Is this too much seepage on my hoist?

Here is my perspective as a mechanic of 23 years and the difference between a seep and a leak. Looking at the photos you posted I see shiny wet oil deposited around the seal retainers on all three sections of the ram, liquid oil hanging and running down the ram/s, lack of dust/grime build up on the retainers. That is an indication of a leak.

If the seals were seeping there would be enough oil by passing the seals to dampen the retainers only enough so that dust/dirt would collect and stick to the oil film and build up, giving an appearance of damp earth yet no liquid would be visible, for comparison.

As to not detecting oil making to the ground upon a PTI, that makes perfect sense due to the fact that the operation of the hydraulics to dump the bed happen elsewhere, at a jobsite, under heavy load and requiring high pressure. Once the hydraulics are no longer needed and the PTO is off hydraulic pressure and falls to zero, the seals are now able to prevent oil loss. As you drive away gravity and bumps in the road remove the accumulated oil that has leaked, thus, by the time you perform a PTI there is not enough oil present to overcome surface tension and drip to the ground, the excess leaked oil was left behind on the road and on the lot as you drive away from where the dump occurred.

The greater the loss of a liquid the wetter and shinier the area around the loss will be until the leak becomes so great the liquid will wash the area clean of any residue, your leak is nearly to that point. A properly functioning seal will leave virtually no evidence that there is a liquid behind it.

Were that my equipment, I would fix it ASAP.

I hope this is helpful to you.

 

Understandable, text can easily be misconstrued at times, unless one takes pains to be concise. Hopefully the new mechanic will be more reasonable, and more personable than the current one. Let us know how it goes.

 

OMG. It's leaking..fix it...leaks don't get better, they get worse and more expensive

 

Run it. I have seen cylinders leak for years like that and not get worse. If it gets worse then have it fixed. Not being a smart--- but it is your boss's problem. You made people aware of it. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.

 

i am attempting to think of an end dump that doesn't have a little seepage that also has been used.reads as if your mechanic has been around them a while. good deal.

 

Not to bad, but you can tighten the packing with cold chisel and a hammer. Put the chisel in the notch on the packing ring and turn it slightly clockwise. See if the slow it down. It should leak a tiny bit. Don't over tighten. I did regularly on my transfer.