Question on Hydraulic Fluid
Is there a certain type of hydraulic fluid used in RV's for landing gear and slides? I noticed a leak when we arrived at our campsite today. When I checked the container, it was under half full. I'm ...
Forum Discussion
RHasse wrote:
ATF has a very distinctive odor, you should be able to recognize it pretty easily. if you aren't familiar with it, just check the transmission dipstick on your car. Take a wiff of that, that odor is very distinctive, hard to miss even if you have a bad sense of smell.
Also, this isn't a very demanding application, it's not like its a tractor digging or moving dirt all day long; it's not going to make a huge difference what you use. There is not a lot of danger in mixing common oils like this, the additive chemistry may not be a perfect match, but there shouldn't be a problem with negative reactions occurring if you added ATF into a system originally filled with anti-wear hydraulic oil, or vice versa. The important thing noted in a message above is DO NOT USE BRAKE FLUID!. Brake fluid is a particular type of fluid that if you added it into your leveling system it would damage the seals and you'd have to have the entire system rebuilt.
Both HWH and LCI state, that if you use the wrong Fluid, it will cause problems with the operation of the seals and/or leaks. Doug
