Ok to add antifreeze to hydraulic fluid?

[Gordon Gould]

Spoke to a tractor mechanic today ...........

Either he is not really a mechanic or he is and knows how to bring in work.

 

[jodebg]

Can you send a photo of your control valve and where you drilled the holes. I have heard of this but not sure about what to drill and where. Thanks.

The crazy thing about this story is that the trouble with the loader valve is probably condensation in the valve itself, not the fluid. There have been posts on TBN about this problem, and I had the problem with the loader valve freezing on my tractor, Kubota L3830. The fix in my case was to drill little drain holes in the bottom of the valve. When I did, a thimble full of water ran out. I sprayed some WD40 in there to drive out the moisture, and no more problem. That was years ago and counting.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Can you send a photo of your control valve and where you drilled the holes. I have heard of this but not sure about what to drill and where. Thanks.

This may be a good location for a bit of anti-freeze but for sure not in the hydraulic oil reservoir. I have never seen a control valve that was water tight, but if yours is, then a drain hole is definitely the way to go to prevent freeze up. I seriously doubt that water would be in the fluid enough to cause a freeze up without it causing a lot of problems else where. If the hydraulic oil is clear and not milky it has no water in it. If its milky, flush it and put in fresh oil and filters to make the problem go away, but check for locations that may be allowing ingress of water, like shifter boots on gear drive units.

 

[sixdogs]

I would never add anti freeze to anything internal. Sounds like odd advice. If my loader was slow going in the cold weather I would simply switch to synthetic fluid and eliminate the problem.

 

[batwing]

I wonder what type of antifreeze the mechanic is talking about. maybe a little Jim Beam!

 

[john_bud]

Oh my gosh! The back of my hand hurts just imagining a "mechanic" suggesting such craziness to me.

Don't fall for it. He's probably a french model too.

If you have water in hyd fluid, flush and fill more frequently and potentially change your operating habits. Short periods of operation can bring in significant amounts of water. Try to always do a minimum of 60 min of full throttle hard work after warm up, especially in winter.

 

[rsallen]

Even IF adding anti-freeze were/is acceptable. Big if imho, but if it were how would that help if your problem is actually outside of the hydro system? ie. the valve body itself.

 

[coobie]

Spoke to a tractor mechanic today who told me to add a small amount of
antifreeze to the hydraulic fluid.

We were discussing the fact that when cold, my loader control valve tends to freeze.
He suggested that adding the antifreeze would help eliminate moisture in the system.

Would this addition of antifreeze contaminate the hydraulic fluid and damage the system?

TIME to switch Mechanics.

 

[jodebg]

Someone I just met by chance while shopping in Tractor Supply. This really didn't sound right and glad I posted the question
for verification.

 

[jimainiac]

Can you send a photo of your control valve and where you drilled the holes. I have heard of this but not sure about what to drill and where. Thanks.

If you do a search on this site with the words, "frozen loader valve", you will find some instructions. I saw a picture of a valve that I think is similar to yours. It's at the lowest point of the valve.