Hydraulic ram help

[billpierce]

Have this ram on back of horsebox I'm converting to camper. The ram works good on the buttons but the manual pump does nothing ( moves ok but doesnt lift), and I cant see the usual release twiddler like what as on the tipper trailer I had. Any clues from anyone?

[Conor Wright]

Had something similar looking on a tipper trailer.. (not oem) have you tried disconnecting the motor (but not the solenoid) and pressing the up switch whilst pumping manually? This will allow the circuit to be powered but not operate, the manual pump should then pressurise the ram. This was the case on my heath Robinson tipper... a real bitch with a completely flat battery! Failing that long shot, your seals may be totally knackered..

[billpierce]

Had something similar looking on a tipper trailer.. (not oem) have you tried disconnecting the motor (but not the solenoid) and pressing the up switch whilst pumping manually? This will allow the circuit to be powered but not operate, the manual pump should then pressurise the ram. This was the case on my heath Robinson tipper... a real bitch with a completely flat battery! Failing that long shot, your seals may be totally knackered..

No not tried this. Will have a go. Sure though if there is a pump there is another way?

[Kevm]

Is that a button on the solenoid, can you press that in and then pump.

[billpierce]

Is that a button on the solenoid, can you press that in and then pump.

It appears to be a twiddler of some kind. The brass bit on the end turns out a few turns. If you have pumped the pump and the twiddled it out there is a small oily squirting sound from within but nothing seems to happen. I shall investigate further in the morning

[PeteB]

That is a solenoid valve! An electric tap.....it could be a switch over valve to go from electronic pump to manual pump! Try following the cable to find a switch. 12volts are passed through a coil and that produces a magnetic field. The brass bit is the solenoid, once that is excited by the magnetic field and internal rod is pulled back which allows oil to flow. Do not overtighten the fixing that holds the coil onto the solenoid as it can crush the coils and cause it to fail.

[Kevm]

Very often those solenoid valves have a pin in the middle you can push/pull to manually over ride it.

It would seem an odd setup if you haven't got enough electric to work the motor but you still need to have some electric to power the solenoid while you manually pump the handle.

[billpierce]

Just to clarify the controls work fine, goes up and down real good, but I want to know if the back up manual option can work.

The brass end on the solenoid pin part in pics above unscrew about 3 full turns then stops

[billpierce]

thanks for the help so far everyone!

 

the brass bit on end of solenoid when undone releases the ram allowing it to go down, but i cannot find a way for make the manual pump engage and pump

[Kevm]

Could be there is a fault in the manual pump or a check valve not checking somewhere, you could start pulling valves out and checking them but you may upset the electric pump or damage something, a difficult one.

Is there a valve/plug on the back of the block opposite the manual pump piston, that would be first suspect and shouldn't really affect the electric pump.