It would be a virtually impossible task to try to document the cause and remedy of every possible fault that could occur on even the simplest hydraulic system. For this reason it is necessary to adopt a logical approach to troubleshooting, in order to locate a fault as quickly and accurately as possible. Down time on modern production machinery is very expensive, so an hour saved in locating a problem may make hundreds, or sometimes thousands, of pounds worth of saving in los production.

Many problems with hydraulic systems occur on start-up of a new system, after a repair or overhaul, after a new component is added, or when a component is adjusted or some other form of change occurs. In any machine, particularly in hydraulics, any change in one part of the system will affect all the other parts of the total system. This will result in problems that will require trouble shooting.

In a properly operating bearing the race ways and rolling elements will become dull in appearance. This dullness is not an indication of wear and has no affect on the life of the bearing. These dull surfaces form the visible paths that I will be referring to in the following paragraphs, so their appearance and location is important in analyzing any type of bearing failure.

Part 8 of 9 on Troubleshooting Mechanical Seals: Heat Cracking or Heat Checking – symptoms, causes, failure modes, and solutions.

Part 7 of 9 on Troubleshooting Mechanical Seals: Coking or Crystallized – symptoms, causes, failure modes, and solutions.

Part 6 of 9 on Troubleshooting Mechanical Seals: Chipping – symptoms, causes, failure modes, and solutions.

Part 5 of 9 on Troubleshooting Mechanical Seals: Scoring – symptoms, causes, failure modes, and solutions.