I would change my oil/coolant if I knew how to dispose of 12 gallons of oil and 12+ gallons of coolant.it.

What do you do with the oil/coolant when you do home maintenance?

Here, our county garbage transfer station has a place to recycle it. Check with Wal-Mart, or other chain auto service centers in your area. They might take it for a price, or tell you where to take it. As far as I know it is illegal everywhere to dump it, and certainly inadvisable in any case. Antifreeze is toxic to animals, oil can percolate down to the water table, & you know how environmentally conscious we have become. In the old days, folks in the boondocks used to sprinkle used oil to settle the dust in their driveways.

Many auto parts stores also take used coolant and oil. Both can be re-refined and recycled.

Thanks, I will search around. I am on a well, so perculation is a word I understand.

Next is the mystery of how to get it from sump to container. Once it starts flowing, I certainly to not wanr to try to start and stop it 12 times while trying to fill jugs,

Just had a thought - use a kiddy wading pool, fill jugs (or 5 gallon buckets), reuse the pool for coolant, then the pool gooes to the transfer station/recycler with everything else.

Now, where can I buy a wading pool this time of year :-(

I have a couple of closed drain containers,about $9 each at Advance Auto Parts; I use one for coolant, the other for engine oil. They have spouts, so transferring to jugs is no problem. Since the radiator has a drain tube, I just use gallon jugs, but then my cooling system only uses 8 gallons.

They were handy, as I took the oil one with me on my Christmas Voyage, since the engine only had about 40 miles on it at start, and so changed the oil once in a Wal-Mart parking lot (their auto shop couldn't handle an RV) and again at my sister's.

"use a kiddy wading pool, fill jugs (or 5 gallon..."
7 Years back -at Home Depot, for about $25- I bought a heavy-duty (black) plastic "garden pond" which holds 10 gallons of water (it's l;ess than a foot deep, round, maybe 36" across -designed to be sunk in the ground or surrounded by rocks); one of my better buys. I drain 24 qts of used oil, including the filter, from my Cummins 8.3 in one shot - it is wide enough that I can remove the filter above the pan while the sump is still draining, and any spill goes into the pan. It slides under the engine with plenty of clearance, and is strong enough I can pick up the full pan and carry it into the garage for transfer to the soon-to-be-empty gallon oil containers. This also works for the coolant and the transmission fluid. Oil changed yearly, trans 2-years, coolant 3-years. Home Depot always has them on display in the garden center in my neighborhood.
Caution: Capacity is literally 10 gallons, and 6 is about the max for safe, handy carrying. Did you perhaps double the amount of fluids you said you were draining?? If not, post a picture of your engine.

quote:

Originally posted by garryp:
What do you do with the oil/coolant when you do home maintenance?

Ever considered using one of the bypass filters available? I use the Gulf Coast Filter and don't do a full oil change on my Cummins C8.3. I have it analyzed at the same interval that would be an oil change and have always received a good report. Then just change the GC Filter and add back the oil lost with the filter change. I switched to synthetic and that's just too expensive to change out very often. Can you image how much oil could be saved if EVERY diesel engine used this process?

On the cars we own, the oil from those changes goes to a local mechanic that uses it to heat his shop. Currently looking into a smaller version of the GC Filter for the new Jeep we just bought. Will probably install it once I'm comfortable with warranty timing.

Mike

Some info please.
Wow! These big diesels take a lot of oil!
How much oil and coolant does the Cummins 5.9B take?
Thanks
Don

quote:

Originally posted by garryp:

What do you do with the oil/coolant when you do home maintenance?

I have used a blue buggy for years. (the blue sewage containers). They hold 10 gallon, have a low profile with wheels so easy to move and then take it to a recycling center.

On our two prior coaches I installed a quick drain plug and will do the same on the breakaway when I change the oil next month. These come with a hose which inserts in the blue buggy and walla, no fuss, no muss. Then I drill a hole in the oil filter and let it drain for a couple of days. Refill and then good until next fall.

Some good ideas - thanks. Two Qs:

What is a Gulf Coast filter? How much do you replenish when the GC filter is changed?

quick drain plug sounds like a good idea, but I will have to wait till I have removed the current plug to determine size.

I wish I had one of those systems that burns a small metered amount of oil in the engine and replaces it from a reservoir to keep the oil replenished and topped off.

I change oil about every 6000 miles because it sits stagnant for six months of the year. That is the reason I do so even though Cummins in El Paso said that 12,000 is ok.

The engine is a Cummins M11, big displacement makes everything else big, including the oil sumps. It takes 12 gallon with filter changes. I buy Rotella at Wally's at about $10/gal, but have been paying a shop to change it.

I have never changed the coolant, but figure it is time. This time I am using the extended life coolan, also about $10/gal, but for all practical purposes does not need changing again.

The stuff is called "Final Change Global" and is made my Peak. It mixes with any other type of antifreeze so the switch is not 'dangerous'. I called peak and they said that to simply drain, refill with water and warm it up, drain again and then fill with coolant.

I called Spartan to check on the capacity of my colling system. They usually have at their fingertips any info about chassis configuration, but for some reason had the engine block capacity but not the as-built capacity. So they and I worked up a swag of up to 18 gallons antifreeze taking into account large sidedraft radiator, 4 inch diameter radiator hoses, three front heater cores and engine heated hot water tank. But I really have no idea, I just needed to be certain I had enough coolant on hand when I start. I have 18 gallons.

One good point about the stuff is that SCA supplements testing and replenishment are not required. No SCA needed with the new coolant.

The coolant is difficult to find. I had to go to two Wally's and a Pep Boys to corral enough.
Three auto parts stores had nauta.

While on the topic of lubs, my trans dipstick is useless. Allison says to measure while running, but the oil smears on the stick till it is cannot ne read.

I had it changed once and before they did it I asked how they knew when it is full, due to the dipstick problem. They simply measure the amount removed and add back the same amount. Their standard practice.

quote:

Originally posted by garryp:
Some good ideas - thanks. Two Qs:

What is a Gulf Coast filter? How much do you replenish when the GC filter is changed?

http://www.gulfcoastfilters.com/ is the site. No affiliation except as a satisfied customer.

I use the O1 filter and it takes 6 qts to replenish. Incidentally, that also means that the capacity of your total system is 6 qts higher after adding this filter. From what you are saying about the capacity of your M11, you would probably need a larger model.

[QUOTE}While on the topic of lubes, my trans dipstick is useless. Allison says to measure while running, but the oil smears on the stick till it cannot be read.

I had it changed once and before they did it I asked how they knew when it is full, due to the dipstick problem. They simply measure the amount removed and add back the same amount. Their standard practice.[/QUOTE]

Drill a series of small holes in the dipstick between the full and add marks to help with the visibility of the oil level on the dipstick. Then check it immediately after shutdown. Close enough.

Mike

small holes - another good idea! I never cease...

Since the trans oil is fairly light weight, I would think 1/32 or 1/16 " holes?

Thx for the link. I found it when I quit searching for "Gold Coast"!

The O-2 for my engine is quite expensive.

Since the moho has much lighter duty than a big rig diesel engine, I have emailed them to see what they might say about the O-1 filter for my 5000 mi/yr moho useage.

I really like the concept. Am considering it.

What does the periodic oil test cost?

Don't remember the size of the holes I drilled. Keep them under 1/2 the width of the dipstick.

My local guy does it for $20 a test. However, I buy 3 tests in advance for $50 from GCF. They send me the container and mailer. Results come both in the mail and e-mail.

Incidentally, I use the big roll Bounty paper towels as the filter. That's what they recommended for a long time, but the state agencies, truck manufacturers and military that use the filter housing wanted an official filter insert. They came up with the insert that they market now, but the expense for that isn't really necessary.

As far as cost of the filter is concerned, you said you currently have 12 gallons of oil in your engine at $10/gal. With an O1 installed, you change out 6 qts. That's $15 vs $120 per oil change plus the cost of a paper towel roll. Saving $100 per oil change would pay for the O1 pretty quick, not to mention not having to handle 12 gallons of used oil.

Mike

I got the following response from Gulf Coast.

ERRATTA: This response from fs2500, still waiting for GC email response.

the reply:
"Cummins M11,
Garry, the custom kit for your truck would cost $ 614.00, this is a savings of $100.00 for a limited time. All we need to know to build a custom kit for you is: the brand of truck, the model year and engine. Everything comes in the kit and includes braided stainless steel hoses. Installation time is one to two hours. If you would like more information please send your mailing address.
Jim Williamson (toll free at 888 440 9056)"

For those who want to change oil at home you can buy a 24 quart plastic drain pan from a heavy duty truck service center. In Houston we have Fleet Parts Warehouse (a national chain) and lots of heavy truck parts houses. They look just like the small ones at AutoZone but hold 24 qts. Of course you have to be able to lift 24 qts, put it somewhere, and then transport it to a parts house to dispose of it. That is no small task because that much oil is HEAVY.
Tom