water in my cat

[Mikey P]

...a few ounces showed up in my AT's cat pump.

Saw it in the site tube AT installs..

Drained it out but it's obvious the oil's been polluted.

What causes the high pressure seal to fail after a year in a half?

 

[KevinD]

Did you just drain the water out or did you change the oil all together?
Sure it was a few ounces and not just built up condensation in the crankcase?

 

[KevinD]

If you didn't completely change the oil I would, and then monitor the oil.
In order to have a lot of water in the oil it has to make it past the low and high pressure seals along with the oil seals.
That's why I was leaning towards condensation.
What is the humidity in your region?

 

[The Great Oz]

What causes the high pressure seal to fail after a year in a half?

Being a Cat high pressure seal. At least you caught it before it went all grenade-y on you.

You can save $50 off the cost of a new Cat by rebuilding the current one.

 

[GeneMiller]

Never seen water inside of my cat pump but I've never checked. Over 17k hrs and only changed out the low pressure seals once. I even bought a new one at around 6k because I was expecting it to fail. It never did. Change the oil and forget about it. Always keep a spare on hand.

Gene

 

[Mikey P]

New seals on the way

 

[dealtimeman]

I would also have an extra 5cp6120.3400 on the shelf, on the in case.

With that many jobs in the schedule you can't be waiting 3 days for a pump.

 

[Desk Jockey]

You can save $50 off the cost of a new Cat by rebuilding the current one.

Damn! Talk about kicking a man when he's down. LOL

 

[Art Kelley]

That reminds me, I should change the oil in my Cat 5cp. It's been about 8 years since I did that last. There may be some of that same condensation water as in Mike's pump. Incredibly reliable pump. Haven't changed the seals at all in 12 years.

 

[Russ T.]

That reminds me, I should change the oil in my Cat 5cp. It's been about 8 years since I did that last. There may be some of that same condensation water as in Mike's pump. Incredibly reliable pump. Haven't changed the seals at all in 12 years.

That IS incredible!

I guess there's no reason for routine low pressure seal replacement?

I was going to replace mine, getting ready for Spring with 1 BUSY truck. Just over thinking it, I'm sure.

 

[The Great Oz]

We loved the old Cat 290s, but no such luck with 3 or 5CPs. An example of "your mileage may vary,"

 

[Charlie Lyman]

Did it look like this?

 

[dealtimeman]

While I am no rocket scientist, I don't think that looks good.

 

[Mikey P]

Darker


Much different site tube on the at

 

[Jim at Cat Pumps]

...a few ounces showed up in my AT's cat pump.

Saw it in the site tube AT installs..

Drained it out but it's obvious the oil's been polluted.

What causes the high pressure seal to fail after a year in a half?

Seals can (and sometimes do) get ruined in one day! How? Running a pump “dry” or running at too high of a pressure are two typical ways this can happen. What has happened over the course of a year and a half? How many hours are on the pump? Maybe the pump has been cavitating, causing the seals to wear? What about the water temperature or chemicals being used?

A worn high-pressure seal will not leak water; a worn high-pressure seal will cause a loss in pressure. A worn low-pressure seal will cause a pump to leak. As for the reports from other users who have had many years on their Cat Pumps without issues, odds are they are operating well within pump specs and have the pump inlet plumbed properly. In our experience, the inlet condition is the main factor determining pump life, everything else being equal.

One more thing: just like you would not run your truck for 100,000 miles without an oil change, it is a good idea to drain and replace the crankcase oil every so often. We build our pumps like tanks to run for a long, long time, but please do not tempt fate!
Contact the Cat Pumps teach sales group if you would like to get into specifics. Email address: techsupport@catpumps.com

Thanks for using Cat Pumps!

 

[Mikey P]

Jim

Should I pull the truck out of commission or can it run fit a few days with the contaminated oil?

 

[KevinD]

Jim

Should I pull the truck out of commission or can it run fit a few days with the contaminated oil?

At least take 10 minutes and change the oil.

 

[dealtimeman]

at least a quick change will restore some of the correct oil viscosity levels for a short time.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

Oil is stinking cheap. Change it twice, now, and after 30 minutes running.

If you leave the water in it for any length of time you get that milky emulsion that won't drain completely the first change.

 

[BradFenstermaker]

Grab cat oil at home Depot maybe.
I get mine at Northern Tool.

Capitoni uses a differ end oil I think.
Check with him for short term alternative.

 

[dealtimeman]

We use Lucas hydraulic fluid as it meets or exceeds the spec that cat has recomended

 

[Mike Draper]

10/30 full synthetic is fine with some lucas additive is great.

 

[dgardner]

Cat pump oil is an ISO 68 (which is 30 weight) non-detergent hydraulic oil. If you are just going to run the oil a short time to flush out the water then any inexpensive 30W non-detergent oil would be fine.

Buy the right stuff once the water is flushed out and the seals are replaced.

 

[dealtimeman]

Dan that's why I like th Lucas hydraulic fluid, ISO 68 and cheap like 16 dollars for the gallon and has lubricity additives for better protection.

 

[dealtimeman]

Most quarts of oil now days are on the higher side of 3 dollar to 4 dollar a quart.

So I just get the gallon of the good stuff.

 

[dgardner]

Ah - very good. The stuff I posted is like $2.75 a quart - good for a cheap flush or to run for a few hours if the seals are still leaking, I wouldn't run it for hundreds of hours though.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

I have. No noticeable difference, other than the horrified reaction some have.

Clean oil, and enough oil is much better than the alternative.

Now that the Cat Technician is here I may get some heat :-)

 

[dgardner]

Clean oil, and enough oil is much better than the alternative.

Agreed. If the oil is changed often enough and kept at the right level, then fancy additives are moot. I'm just reluctant to tell someone to run that oil regularly, though truth be told I personally would....

 

[dgardner]

I may get some heat :-)

You know the right oil will alleviate that problem...

 

[Desk Jockey]

If its under warranty I'd use the Cat Pump oil. Its all we ever use anyway.


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