinder, the seals should keep these contaminants from getting inside your system, but the grit can still wear down the seal and cause it to fail. 

2. Internal Sources: The normal function of your system can shave off flakes of metal and these can damage your seals until they start to leak. 

3. Fluid Choice: If you change the fluid in your system, the new fluid may eat at your seal and cause it to fail. 

You can take steps to avoid these problems by cleaning your piston rods, checking your system filter regularly, and making sure that your seal material and your choice of seal work together. On the other hand, heat and normal operation conditions will cause seals to get brittle and fail with time. 

Recognizing Damaged Seals

If you have greasy, dirty stains on your equipment, this a a good sign that you have a leak. Gravity will cause leaks to travel in a downward direction, so you should be able to follow the stain up to its source to locate a problem. If the stain ends at the end of your cylinder, then you most likely have a damaged seal. 

Replacing Damaged Seals

You may be tempted to repair a seal on your own, but the risks are too high to justify your actions. Breaking a seal can cause your piston to shoot out of the cylinder and cause damage to your equipment or bodily harm. Furthermore, leaking hydraulic fluid can jet out with such force that it can puncture your skin and cause serious injury. Thus, you should always trust hydraulic system repairs to trained professionals. 

If you don't fix leaks in a timely manner, you can lose a lot of hydraulic fluid and as this fluid leaks out, your equipment will stop working like it should. You can keep a supply of fluid on hand to replenish your system, but this is an unnecessary cost. Thus, your best choice when you become aware of a leak is to have it repaired.