FEL loses to gravity

[Makers_Mark]

I must have some kind of leak. This can't be normal. My bucket very slowly lowers itself, even when the engine is running. I first noticed when I parked the tractor for the night and forgot to lower the FEL. Well, by morning it lowered itself. I don't see fluid dripping. Can this be a faulty air valve of sorts?

[Bird]

Billy, if you have no external leaks, then the hydraulic fluid is either getting by the seals in the cylinders or leaking back through the FEL control valve. I'm not familiar with your tractor and FEL, and I always lower the FEL to the ground when parking the tractor; however, if your FEL is a quick connect type on which the valve and lever stay with the tractor you can raise the FEL a little, put a jack, extended, under the bucket, let the it down on the jack to relief the pressure in the lines, disconnect the lines from the valve, then lower and remove the jack. Leave it that way awhile and see if it lowers. If it does, then the cylinder seals are leaking. If it doesn't, then those seals are OK and it's the valve that's leaking. Of course, there's the possibility that both are leaking a little. [img]/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] And depending on how fast the FEL lowers by itself, it may or may not be "within specs."

[Woodbeef]

You might have done some damage leaving it up over night. Especially since it leaked down by itself. Can't be very good for the system.

[OkieNCognito]

Billy, I'm not a hydraulics mechanic but, from my experience, a gradual bleed-down IS normal. I've been around many different tractors of varying ages all my life and I have yet to see one that will not eventually lower itself.

I also cannot confirm that it will or will not actually harm the system by leaving it up, but I always make it a practice to lower any implement to the ground after shutting down the tractor - it's safer plus it just seems to make sense to relieve the pressure.

[buppy69]

My tractor spent 3 weeks in a shipping container from Japan with the loader in the up position and another tractor under the bucket. It was still raised when I opened the doors.

Eugene

[slowrev]

Very few loaders will stay up for too long. I don't think that leaving the loader up should damage the system, however it is not a safe thing to do.

[stvman]

IMHO it is not normal for a loader to bleed down. I worked on aircraft loaders for 6 years in the Airforce, any bleed down is unacceptable. If you have no hydraulic fluid weeping from the loader cylinders your loader valve is the problem.

If a tractor is older and has dings in the cylinders a slow bleed down is normal but I would never accept that from a new tractor.

[JayC]

There is a dealer near here that sells Case and Cub Cadet compact utility tractors. I would be weary buying one from them. They usually leave the FELs in the raised position for weeks at a time. I guess for "display" purposes. They do that with skid steers they sell, too. And almost always after a little while you can tell the FELs are lowering to the ground. Now the John Deere dealer almost next door to the Cub/Case dealer hardly ever leaves their FELs up. If they do the dealer usually has them lowered at night when they are closed.

[shady1701]

any hydralic system bleeds down due to high pressure and generaly inability to seal such small clearances just like 3pt lift it will leak down and small amount of leakage is acceptable i'd say between 3-10% or so ..