Pallet jack oil for cold temps

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Jul 6, 2009
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Calgary
I’m looking to change out the fluid in the pallet jack I use for work, it’s kept in a unheated box of a delivery truck all day and night. It’s often colder than 0F and in those temps the jack essentially becomes useless. I’m leaning towards using Dexron, but would power steering fluid perform any better in the cold?
 
Are the pump and valve seals in good shape? A leaking valve seal could spell trouble such as leakdown.

I would try a Synthetic Dex/Merx such as HPL's low temperature ATF, Amsoil ATF or Redline D4.
 
What happens is oil gets so thick the jack wont go down.
and it wont go up (10s between each pump for it to go up)
this is common if idiots leave pallet jack in the freezer.

You need a thinner oil or one with better VI.
 
I’m looking to change out the fluid in the pallet jack I use for work, it’s kept in a unheated box of a delivery truck all day and night. It’s often colder than 0F and in those temps the jack essentially becomes useless. I’m leaning towards using Dexron, but would power steering fluid perform any better in the cold?
Call some local hydraulic repair shops. They'll have direct experience with your exact situation and will know what works and what doesn't work.
 
5606 fluid.

Non-aviation ones of course. Something like Kendall Hyken Glacial Blu.
 
Total fluide DA, should be about 4x less viscous than AW-32 hydraulic oil, and 3x less than AW-22 at 0F

1000 cst at -40c, around 20 cst at 40C, 6 cst at 100C.

a litre costs about $10-15. It's actually power steering fluid, so might be worth using it in there aswell.
 
As Foxtrot says, use fluids meeting MIL-PRF-5606J. These fluids work down to -54°C (-65°F).

Not sure why he said to use non-aviation fluids. The aviation fluids are absolutely top notch, and very reasonably priced. They are commonly used in bottle and other types of jacks that are used in arctic environments. The main plus for your application is that they are readily available in quart and gallon containers, whereas the Kendall Hyken Glacial Blu only comes in 5 gallon pails and 55 gallon drums.

The two standard 5606J fluids are Aeroshell 41 and Phillips X/C 5606J. They are interchangeable. A quart of Aeroshell 41 costs $12.65 at Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Co. A gallon is $49.50. The Phillips X/C 5606J is $11.95/qt.

The previous spec for these fluids was MIL-H-5606A. It is considered obsolete by the military. The difference is that the 5606J is an "ultra-clean" spec. This is important for an airplane, but not necessary for a jack. The fluids meeting this spec are Aeroshell 4 and Phillips X/C 5606A. Both are still available in gallon containers, and are slightly less expensive than their 5606J replacements. At Aircraft Spruce, a gallon of Aeroshell 4 is $42.50 and a gallon of Phillips X/C 5606A is $46.95.

I'm guessing a pallet jack shouldn't need more than 1qt of fluid. In that case the quart of Aeroshell 41 or Phillips X/C 5606J would be plenty, and won't break the bank.
 
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