Just realized that old timer's advice about hydraulic oil was spot on

Back when I started dredging six years ago, an operator named Carl told me to always warm up the hydraulic system for at least 15 minutes before any heavy digging. I thought he was being overly cautious, so I'd sometimes skip it to save time. Last month on a job near Mobile Bay, I pushed through cold oil and blew a seal on the main boom cylinder. That repair cost me $1,800 and two days of downtime. Now I follow Carl's advice every single morning without fail. Has anyone else learned a hard lesson from ignoring experienced operators?

2 comments

2 Comments

aaronrobinson7d ago

Man that Carl sounds like he knew what he was talking about. My version of that lesson was ignoring a pipefitter named Jim who told me to always put a catch pan under hydraulic fittings before breaking them. Thought I was faster than that until a face full of hot oil taught me otherwise. Now I look like a fool every morning with pans scattered everywhere but at least my shirt stays clean. Funny how those old guys just nod when they see you finally doing it their way.

rileyl677d ago

Did your buddy ever meet that pipefitter Jim after he learned his lesson the hard way? My friend Dave had the SAME thing happen with an old electrician who told him to always kill the main breaker before swapping a socket, and now he has a singed eyebrow to prove he should have listened.