Troubleshooting Hydraulic Relief Valves
Meet the relief valve. Contrary to how things might appear, it’s actually the unrecognised superhero of most hydraulic systems. Its heroic contribution is of great importance due to its ability to control the power that can be generated by the system.
Its role is to ensure that the pressure in the system will not go beyond its limit. This will result in less wear and tear of hydraulic components and will go a long way in assuring the safety of workers and operators.
The relief valve is in truth, a very simple component that cannot be matched by any other when it comes to ensuring the efficiency of the hydraulic system.
Prep yourself on more hydraulic system troubleshooting knowledge with our steps on how to handle issues with relief valves:
The first step with understanding what’s going on is to check the pressure with a pressure gauge inserted into the test port. Are you getting a reading that is in line with what the maximum pressure should be?
If so, you’ll next need to check where there is a system pressure problem with the flow. To do this, check the line to see if it’s been blocked. If not, then check whether the relief gauge is working properly as this could also be the underlying issue.
If you don’t find maximum pressure then check whether the machine is under load, it could be that there is too much load for the hydraulics system to cope with. Once you have done that, compare the reading of being under load to the measure of when there is no motion underway. If there is still an issue, you may need to adjust the relief valve.
Follow our blog to keep informed about hydraulic systems and catch up on related news and free knowhow!