no hydraulics in cold weather

[dbrooks]

I am having a problem with the hydraulics not working at all on my 7245 when the outside tempatures get below freezing. It seems that the colder the temps the longer it takes for the hydraulics to start working. Sometimes I have to let the machine idle for an hour before the hydraulics start to work. I installed a new internal hydraulic pump 2 years ago and the first winter it worked great, then last winter I started having these issues. I replaced the 80/90W hydraulic oil when I replaced the pump. Should I be using a lighter oil in the winter? I live in Maine and I operate the tractor sometimes as cold as 0 degrees farenhite.

 

[forterra9641]

yes i think its the thick oil in low temperatures thats the problem in thi case. 80/90 is way to thick in Winter time.

 

[Renze]

did you ever change the oil ? I once had a frozen rear end due to the amount of moisture the gear oil had absorbed. when sitting a summer in an open barrel the water evaporated and now i use it as chainsaw oil

 

[dbrooks]

I changed the oil when I installed the new hydraulic pump in November 2011, so the oil has seen 2 warm weather seasons and 2 cold weather seasons. I only put 40-80 hours per year on this machine. I've owned this tractor for 10 years and have always wondered about the coffee with cream color of the hydraulic oil. I have completely changed the hydraulic oil, filters and cleaned the screens 3 times since owning the tractor. What oil and how often should it be replaced in my situation?

 

[leonard_donnellan]

If the oil is milky colour then there is water and this may be the reason that the hydraulics don't work when it's freezing.
In Ireland we use 15w30 universal tractor oil.
Do you have a cab on your tractor? if not is it parked outside or inside?

 

[forterra9641]

I changed the oil when I installed the new hydraulic pump in November 2011, so the oil has seen 2 warm weather seasons and 2 cold weather seasons. I only put 40-80 hours per year on this machine. I've owned this tractor for 10 years and have always wondered about the coffee with cream color of the hydraulic oil. I have completely changed the hydraulic oil, filters and cleaned the screens 3 times since owning the tractor. What oil and how often should it be replaced in my situation?

if you only put under 100 hours pr year on it, i can understand the milky oil and condensation. because the oil is not at working temperatures long enuogh to make the water evaporate. With a tractor thats being used the oil gets hot and water evaporates before it can Reach such an amount it gets the oil milky. also a thinner oil will be better

 

[dbrooks]

I do not have a cab for my tractor and it is always parked outside, sometimes under cover sometimes not. Do you really think the milky color is from condensation? That would make a lot of sense. I had once thought that rain water must be getting into the cases somewhere, but I really could not think that would be possible. Do you think that a lighter weight oil is the best solution?

 

[dbrooks]

Well, I changed out the hydraulic oil and filter today (+15 degrees F.). I was told by the service manager at Zetor to replace the 85/90W hydraulic oil with Universal Tractor Fluid and that it was his opinion that the milky color of the fluid is from condensation and that by running the tractor for short and infrequent periods of time the water in the oil was not being heated up and evaporated. So, when I loosend the bolt to remove the filter water starts flowing out. When I removed the filter and housing, ice is completely encapsulating the filter and the inside of the filter housing has ice too. Other than the milky appearance of the oil the only obvious area of water contamination was at the filter. I am so glad I asked for advice from this forums members and contacted the service manager at Zetor. A huge Thank You to all. Being able to ask for advice and receiving it is priceless. Once again, lessons learned.

 

[donny2stroke]

Hello DBrooks

Just had the same problem on our 5245 in cold weather, thanks to your thread, we changed out the oil and its back to working as it should. oil was heavily contaminated with water (very milky) and a bit of gunk in the magnetic filter as well. hope your zetor serves you well