The Dangers Of Handling Hydraulic Oil

If you are new to the world of hydraulics, there are a number of key things that you should keep in mind especially when handling hydraulic oil. This is an incredibly dangerous substance that can cause serious harm if not handled with care.

The handling of such a fluid can be detrimental to your health if you are not accompanied by an expert who knows the dangers. So what can you do to prepare yourself for this?

Throughout this blog post, we are going to be discussing some of the most important points that you should know about before attempting to handle hydraulic oil without a professional.

What Is Hydraulic Oil?

Otherwise known as hydraulic fluid, hydraulic oil is a non-compressible fluid that is commonly used to transfer power within hydraulic machinery or other equipment. Much like the majority of oils, this fluid can be either synthetic or mineral-based.

Mineral-based oils are derived from crude oils such as gasoline, petrol and jet fuels whereas synthetic oils are created through the use of chemically produced base fluids.

Both mineral and synthetic-based oil is able to be used in a hydraulic system as this is simply used to make sure that the power from one end of the system is transferred through all of the internal components to the other.

When it comes to being non-compressible, this simply means that hydraulic fluids are not able to be compressed like most liquids are.

What Can Hydraulic Oil Be Used For?

There are plenty of applications for hydraulic oil across a multitude of industries as there are so many different machines that use hydraulic systems. One such example would be forklift trucks, hydraulic oil is used to power the vast forks on these machines which will need to lift very heavy goods.

Another example of where hydraulics and hydraulic oils could be used is in an automotive lift mechanism such as a car lift which requires a hydraulic jack to lift a vehicle. The oil is used to aid their range of power and is essential to making these machines work at full capacity.

What Are The Dangers of Hydraulic Oil?

While hydraulic oil may be an incredibly useful resource for businesses across the world, it is also incredibly harmful to humans and can be incredibly dangerous if not handled properly.

One of the most prevalent dangers that is fairly common when people are not aware of the dangers of hydraulic oil is the fluid coming into contact with the skin. This is incredibly dangerous as it has been known to cause serious burns and weakness in the hands.

If you notice any hydraulic fluid has come into contact with your bare skin, you should immediately wash your hands with soap and water to make sure the adverse effects cannot be felt.

Another of the most concerning dangers that you may come across when handling hydraulic oil is that it can cause a lot of irritation to the eyes when exposed to them for long periods of time.

Once again, if any hydraulic oil has gotten into your eye, you should always thoroughly wash it with water to negate any long-term damage.

It is also imperative that these fluids are not ingested. While this may seem fairly obvious, the health implications of ingesting even a small amount of the fluid by accident can be catastrophic. These effects can include internal burns, bleeding of the organs and even death.

Inhaling the fumes of burning hydraulic oil for extended periods of time has also been found to cause certain respiratory diseases such as asthma, lung disease, bronchitis or even damage to your central nervous system.

This is why it is so important to conduct any operations including hydraulic components or machines in an area that is well-ventilated throughout and that they are stored in a similar sort of area.

Finally, the consistent use of hydraulic oils can cause some environmental damage from hydraulic leaks into the air. This makes it important that these fluids are stored in a safe and secure area.

What Makes Hydraulic Oil So Dangerous?

The main reason why hydraulic oil is so dangerous is simply due to the chemicals it is made up of, the pressure at which it is used and the temperature that the liquid can get to.

It can be very common for hydraulic fluid to penetrate the skin when being used as it only takes a pressure of around 100 psi for this to occur. This is what we call hydraulic fluid injection and the wounds from this can cause serious damage.

For hydraulic fluid to work effectively, it needs to be fairly viscous and to achieve this, it needs to be used at very high temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Celsius. This is another major reason why hydraulic oil is so dangerous and is the cause of so many accidents globally.

Preventative Measures

As we have briefly mentioned previously, there are a number of different preventative measures that we can take to reduce the risk of hydraulic oil-related injuries.

One of the first things that you should do is to make sure that your hydraulic fluid is placed in a secure container to reduce the chances of any leaks. You should also consistently check that these containers are remaining secure over time to further decrease the risk of leaks.

Another thing that you will need to do to prevent the dangers of hydraulic fuel is to only use it in a well-ventilated and breathable area to reduce the risk of anyone in your team developing any respiratory problems.

While it may seem like common sense, it is also important for you and your team to note that these chemicals should always be kept out of reach of children as even a small amount of exposure physically can be detrimental to their health.

Pirtek Hydraulic Services

The team at Pirtek are here for any kind of hydraulic service you may need. We are able to carry out regular maintenance checks alongside rigorous hose repair services to make sure that your hydraulic system is working as it should.

We are available 24/7 for whatever service you may require, if you would like to speak to a member of our team, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at 07758 811234 and we will help in any way that we can.