There are all kinds of industrial hose fittings and hose fitting conversions (e.g., male to female, female to male, etc.). You not only have to worry about these factors, but also about the correct size of hose fittings. So much can go wrong when you do not have both the correct type of fittings and the correct size. The following illustrates some of the different ways in which this can go very wrong in a hurry.

Wrong Hose Fitting

Without taking an old hose connection apart, you might make an assumption about the type of fitting you need. It may look like a "female" fitting (i.e., the hose goes inside the fitting), but once you get the hose apart to replace the fitting you find it is actually a "male" fitting (i.e., the fitting inserts into the hose). This leads to a lot of time and energy spent on the wrong part and the repairs you were attempting to complete. Take the current hose and hose fitting apart first, before you place your order, or you may have to shut down that area of the plant while you wait for the new part.

Wrong Size of Fitting

When the fitting is off, even by a millimeter or two, you may try to jam the fitting into the hose to make it work, or you may try to convert the hose to squeeze it into the fitting. Neither of these two approaches is a good thing. If you try to squish the hose into the fitting, you may get a tighter fit, but you will also get a hose that slightly buckles and would then allow a steady leak to occur.

Jamming the fitting into the hose when the fitting is slightly too large for it could result in tearing or weakening the hose end from within. Eventually, the hose would crack and split, and anything that is passed through that hose would burst through and spill all over the floor of your industrial plant. Determine first the exact type of fitting, and then take very accurate measurements for the fitting.

Wrong Conversion Fitting

If the fitting and connection you are attempting to replace requires a converter fitting, then you actually need two or more parts. You need the part that fits over or into the end of the hose, and you need the part that fits in the middle which converts the hose fitting to one that fits well with the connection on the machine. If you get the wrong conversion fitting, then you need to buy a second conversion to convert the first, or wait and trade for the correct first converter.

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