Ferris Hydraulic Tank Leaking

harley1

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Any ideas will help---Plastic hydraulic oil tank lower seal leaking after only 20 or so hours. Replaced the seal and only went another 15 hours this time. Plastic tnak or hose cracked? Nope --- new tank assy installed, and the hose is fine. I love my little mower and I don't want to sell it because of an apparent poor engineering choice...PLASTIC
 

east_tn_emc

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I would check to make sure the hose isnt binding or vibrating and putting a stress on the seal.

I would think there would not be an issue with the tank or the seal, in general, because they sell a bunch of those mowers. If there was a design flaw then a lot of people would be having the issue.

Also make sure the hose isnt vibrating while the mower (and deck) are running. I would look for anything that would put a strain on the hose that goes into the tank. Maybe you could clamp or otherwise secure the hose to the mower body to keep it from vibrating.
 

harley1

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Thanks!! I will be looking at the overall layout again.
 

harley1

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Thanks all - But no luck, keep on adding oil every time out...considering custom metal tank...oh well, I still like my little mower.
 

harley1

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Ta-Dah!! Just put on a custom made tank. Not a drop after running for 3 or 4 hours. I had a local welding shop make it of aluminum for about $100 and a trip to the hardware store for fittings. Cheap fix considering that another tank is $80 and there is about $50 in oil all over my garage, driveway and yard. Now I can rest easy knowing the tank isn't leaking. Thank you all for the help and ideas.
 

Kmzlawncare

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Ta-Dah!! Just put on a custom made tank. Not a drop after running for 3 or 4 hours. I had a local welding shop make it of aluminum for about $100 and a trip to the hardware store for fittings. Cheap fix considering that another tank is $80 and there is about $50 in oil all over my garage, driveway and yard. Now I can rest easy knowing the tank isn't leaking. Thank you all for the help and ideas.

I'm having the same problem only 170hrs and my tank is leaking and I can't seem to fix it. I may have to have a tank made also .
 

Kmzlawncare

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I'm having the same problem only 170hrs and my tank is leaking and I can't seem to fix it. I may have to have a tank made also .

Do you have any pictures of your new tank I'm about fed up to I put a new seal on mine and it's leaking again and I have not even mowed with it.I think ferris needs a new design.
 

ZooMan

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Any chance you can post a picture?

Thanks

Ken

I would check to make sure the hose isnt binding or vibrating and putting a stress on the seal.

I would think there would not be an issue with the tank or the seal, in general, because they sell a bunch of those mowers. If there was a design flaw then a lot of people would be having the issue.

Also make sure the hose isnt vibrating while the mower (and deck) are running. I would look for anything that would put a strain on the hose that goes into the tank. Maybe you could clamp or otherwise secure the hose to the mower body to keep it from vibrating.
 

greglane25

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Our 1500Z is about 10 years old. I had the same hydraulic tank leak issue. The biggest danger is that you run the tank dry and damage the pumps, as the oil may leak when mowing and not be seen, and you may not know until it's too late
The oil tank outlet fitting is a very poor design, as any pull the hose has will upset any possible seal. I replaced the rubber grommet but still it leaked badly.
So...I went to a local hydraulics store. The hole is about 3/4" dia, so about the same diameter as the OD of a 1/2" fitting. I was looking for a 1/2" 90° M+F hydraulic swivel adaptor. That way I could insert the male threaded part into the hole and tighten it with some kind of nut from inside the tank. The normal swivel is 1/2" NPT tapered, so not ideal. But they did have that same adaptor in 1/2" BSP parallel (same thread as 1/2" NPT but parallel), and this is better. I also purchased a 1/2" M to 5/8" M hose fitting to connect to the F part of the swivel, and a rubber washer for the inside seal. In the end I wasn't able to find a real 1/2" NPT nut, so used a 1/2" conduit nut. I made a big washer for the outside of the 1/2" swivel fitting where it enters the tank, then slid the rubber then steel washer down and over the parallel thread on the inside, then the 1/2" conduit nut, and tightened all that mess. I had to make a tool for the conduit nut out of a 1/2" PVC conduit coupling-I cut it to look like a castle on the end. To slide all the rubber, steel and conduit nuts down there I used a 1/2" rod inserted into the male end of the swivel. It's hard to work inside the tank. I also put a lot of silicon gasket maker on all parts to help it all seal, and drilled out the 1/2" swivel as it was only about 3/8" ID, and I was concerned that the small hole would cause some pump cavitation and damage the pumps. It seems to be holding up well

I have to say that a fabricated aluminum tank would be better, but I wanted to get it working, and was struggling to find a local fab shop to make this. I also thought it would cost a lot more than $100
 
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