After your factory's equipment has started slowing down or having intermittent problems, you may have discovered that the hydraulic fluid is low. Once you conduct a thorough investigation into the cause, you may have found that the fluid is leaking around the seals. 

Since the fluid is coming out around the seals, you may be wondering what type of damage could have occurred that could cause the issue. While there are a couple of possible reasons why the seals in your machinery's hydraulic system are leaking fluid, either of the causes will require that they be replaced.

1. Seals Subjected to High-pressure Spikes Can Become Fractured 

One possible reason why the seals are leaking is that they have been subjected to spikes of high pressure within the hydraulic cylinder. These spikes often occur during periods of extra demand on the machine.

If the seals are constantly subjected to these high-pressure spikes, the stress on them will cause them to fracture. Not only will small cracks appear and run through the material, but parts of the seals will start to break off.

The holes and cracks caused by fracturing will cause the fluid to leak. Since this issue cannot be repaired or patched, you will need to replace the seals.

2. Exposure to High Temperatures Can Harden and Crack the Seals

Another possible explanation for the fluid leak around the seals is that they have become hard. When constantly exposed to high temperatures, the normally flexible material from which the seals are made will stiffen and become hard.

To do their job, the seals must be malleable. If they harden from the high temperatures, they will be more prone to cracking under the pressure of the fluid built up within the hydraulic cylinder. Once the seals stiffen and crack, they will leak fluid. As with the fracturing, the seals will need to be replaced to stop the fluid from leaking

When the seals on your factory machinery start to leak hydraulic fluid, they may have become fractured because of spikes in the pressure within the cylinder. They can also start cracking because of exposure to high temperatures that harden the otherwise flexible material of the seals. If the system is leaking because of fractured or cracked seals, contact an industrial equipment and supply company that sells hydraulic seals. You can ask the supplier to assist you in selecting replacements for the bad ones.