A few years ago we were asked by one of our clients "Do you do Flow Testing?"
We said "not yet, but we will investigate and get back to you".
We called our specialist hydraulics suppliers looking for a Hydraulic flow test kit and we were astounded at the prices of flow test kits.
Starting from Au $4400 and you still needed to supply your own hoses and adaptors to connect to the hydraulic circuit you wanted to test. So flow testing went on the back burner for a while.
Eventually with more and more clients requesting flow testing services we borrowed a flow tester from one of our trusted advisers, Charlie Gray.
Charlie had built his own from bits and pieces laying around his hydraulics workshop and had then mounted it all into an empty Bosch drill case.
The seed was planted and we then took Charlie's Idea a few steps further and designed and assembled our own flow test kit with the following capabilities.
- Measure Oil Flows up to 120 litres per minute or (32 gallons/Min).
- Induce Pressures up to 350 Bar (5150 PSI)
- Measure Oil Tempetatures up to 110 Degrees Celsius.
- The latest upgrade has been to take the basic Single Direction to Oil Flow design and make it Bi Directional Oil Flow Design.
- This upgrade takes all errors out of the connection and testing process as well as being able to test Bi Directional Pumps, closed loop systems as well as Motor and cylinder circuits without having to disconnect and reconnect.
- This upgrade is awesome value for money at $530 and is well worth it for the additional flexibility and versatility it provides.
We have sold this Flow Test Kit (see picture below) all over Australia.
Our Price as you see it Under AU $2000 inclusive of GST.
To purchase this flow test kit including Hoses & Heavy duty carry case please click here
An alternative to the flow test kit is a High Quality German made 600 Bar (8820 PSI) rated Digital Pressure Test Kit From STAUFF Germany.
Description
A flow test is the quickest and least invasive way to quickly check for internal leakage of a suspected component in a hydraulic circuit be it a valve, motor or pump.
A flow test can also be used to ascertain if the engine or motor powering the hydraulic system is in good condition and or even capable of powering the hydraulic system's requirements.
Hydraulic pumps, directional control valves, relief valves and cylinders in a hydraulic circuit can be individually checked for internal leakage.
Principle of operation,
The flow test kit is added into the hydraulic circuit and is connected as close as possible before or after the suspected component.
Using a relatively easy process of recorded measurements, logic and simple elimination each component can be individually tested and results compared to the performance of the rest of the hydraulic circuit.
The process described below is used for testing a hydraulic pump.
The flow test kit is installed as close as possible to the pump's pressure port.
The pump is started and allowed to free flow without load. Flow, and temperature are recorded at free flow.
The flow control valve is then slowly closed to induce a resistance to flow and any changes to flow, pressure and temperature are recorded (usually at 20 Bar or 250 PSI intervals) this test is usually carried out up to the pump's maximum manufacturers recommended pressure.
Results are then compared to manufacturer's data to ascertain any loss in performance.
As a rule: A hydraulic system will have anywhere from 20 to 500 PSI system back Pressure, so if for example a pump has a 300 PSI system pressure and flows 100 Litres Per Min, and then flows 75 liters per Minute at 210 bar or 3000 PSI Pressure (75% on original flow) it is considered okay to leave pump in service.
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