09-21-2015, 04:04 PM
I just had a burst hydraulic line, the supply that runs up to the power steering, through the center of the coach. This happened while my coach was at my local paint shop getting a fiberglass crack repaired. It's all fixed now, but I want to post what we went through to help anyone in the future.
After finding a mobile repair guy (which was a tough job), we decided the section of the hose with the hole could be spliced. This was done, with the proper hose and fittings, only to burst again in a new place. Now the only thing to do was replace the entire hose, about 45'. I called Newell for their guidance, and they gave us good info, but said it's a tough job. A few days later, we had the hose and began the repair. Oh, all this in the parking lot of the paint shop.
Disconnecting the line at both ends, we drained the fluid into new containers. Newell said the two lines, supply and return, were not tied to anything within the troughs, but were fastened together in the center with a plastic tie. Actually, in my case, it was duct tape. As the lines exit the trough, they are tied. All that, of course, has to be removed. Newell said it would take one person up front feeding the line and two in the back pulling.
We put fittings on the new line, coupled the new and old together at the front of the coach, taped the fittings to make them as smooth as possible, and began to pull it through. At first, pulling on the old line in the rear just stretched the line. It was stuck. Finally, with a good tug with 2 people, the duck tape snapped and the line began to feed. as the fittings moved through, occasionally we would have to go inside the bays and help it along. In my coach, all with hoses and cables are visible in a couple of the bays. Once the fittings made it into the last section of trough, it pulled right through. We hooked it up, put the fluid back in, cranked the engine, checked for leaks (none!) and we were done. It took about 4.5 hours.
I can't express how grateful I am to the service guys at Newell. They really come through and know these coaches inside and out. Any questions? Ask now before I forget this ever happened!
After finding a mobile repair guy (which was a tough job), we decided the section of the hose with the hole could be spliced. This was done, with the proper hose and fittings, only to burst again in a new place. Now the only thing to do was replace the entire hose, about 45'. I called Newell for their guidance, and they gave us good info, but said it's a tough job. A few days later, we had the hose and began the repair. Oh, all this in the parking lot of the paint shop.
Disconnecting the line at both ends, we drained the fluid into new containers. Newell said the two lines, supply and return, were not tied to anything within the troughs, but were fastened together in the center with a plastic tie. Actually, in my case, it was duct tape. As the lines exit the trough, they are tied. All that, of course, has to be removed. Newell said it would take one person up front feeding the line and two in the back pulling.
We put fittings on the new line, coupled the new and old together at the front of the coach, taped the fittings to make them as smooth as possible, and began to pull it through. At first, pulling on the old line in the rear just stretched the line. It was stuck. Finally, with a good tug with 2 people, the duck tape snapped and the line began to feed. as the fittings moved through, occasionally we would have to go inside the bays and help it along. In my coach, all with hoses and cables are visible in a couple of the bays. Once the fittings made it into the last section of trough, it pulled right through. We hooked it up, put the fluid back in, cranked the engine, checked for leaks (none!) and we were done. It took about 4.5 hours.
I can't express how grateful I am to the service guys at Newell. They really come through and know these coaches inside and out. Any questions? Ask now before I forget this ever happened!
David and Teresa Brown
1999 Coach 513