By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Like their fitting and adapter brethren, hydraulic hose assemblies are often an afterthought to the hydraulic designer. I’d rather be working on crafting a unique hydraulic circuit as well, but we shouldn’t forget the importance of a holistic approach to machine design. Your fluid power technicians are an essential piece […]
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How to stop hose expansion in its tracks
By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor I’ll bet you didn’t even know hose expansion was a thing, did you? Sure, we know that hydraulic hose is made primarily from synthetic rubber, which is pliable and soft. Indeed, the whole point of using rubber is to add flexibility to the plumbing routing options, literally and figuratively. The […]
A designer’s guide to fittings and adapters
By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor The hydraulic designer most frequently creates a hydraulic schematic to represent the entirety of the hydraulic pumps, valves, actuators, accessories, and plumbing of a machine. After the first sketch is pencilled, the circuit is migrated to CAD software for refinement, while the bill of materials is systematically populated to reflect […]
Aeroquip by Danfoss hydraulic hose offers flexibility, lower weight to tractors
Danfoss Power Solutions launched its Aeroquip by Danfoss GH888 Main Pump Hose at Agritechnica this week, a two-wire braided hydraulic hose designed for the main pump line on tractors. It can be used in place of four-wire spiral hose in this application, offering greater flexibility, reduced weight, increased heat resistance, and lower total cost of […]
What are the advantages of hydraulic swivel joints?
By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Hydraulic hoses are stressed in two directions — bending and rotating. Hose is designed with reinforced steel spirals or mesh weave, making it perfect for bending, even while internal force exerts stress upon the hose. Torque, on the other hand, makes friends with no hydraulic hose. If you’ve ever tried […]
Preventing hazards with safe, reliable hose designs
Utility equipment requires special non-conductive components and safe hose designs to ensure bucket lifts stay elevated and spark-free. Contributed by Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Some sub-genres of hydraulics are pretty generic, with little in the way of unique requirements due to application, environment or purpose. Industrial hydraulics, by and large, fits into the generally generic […]
When should you use plastic fitting materials?
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth and final in a multi-part series on materials used in fluid power hose fittings. We will cover carbon steel, stainless steel, and brass. By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor It’s hard to overstate the relevance of one of the most important inventions of all time – plastic. As you read […]
Four things to consider when buying a hydraulic hose
Contributed by Alex Ng, CES Application Engineering Manager • ContiTech USA Inc. Selecting the right hydraulic hose on a piece of industrial equipment is often an afterthought — if it gets any thought at all — even though a hose failure can be catastrophic. A ruptured hose can be life threatening, harmful to the environment, […]
When should you use stainless steel fittings?
Editor’s Note: This is the third in a multi-part series on materials used in fluid power hose fittings. We will cover carbon steel, stainless steel, brass and plastic. By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor In this third installment of our four-part series on fitting materials, I discuss stainless steel. Stainless steel offers a level of corrosion […]
When should you use brass fluid power fitting materials?
Editor’s Note: This is the second in a multi-part series on materials used in fluid power fittings. We will cover carbon steel, stainless steel, brass and plastic. By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Brass is an alloy primarily made of copper and zinc, and depending on the formulation, it may also contain small amounts of lead […]
