Troubleshooting

Common Reasons for O-Ring Failure

O-rings typically fail in their applications because of the combined adverse effects of several environmental factors.

The most common causes of O-ring failure have been found to be:

Improper gland design; allowing for too much or too little compression, not enough room for seal expansion, and tolerance stack-up.
Incorrect O-ring size.
Incompatibility of O-ring elastomer and environmental elements.
Improper O-ring installation.
Inadequate O-ring lubrication.

The combination of stresses on the O-ring can be complex and difficult to evaluate. Therefore, it is very important that both the O-ring compound and size be tested in the real environment of its service. The following examples are a classification of the types of O-ring failure that can occur.

Apple Rubber Products, Inc. • 310 Erie Street • Lancaster, NY 14086 • 1.800.828.7745

1. Introduction

2. Products & Services

3. O-Ring Basics

4. Seal Types & Gland Design

5. Critical Operating Environmental Factors

6. Material Selection Guide

7. Special Elastomer Applications

8. Troubleshooting

9. Sizes & How to Order

10. Glossary of Terms

11. Rules of Thumb

12. Formulas

13. Seal Glossary

14. Bibliography / Trademarks