Broken hose

[Jimmy Buffett]

One of my bays froze today. I thought that I would just wait till tomorrow when it warms up and all would be well. Not so much. I just was leaving for the evening and noticed water dripping from the ceiling. I climbed my fat a$$ up there and the hose is split right where it screws into the top of the boom. It seems to me what I need to do is take it off, cut the hose and put on a compression fitting and hook it back up. I don't have a crimper. Will that work? Is there a better way to fix it without removing the entire hose? As always thanks for your help!
J

 

[MEP001]

If you're referring to a reusable fitting on steel braided hose, it'll work. The only "better" way is with a hand crimper or swager, and that would only be slightly easier given how hard it is to screw the reusable fittings together.

 

[Jim Caudill]

I used to always keep a couple of these around for just such occassions. Alternatively, you can buy/borrow one of the portable crimpers and do it "where it lays". I have one of the parker swaging machines (too big and heavy) and a portable EASTCO unit (2 piece affair similar to "port-a-powr). Easiest by far, is the reuseable fitting.

 

[MEP001]

I have one of the parker swaging machines (too big and heavy)

I use a Couplamatic hand-swager with an aluminum bar attached to the base as a handle. It's easier to turn the screw on the swager than it is to turn the wrenches on the reusable fitting, in my opinion.

 

[Jeff_L]

At the risk of sounding too elementary, the first thing I always do when I find one of my bays are frozen is remove the hose & wand from the boom. Then I place them in the workshop to thaw out. What can happen as the ice starts to thaw, it'll push any other ice in the line back towards your workshop, thus possibly breaking lines, connections, joints, etc..

(Darned weather, if only it could stay above freezing!)

 

[Jimmy Buffett]

Is there such a thing as a screw-on swivel? I need a swivel to tighten the hose back and nobody in town has one.

 

[bigleo48]

A couple of years back, I got an Ice Breaker ice thawing machine. Clamp at both ends, plug in and wait 2 minutes...voila! (Need steel braid hoses).

Have used it a couple of times and it works great...no mess no fuss.

Big Leo

 

[Jim Caudill]

You can buy them where hydraulic fittings are sold. McMaster Carr sells them for about $3, I'm sure Kleenrite probably has them but I can't find them in their online catalog. Here is a pic. It has to be high-pressure, hence the hydraulic fittings stores. The fittings swivel only during assembly (which is what you want) and then they are tight.

 

[Jimmy Buffett]

Thanks Jim. I found 1 at a hydraulics shop in the next town over. I had 6 different breaks in 1 bay. Every time I would fix one I'd find another. Don't know what happened to the weep but I hope it doesn't happen again!