Skid Steer Oil Contamination

[Rgillard]

Hello j_j , you talking Fahrenheit or Celsius

 

[J_J]

Fahrenheit.

 

[Soundguy]

devcon is similar to jbweld.

some jb product are good to 400'f not sure about the devcon.. check it's specs.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I can buy into the alcohol use because that is how Sea Foam gets water out of hydralic systems.

Since the alcohol is going to 'boil' off taking the water with it if the fluid is not in need of changing due to its age why drain after using the alcohol?

Our backhoe came filled with "milk". Sea Foam helped some after adding about three quarts over time. I did drain a couple times after loosing a lot of fluid due to hose failure a couple times and an O'ring failure where the main valve attach to the transmission housing.

Even after three drain downs (most of fluid was lost first) I would get out some clear water first. I changed out both filters twice and cleaned the pick up wire screen filter too. The clear water had to be coming from the cylinders where it would settle out because there was no rain or sweating between these drain downs where I found new water like the next day.

Now after adding 20 gallons over time of RENEW from TSC (deals with water better and swells old seals) It is looking OK.

 

[Soundguy]

transtune seafoam can be used as a flush treatment, AND an addative for regular use.

IE.. add a can to new hyd oil, and yes.. it will grab some free water as it is introduced.. etc..

on a sump that looked ike a milkshake.. i'd flush instead of waiting for the heavy water load to boil off..e tc..

 

[Rgillard]

Hi All,

So I went to drain the oil out of the machine tonight and found that the sump plug head was damaged. I gave it a good spray of WD40 and left it for the evening. The socket was slipping off the head. It was getting dark so I left it but the sump is quite close to the ground. The plug is located just behind the right rear wheel. I was thinking of trying to get the machine lifted maybe a foot off the ground to give me better access to the sump plug incase I need to get at it with vise grips. Is it safe to weld to the head of the bolt if it comes to that? What would be the best way to get it up safely. I could build a small ramp using steel girders or maybe jack it up on blocks....

 

[Rgillard]

Could I put it up on my trailer to give me better access...?

 

[Soundguy]

I don't think I've ever bought a tractor that DID NOT have a rounded off head on all of the drain bolts and plugs..

vise grips will ruin it.. don't even try.

if it is a hex plug.. use a proper 6 pt socket.. it is square you are stuck with 12pt, unless it is some special 1/2" job, or an invert.

get a bottle jack and piece of wood.. use the jack to hold the wood under the socketwrench.. if it still slips.. go right to a pipe wrench... if that slips.. weld a big hex nut to it.

if you feel froggy.. you can use a file or grinder to dress the head by trueing up parallel flats for a wrench for one more try... just be carefull to not cut thru the webbing and cut the head off the plug.. or get the profile so thin that the stump twists off.. as then you will be extracting the threaded shank..

the heat from the helding usually helps.

ps.. wd40 is to remove stickers from glass.. it's not a penetrant.

in any case.. it's a plug going into an oil sump and is thussly already soaked in oil..

here's a big hex nut welded to the sump drain on one of my fords.. had to do that to get it off. It's a fairly common sight.. because owners are too cheap and lazy or ignnorant to put a new 25 cent gasket on the drain plug and instead torque it to 6000# to make it wuit leaking.. or if they pull it off and it's a little damaged.. just repalce it.. putting a damaged plug back in a hole is ASKING for problems...

Hi All,

So I went to drain the oil out of the machine tonight and found that the sump plug head was damaged. I gave it a good spray of WD40 and left it for the evening. The socket was slipping off the head. It was getting dark so I left it but the sump is quite close to the ground. The plug is located just behind the right rear wheel. I was thinking of trying to get the machine lifted maybe a foot off the ground to give me better access to the sump plug incase I need to get at it with vise grips. Is it safe to weld to the head of the bolt if it comes to that? What would be the best way to get it up safely. I could build a small ramp using steel girders or maybe jack it up on blocks....

 

[Rgillard]

I eventually got the sump plug removed...ended up going down the welding route....it was midnight so I dropped the oil and replenished it with oil and got the system free of air...i need a new sump plug now so I didn't add the alcohol yet....will it be ok to add the alcohol just before I drain what's in it now...I didn't want to leave the system without oil so that's why I refilled it....it's nice to look at the oil level sight and see the right colour liquid rather than milk

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Why are you putting in the alcohol if you are just going to drain it out?

I like to put it in after I get it hot and am going to be working it hard for a while for water remove. There is no reason to drain it out that I know about because it just evaporates taking the water with it.

Sometimes I use Sea Foam for water removable because the cleaner and alcohol just evaporate but in the process of removing some water it also cleans any dirt from valve bodies, etc.

 

[Rgillard]

Some of the other guys here are talking about using a mix of oil and alcohol as a flushing fluid mix... I have ordered a new sump plug and gasket but I wont have them until early next week. Out of the 39 litres that are in the system I only got 24 out so there is still 33% contaminated oil, and that was also by dropping the loader arms with gravity. I am sure that this 15l will discolour the good oil fairly quickly. I done a small test by mixing oil and water and it takes very little to turn the oil murky. At the moment the machine is not usuable as the sump plug has a bar welded to it. Here is my plan

1. Wait until the new plug and gasket arrive
2. Add two pints of 99.7% isopropanol alcohol to the tank
3. Run the skid steer for 5 minutes hard...(have to find something to dig). I was going to make up a pipe that directly connects the auxilary lines together so that I could flush them lines also.
4. Drain the system after 5 minutes ( lowering loader arms under gravity again to remove as much as possible)
5. Replenish the system with new oil and filter.
6. Maybe I could add some alcohol to the system when it is hot to try and remove the last bit of water.....

Why are you putting in the alcohol if you are just going to drain it out?

I like to put it in after I get it hot and am going to be working it hard for a while for water remove. There is no reason to drain it out that I know about because it just evaporates taking the water with it.

Sometimes I use Sea Foam for water removable because the cleaner and alcohol just evaporate but in the process of removing some water it also cleans any dirt from valve bodies, etc.

 

[20 20]

Looks like you've got everything covered, sorry to here about the plug, quess that is one of the joys of owning equipment. I would do what you wrote, running and draining, that way when everything is done you'll be much better off.

 

[Soundguy]

I eventually got the sump plug removed...ended up going down the welding route....it was midnight so I dropped the oil and replenished it with oil and got the system free of air...i need a new sump plug now so I didn't add the alcohol yet....will it be ok to add the alcohol just before I drain what's in it now...I didn't want to leave the system without oil so that's why I refilled it....it's nice to look at the oil level sight and see the right colour liquid rather than milk

preferably you would have added the alcohol, then ran it, then drained it.

 

[Soundguy]

Some of the other guys here are talking about using a mix of oil and alcohol as a flushing fluid mix... I have ordered a new sump plug and gasket but I wont have them until early next week. Out of the 39 litres that are in the system I only got 24 out so there is still 33% contaminated oil, and that was also by dropping the loader arms with gravity. I am sure that this 15l will discolour the good oil fairly quickly. I done a small test by mixing oil and water and it takes very little to turn the oil murky. At the moment the machine is not usuable as the sump plug has a bar welded to it. Here is my plan

1. Wait until the new plug and gasket arrive
2. Add two pints of 99.7% isopropanol alcohol to the tank
3. Run the skid steer for 5 minutes hard...(have to find something to dig). I was going to make up a pipe that directly connects the auxilary lines together so that I could flush them lines also.
4. Drain the system after 5 minutes ( lowering loader arms under gravity again to remove as much as possible)
5. Replenish the system with new oil and filter.
6. Maybe I could add some alcohol to the system when it is hot to try and remove the last bit of water.....

sounds like a plan.. but run it a lil mor ethan 5m. got to get the oil warmed to help the process..

 

[J_J]

Here is a system that connect to your hyd system and does a cleaning.

Hydraulic Components, Rams and Parker Hannifin Sales

They say it would cost less to clean than to change out all the fluid.

Sounds good, if it is locally available, and is cheaper then replacing the hyd fluid.

 

[Rgillard]

preferably you would have added the alcohol, then ran it, then drained it.

Oh you mean just before I dropped the original oil in the machine? I didnt because I was having so much difficulty with the bung when I finally got it off I just wanted to get the machine drained.... I have another 40 litres of fresh oil to go into it so I'll get the alcohol in it this time. Would leaving the oil in it for a few hours be too long? Or would you say start the 5 min timer once the machine is up to temperature....

 

[Soundguy]

you've got new oil in there now.. sure.. it's going to be emulsified by the leftover oil.. but you are also adding in some alcohol.

it would not hurt it to use it a couple hours before you drain it..

 

[20 20]

Here is a system that connect to your hyd system and does a cleaning.

Hydraulic Components, Rams and Parker Hannifin Sales

They say it would cost less to clean than to change out all the fluid.

Sounds good, if it is locally available, and is cheaper then replacing the hyd fluid.

J_J; Thanks for the site, interesting. I'm not sure if they'd be cheaper then an oil change in my area, I would think the service call to the middle of the woods would be pricey :laughing: I know one place 10 miles away that gets $75.00 each way before they even get in the vehicle

 

[J_J]

Your are right, as it would only be an option if you could get the tractor to the unit for cleaning, drop it off and pick it up the next day.

That kind of cleaning system might provide someone a good opportunity for a good business venture.

Several people I know have built small filter carts to filter the hyd system, using several hyd filtering canisters, some with water absorbing ability, and a filtering capacity of 2 to 3 microns.

You would only need a small hyd pump driven by an electric motor, several filters assembly's, and QD's to connect to your tractor, and run the machine for 24 hours.

With a 2 GPM pump cart, and a tractor sump of 10 gal. That would be a lot of filtering.