If you’re unsure about the condition of your hydraulic pump, then there are several tests that you can put it through to find out. When you add the results together, you’ll be far more knowledgeable about what might be going on with your pump.
For example, you should already be aware and have a true measurement of what the ‘normal’ or everyday temperature of your pump case is. How about the case flow? Are you aware of what the draw of your drive motor is? Each of these should be measured when your hydraulic system is running well and then used as indicators to discover any issues, at other less ‘smooth’ moments of operation.
In some cases, you may make the checks but still not be clear on what the problem might be. It’s only when the pump is replaced with another and the issues go away, that you can ascertain there is a problem with that pump.
However, there is one test that is the ultimate test for a hydraulic pump. It’s going to tell you instantly whether that pump is good or bad and it can be performed quickly. Just as long as your system is set up for it, you will be able to do it in under a minute. However, most systems are not usually set up for it.
Here’s how you go about it. Nearly all pumps (good or bad), without any resistance will push through close to all its flow. However, when there is normal system pressure, it’s only a pump that is fit and working well that can deliver its rated flow. You can check this by monitoring that what’s passing through the system relief valve, in terms of flow.
For just a few hundred pounds, it’s possible to give yourself access to permanently available information about the condition of the pump. Install your flow meter and get your measurements.
Although this may seem senseless when everything is running on par, and it might be on par for a few years! When there is an issue with the system and you are amid the pressure of unwanted and very expensive downtime, and the boss is breathing down your neck – that a flow meter is going to provide you with some highly valuable information.
In our experience and from what we’ve heard from our clients, on their larger hydraulic systems, is that a flow meter more than pays for itself, the first time that it provides an indication that the pump does not need to be changed. It becomes apparent that installing a flow meter in every system in the plant is worth the expenditure, and doing so is possible from the savings made from that first occasion.
It will depend upon the system’s configuration, as to where the flow meter would best be mounted. It might be more suited to place it in the relief valve tank line, or in the pressure line of the pump upstream. Most often, it’s less expensive to put one in the relief valve tank line. This is because the meter used in this location can be rated for a lower pressure.
Regrettably, it’s not every system that has a relief tank line exposed. If it doesn’t have one, then this makes it necessary for a high-pressure flow meter to be set up, somewhere between the relief