How Old Is Too Old? - HOSES

Question

I was at an industrial hose wholesaler recently replacing a hard to find coolant hose on my '95 Monaco 8.3L. I told the manager that all of my equipment - diesel boat - diesel pick up - Monaco with diesels for and aft were all 1995-96 vintage and that I was dealing with a lot of almost 20 year old hose and worried about it failing, especially on the motorhome where some of the runs were almost 40'.

The manager replied that he wouldn't be attempting to make any cross country trips without replacing all of the old hose. I cannot imagine that he was ever under a motorhome to see what a big job replacing fuel, coolant, hydraulic hose would be.

I once asked a similar question of the dealer that installed the Yanmar in my boat and they said that hose failures were fairly rare.

I have replaced a lot of coolant hose and some fuel hose but am intimidated by the hydraulic hose and fittings.

Other than keeping an eye on things and replacing hoses when problems occur, what opinions do you hold regarding proactively replacing old hoses that still looks good? Thanks for the insights.

rgatijnet1 · Answer

Hose materials change as time goes by. The newer hoses have more silicone, and other compounds, that replace a lot of the rubber used in older hoses. I guess the life of the hose would depend more on the material it is made of rather than just saying that ALL hoses have to be replaced at a certain age.

dutchstar38 · Answer

Here is a good article to read;http://www.plantservices.com/articles/2010/01hydraulichoses/

j-rooster · Answer

When I was a young man working at a Signal Gas Station I was taught to look for a hose cracking or a hose collapsing for replacement.

path1 · Answer

See link below. And of course they aren't going to bad mouth their own product. Our Corp had great luck with them. But the other 1/2 of story is failures due to clamping device. Spend some time researching new clamps. Some are cheap junk and others big $$$. Find the middle ground. http://www.gates.com/file_display_common.cfm?thispath=Gates%2Fdocuments%5Fmodule&file=Gates%20Fleet%20TT%20433%2D08022%2Epdf
Just a little leak can cause major problems http://www.croberts.com/coolant.htm

-hydraulic hose and fittings were only replaced when they broke or badly chaffed. When replaced we took the old line to hydraulic custom line maker and had new one made out of stainless steel braided line. Not cheap but usually one had to replace one time.
-Heater core hoses when they were being replaced, valves were installed in the line so the vehicle was not stranded along road somewhere, other than needing anti freeze, (try to save tow bill if possible)

Hope this helps you

too_tall · Answer

If they feel hard and brittle or have any cracking, replace. Also if hydraulic with pressed fittings check to see if there is oil where the fitting meets the hose. I worked on boats for many years and found a lot of damage can be done by a hose failure.

Forum Discussion

How Old Is Too Old? - HOSES

About Motorhome Group

Related Content

20 year old hoses

Hose question........

sewer hose

Water hose

Best sewer hose?