Permanent Ceramic Protection for Hydraulic Pumps, Cylinders, Valves & Motors

Yes — Cerma STM-3 bonds to ferrous metal regardless of pump manufacturer or design. Compatible with all major industrial hydraulic pump brands: Eaton/Vickers (piston, vane, and Char-Lynn motors), Parker Hannifin (PV piston series, gear pumps, vane pumps), Bosch Rexroth (A10V/A11V axial piston pumps, gear pumps), Denison (mobile equipment vane and piston pumps), Sauer-Danfoss (hydrostatic transmissions, mobile hydraulics), Kawasaki (K3V/K5V excavator piston pumps), Hydac, Sun Hydraulics, HydraForce, and OEM pumps on Caterpillar, John Deere, Komatsu, Bobcat, Case, Kubota, and New Holland equipment. Applies equally to vane pumps, gear pumps, axial/radial piston pumps, and gerotor pumps. If you can see steel or cast iron internals in a cutaway, Cerma will bond to them.

Depends on the root cause. Cerma addresses wear-related sluggishness meaningfully; it does not fix mechanical failures. Three common causes of sluggish hydraulics: (1) Internal pump wear — worn vane tips, gear clearances, or piston slippers reduce volumetric efficiency. Cerma's ceramic coating on pump internals helps restore efficiency in wear-related cases and slows further wear progression. (2) Contaminated or degraded fluid — debris and oxidation products accelerate wear and reduce efficiency. Fix this first with a fluid and filter service, then apply Cerma to the fresh fluid for ongoing protection. (3) Mechanical failures — torn cylinder seals (causing internal bypass), broken pressure-relief valves, failed pilot valves, or kinked lines. These require physical repair; Cerma then protects the repaired system going forward. For typical "my loader/excavator/tractor isn't lifting like it used to" complaints on well-maintained equipment, wear is the most common cause and Cerma often delivers noticeable improvement.

Helps significantly in most cases, though the underlying cause matters. Cavitation in hydraulic pumps happens when air (or vaporized fluid) forms in the inlet and collapses violently as it enters the high-pressure zone — producing characteristic rattling, whining, or knocking noise and physical erosion damage to pump internals. Cerma addresses cavitation through two mechanisms: (1) the SiC treatment helps decrease air content in circulating fluid by smoothing internal surfaces and reducing turbulence-driven aeration; (2) the ceramic coating on pump surfaces provides hardened protection against cavitation erosion damage. Both mechanisms help reduce existing cavitation symptoms and slow progression of cavitation damage on aging pumps. What Cerma cannot fix on its own: fundamental suction-side problems (clogged inlet strainer, restricted suction line, undersized inlet plumbing, cracked reservoir return causing air ingestion, low fluid level). If you have structural cavitation causes, address those first — Cerma then helps the recovered system run longer.

Varies by system condition, load profile, duty cycle, ambient temperature, and cooler capacity — so we avoid giving a specific number on a marketing page. The reliable statement: the SiC ceramic coating measurably reduces friction on internal contact surfaces, which directly lowers heat generation. For hydraulic systems, this matters because heat is the primary driver of fluid degradation — every 18°F/10°C above 140°F (60°C) approximately halves fluid life. Operators on heavily-loaded equipment (excavators under constant cycling, presses in continuous production, forestry equipment in warm climates) tend to report the most noticeable temperature drops because their baseline operating temps are highest. Operators on lightly-loaded equipment see smaller changes because baseline temps were already within a comfortable range. The common thread across both groups: cooler-running hydraulics correlate with fluid lasting longer, seals drying out slower, and pumps needing fewer rebuilds over the equipment's service life.

One-time. The SiC ceramic bonds permanently to ferrous metal at the sub-surface level through a thermo-chemical reaction driven by the normal operating temperatures and pressures inside your hydraulic system. Once cured, the ceramic matrix is part of the metal — not a film on top of it. This means: (1) routine hydraulic fluid changes do not remove the ceramic layer; (2) filter changes have no effect on the bonded protection; (3) the ceramic stays in place through typical equipment service life, including pump rebuilds on the untreated replacement parts (rebuilt components receive their own treatment if you choose to reapply to the replaced pump). No recurring application schedule, no maintenance dosing, no "top-up" every season. A single correctly-sized dose is all the system needs.

Yes — Cerma Hydraulic Treatment works on virtually all hydraulic equipment. Excavators: Caterpillar 300-series through 390-series, John Deere E/G-series, Komatsu PC-series, Hitachi ZX, Volvo EC, Kubota KX/U, Hyundai HX. Skid steers and compact track loaders: Bobcat T-series and S-series, Case TV/SV/SR, John Deere G/E skid-steers, Kubota SSV, New Holland C/L-series, Takeuchi TL. Wheel loaders: Caterpillar K/L-series, John Deere L-series, Volvo L, Komatsu WA-series. Backhoes: Caterpillar 416/420/430, John Deere 310/410, Case 580/590, Kubota M-series. Agricultural tractors: John Deere (all sizes from compact to 9R), Kubota M/L-series, New Holland T-series, Case IH Farmall and Magnum, Massey Ferguson, Mahindra. Dump trucks: Peterbilt, Kenworth, Mack, International, Freightliner with various hoist brands (Heil, Crysteel, Galbreath, Ox Bodies). Sizing: check reservoir capacity and pick 1 oz (up to 2 gal), 2 oz (up to 5 gal), or 6 oz (up to 20 gal). For larger industrial systems scale at 1 oz per additional 20 gallons.

Yes. Cerma Hydraulic Treatment is compatible with all hydraulic fluid types we've validated or had operator feedback on: standard ISO VG grades (AW 32, AW 46, AW 68 — the most common industrial and mobile-equipment fluids); bio-based / biodegradable (HEES synthetic esters, HETG vegetable-based fluids used in forestry, marine, and environmentally-sensitive applications); full synthetic hydraulic fluids (PAO-based, ester-based); fire-resistant fluids (HFC water-glycol, HFDR/HFDU phosphate esters used in steel mills, die-casting, mining); Mil-spec fluids (MIL-H-5606 red mineral-base aviation/military, MIL-H-83282 synthetic hydrocarbon, MIL-PRF-87257 for aircraft); and OEM-specific multi-purpose fluids (John Deere Hy-Gard, Case Hy-Tran, Kubota UDT/Super UDT, Caterpillar TDTO and HYDO Advanced, New Holland Ambra Multi-G, Massey Ferguson M1141). Because Cerma bonds to metal rather than mixing with fluid, fluid chemistry doesn't affect ceramic performance. If you run a specialty or proprietary fluid not listed above, call 239-344-9861 before applying.

Yes. The on-page Bundle & Save gets you started: Buy 2 save 7.3% or Buy 5 save 18.8% on any size variant, automatically applied at checkout. For larger fleet orders — construction companies with multi-machine fleets, municipal fleets (public works, parks, transit), industrial facilities with many hydraulic systems, ag operations with multi-tractor fleets, or resellers — we offer custom volume pricing and technical guidance on fleet-wide dosing. Contact us at 239-344-9861 or email info@cermatreatment.com with your equipment list and we'll quote accordingly. Use code C10 for 10% off at checkout on standard online orders.