To minimise or avoid unexpected downtime, it’s important to keep hydraulic systems operating at peak performance. ‘Peak performance’ doesn’t mean going hell for leather all of the time, but ensuring that the right processes are in place for all parts of the system to work optimally and smoothly. Not only does this prevent sudden disruptions to your operation, but can also extend component life, and increase safety across your plant and machinery environment.
In this article, we look at four core maintenance principles that can help you diagnose issues at an earlier stage, protect equipment, and avoid downtime.
1) Maintain clean hydraulic fluid to reduce wear and failure risk
Fluid contamination is one of the leading causes of hydraulic failure. This is because microscopic particles in hydraulic oil can accelerate friction-related wear and tear on pumps, valves, and fittings, particularly under high working pressures. Maintaining fluid cleanliness is, therefore, a critical requirement for long-term system reliability.
Using a high-quality filtration solution, such as the MP Filtri range, gives your engineers a proactive method of removing dirt, water, and sludge from hydraulic fluid. This helps maintain fluid integrity, reduce varnish formation, and protect your systems against premature component fatigue.
Key actions:
- Regularly inspect and replace your filter elements
- Track ISO cleanliness levels based on your equipment requirements
- Use return-line, pressure-line, or off-line filtration, depending on your application
- Sample your hydraulic oil regularly to detect degradation before failure occurs.
2) Monitor hydraulic pressure to identify issues before downtime occurs
Fluid power systems are designed to operate within consistent parameters, so unexpected pressure fluctuations should never be ignored. This is often one of the first signs of impending pump wear, valve damage, or seal deterioration. Accurately logging the system’s pressure ratings during routine inspections will let your engineers detect abnormalities before they develop into critical issues. Pressure gauges, compared with diagnostic access points, make ongoing monitoring relatively straightforward. When used as part of a routine maintenance schedule, they establish an objective performance benchmark from which deviations are easily recognised.
Key actions:
- Install pressure gauges at high value test points
- Compare your readings with system design tolerances
- Investigate abnormal pressure shifts immediately – don’t wait for the next maintenance cycle
- Consider using Webtec flow meters for advanced diagnostic insights
3) Use Minimess test hoses for controlled condition monitoring
Keeping track of performance on a live system can be challenging without the appropriate interface. Minimess test hoses give you a controlled and secure connection between hydraulic circuits and diagnostic instruments, enabling you to sample oil, bleed air, conduct pressure checks, or analyse system condition without having to power down. Their compact form also makes them perfect for installing on mobile plant.
Key actions:
- Fit Minimess points during commissioning or retrofitting
- Use the components with gauges, loggers, and sampling kits for full visibility
- Verify the thread, seal, and pressure specification before selection (or contact one of our technical sales team if unsure)
- Inspect your assemblies routinely for hose wear or abrasion
4) Create a preventative maintenance schedule
If you haven’t already, it’s worthwhile implementing a bespoke preventative maintenance schedule for each hydraulic system. Unplanned breakdowns always reduce productivity, and often increase your lifetime repair costs too, making a strategic maintenance programme one of the most effective ways to reduce downtime.
A good maintenance schedule should include:
- Regular fluid sampling and MP Filtri element replacement
- Pressure and performance testing
- Flow validation with Webtec flow meters or another suitable component
- Joint inspection of piping, hoses and air brake couplings
- Lubrication and alignment checks where applicable
- Preventive replacement of seals, hoses and fittings before failure
What next?
Ultimately, hydraulic reliability depends on proactive maintenance, not reactive repair. Routine monitoring using Minimess test hoses, pressure gauges, filtration solutions, and additional diagnostic tools helps maintain a safe, continuous operation while minimising downtime. Supporting components such as Gates crimp fittings, air brake couplings, and Webtec flow meters also strengthen overall system efficiency when correctly specified and maintained.
If you’d like to find out more, please contact the team at HydraStar today by clicking here.
