What Is a Hydraulic Hose Swivel?

Hydraulic hoses are susceptible to potentially damaging motions and vibrations during operation. The stress generated by these actions can cause abrasions that negatively impact hose performance. That's why the engineers and technicians who develop hydraulic systems must find ways to route the hose assemblies and prevent hydraulic fluid leaks. Integrating a hose swivel into the design can alleviate the issue. 

A hydraulic swivel fitting is a device that allows the hose connection and coupling to rotate on an axis up to 360 degrees. This process prevents the hose from tangling, twisting, kinking or bending excessively, significantly lowering the damage risk. Hose swivels can also compensate for sudden changes in hose length during pressurization, reduce system rigidity and absorb hydraulic shocks and surges in the line. 

 

What Are the Benefits of Using Hose Swivels?

The most obvious advantage of using hydraulic swivel fittings is preventing damage to the hose. You'll have fewer worries about hydraulic fluid leaks that can lead to costly system and equipment failures. Eliminating kinks ensures a smoother, uninterrupted fluid flow, allowing you to keep your work projects on schedule. 

These swivels can perform at multiple pressure and temperature ranges, enabling you to use them in various operating environments and conditions. They also don't require adapters, providing maximum design, installation and placement flexibility. 

The ability to reduce costs is another hydraulic swivel benefit. When you prevent abrasions, ruptures and other damage, these fittings will prolong the hose's working life and lengthen the time between costly replacements. You'll also spend less time, labor and money on hydraulic hose maintenance and repairs.

Hose swivels provide ample opportunities for system customization. The full-circle rotation offers more flexibility than stationary fittings, giving hydraulic system engineers and technicians more design freedom. You can also use hydraulic swivel fittings in various work processes. 

 

What Applications Can Use Hose Swivels?

Hydraulic swivels perform well in numerous industrial applications and machinery requiring a full range of motion. Examples include forestry equipment attachments, grapples, cranes, boom trucks for utility work, railroad maintenance equipment and hydraulic excavators. 

The mining, aerospace and automotive industries use hose swivels in hydraulic actuators requiring the exertion of additional torque and force. They provide extra range of motion to prevent hydraulic lines from twisting and weakening. Robotic arms also rely on hose swivels to help them perform repetitive tasks requiring a full range of motion. Heavy-duty mining equipment relies on these devices to prevent the need to lengthen their hydraulic lines. 

 

What to Consider When Purchasing Hydraulic Swivel Fittings

You'll need to evaluate several factors when choosing the best hose swivels for your applications:

  • Design parameters: Numerous material options are available with most hose swivel designs. You'll need to decide if aluminum, stainless steel, brass, steel or another metal is the most viable option from a cost, durability and performance perspective.
  • Fluid compatibility: You'll need to know whether your system or equipment utilizes water-based, petroleum-based or synthetic hydraulic fluid to ensure compatibility with the metal.
  • Seal options: Fittings come in many seal material choices, including nitrile, neoprene, fluoroelastomer, propylene and several others.
  • Pressure: Hose swivels can accommodate high-pressure operating environments, often exceeding 5,000 psi. Verify that the product you choose offers the pressure rating required for your applications.

 

Why Choose SlewMaster for Hydraulic Swivels?

At SlewMaster Inc., we're experts at designing and manufacturing parts for a wide range of equipment and devices requiring rotation. We'll use the project specifications you provide to deliver the best solution for your applications. If one of our stock hose swivels doesn't meet your needs, we can modify the product to provide a customized result that meets your performance requirements. 

When you purchase hose swivels from us, you get the unbeatable combination of superior quality at affordable prices, delivering exceptional value for your money. 

Call the SlewMaster team at 905-828-4001 or contact us online to schedule a hydraulic hose swivel consultation or request a quote today.