I am considering a ASV RT135F skid steer. It requires a no zinc hydraulic oil. I already have a Deere 332E skid steer. I was hoping to use the same attachments, mainly a tree saw and grapple bucket between them. I am wondering about contamination from the Deere oil in the no zinc ASV system. Would switching the Deere to no zinc be a good solution? Or an I picking fly **** out of pepper.
I wonder if it would be good to drain the hoses and/or blow them out if switching machines. Not sure if a small amount of cross contamination is OK?
Think it would certainly be fine.
my oil guy told me the no zinc is for environmental u lose that zinc oil in a stream and the oil police are awakened
so I bought a tote of zinc hydraulic, way cheaper,I think almost half the price
A number of years ago Hitachi went to non-zinc oils. 2 local contractors each had a ZX120-1, one contractors mechanic accidently added standard, old school hyd oil to their machine, the dealer picked it up, took it to their shop, drained and flushed the system 4 times to purge it.(cost them big bucks) Told them that mixing the two oils would cause major problems. The other contractor added standard old school hyd oil to their machine on a regular basis and never had a problem. Dealers and oil salesmen will tell you it will cause problems but many in real life do it and I've never heard of them having a problem.
Here is a link to the Amsoil website that explains the differences. Understanding Zinc vs. Zinc-Free Hydraulic Oil - AMSOIL Industrial Blog blog.amsoilindustrial.com
Personally I wouldn't mix zinc-free and non zinc-free hydraulic oils under any circumstances.
True Dat. But,…… Zinc dialkyldithiophosphates will also corrode brass. Like the slippers in the piston pump. Entrained water and condensation accelerates the process. Zinc also falls out of suspension and plugs filters and becomes a contaminant. With modern high system pressures and outrageous component replacement costs, the value proposition should be considered. Zinc will also eat up the crank journal bearings in EMD engines. I’ll sell you whatever flavor you want. Zinc or no zinc. I love Zink dialkyldithiophosphate. It’s not always the answer.
PSA- I’ll mention it again. If you guys really want to save some dough on hydraulic fluid, ask your oil guy about expired product. He might sell it for cash out the back door or just thank you for taking it off his books. The more you know,….. amiright? Get some of that. That’s the good stuff.
Or, a big customer will order a huge lot of some goofy fluid, for some goofy machine, then the fluid doesn’t get used. It sits until it can’t be returned or it expires. Then, it becomes a liability. But, it works great in that leaking 25 year old Komatsu.
What are the downsides to the zinc free other than cost? In a machine that calls for AW 46.
ZDDP is a great anti-wear additive. It depends on the pump design. Cast iron and aluminum pumps with steel gear sets will do better with zinc. Vane pumps working close to their max pressure, high heat and duty cycle applications. Older Rexroth and Eaton Vickers piston pumps may do better with a traditional, clean AW46. In those situations, a zinc free might cause more wear.
I've always been of the persuasion that you don't mix oils if you want to avoid problems down the road and always advise customers of that. But like I said, I've also seen it done with little to no negative results. Between loggers and farmers it seems that almost anything ends up in a hydraulic system.
the oil guy did say to drain in, out do not mix.
Thanks everyone for the comments. I may kick the can down the road.
No better example is a flat tappet camshaft, won't last long without it.