Never Change Your Oil Again !!

[heron]

Bypass filters do work. But...the key is to make sure they are filtering the way they say they are.
I use an FS2500 bypass on my duramax. I don't change the oil. Do analysis every 10K and my oil is always perfect. I do run synthetic Rotella.
Pretty much the idea is the stock filters do not trap the harmful particles. The particles that are too small do not cause friction between the moving parts and the particles too big do not get caught between the moving parts. The particles that are detrimental are the particles which are "just right" and can get caught between the moving parts. The stock filters do not get down to this micron area thereby really not doing a whole heck of a lot.(I think the manufact. knows this...?)
Filter Solutions makes their own filter and has third party verification that it filters at the optimal micron level which the full flow filter does not.
When I pull the dipstick on the motor their is no soot in the oil at all, where as before there was.
Now, the FS filter is $24 and when I change it I also change the stock filter and then add about a quart of oil.
When I did the research on this system I spoke to a construction company that has seen engines that they usually rebuild at 10,000 hours go double if not triple the hours before needing rebuilding...That basically sold me.
I figured if I planned on keeping my truck for awhile it would be worth it.
There exists lots of other companies selling similar products but when I looked into it none had any third party proof that their systems actually filtered up to their claims.
BTW I am in no way associated with the FS company. Their website is fs2500.com.
I know they make lots of the systems for Oshkosh, heavy equipment and trucks but I'm not sure about the tractor segment.

 

[deerefan]

Bypass filters do work. But...the key is to make sure they are filtering the way they say they are.
I use an FS2500 bypass on my duramax. I don't change the oil. Do analysis every 10K and my oil is always perfect. I do run synthetic Rotella.
Pretty much the idea is the stock filters do not trap the harmful particles. The particles that are too small do not cause friction between the moving parts and the particles too big do not get caught between the moving parts. The particles that are detrimental are the particles which are "just right" and can get caught between the moving parts. The stock filters do not get down to this micron area thereby really not doing a whole heck of a lot.(I think the manufact. knows this...?)
Filter Solutions makes their own filter and has third party verification that it filters at the optimal micron level which the full flow filter does not.
When I pull the dipstick on the motor their is no soot in the oil at all, where as before there was.
Now, the FS filter is $24 and when I change it I also change the stock filter and then add about a quart of oil.
When I did the research on this system I spoke to a construction company that has seen engines that they usually rebuild at 10,000 hours go double if not triple the hours before needing rebuilding...That basically sold me.
I figured if I planned on keeping my truck for awhile it would be worth it.
There exists lots of other companies selling similar products but when I looked into it none had any third party proof that their systems actually filtered up to their claims.
BTW I am in no way associated with the FS company. Their website is fs2500.com.
I know they make lots of the systems for Oshkosh, heavy equipment and trucks but I'm not sure about the tractor segment.

Thank you for the first hand point of view. I have a 06 f250 w/ the 6.0 diesel. How hard is this kit to install and how expensive is it? Would the cost of this system be more than the cost of a few years of oil changes on an average vehicle (15,000 miles a year)?

 

[IslandTractor]

Thank you for the first hand point of view. I have a 06 f250 w/ the 6.0 diesel. How hard is this kit to install and how expensive is it? Would the cost of this system be more than the cost of a few years of oil changes on an average vehicle (15,000 miles a year)?

I doubt anyone would want to install such a filter system on a vehicle that runs for only 300-400 hours/year (roughly 15000 miles). They really make most sense for long haul truckers, remote generators running constantly, trawlers at sea for weeks etc etc. I haven't priced the bypass filters but with professional installation I'd be surprised if you got out of the shop for less than a grand....that could pay for a lot of routine oil changes.

 

[deerefan]

I doubt anyone would want to install such a filter system on a vehicle that runs for only 300-400 hours/year (roughly 15000 miles). They really make most sense for long haul truckers, remote generators running constantly, trawlers at sea for weeks etc etc. I haven't priced the bypass filters but with professional installation I'd be surprised if you got out of the shop for less than a grand....that could pay for a lot of routine oil changes.

That was kind of my feeling. I, many years ago, worked on diesel power packs with huge hydraulic pumps that were used to power vibratory hammers for driving sheet piling. Some of these units would be gone from the shop for 6 months at a time or longer. I absolutely hated changing the oil in them, especially out in the field. The biggest one was a 16cyl detroit, 2 blowers and 2 turbos. It powered our biggest hammer, a V30 Vulcan. If I remember correctly, this monster held somewhere in the neighborhood 40 gallons of oil. If we had this system described here, imagine the money and disposal fees we could have saved!!!

 

[J_J]

Bypass filters definitely work. Only those that have not used them would have any doubt. The principle is sound, as you are simply bypassing some of the total oil flow through a very small filter, maybe as small as 1 micron. That is for the solids only. The water, acids, and other stuff will still recirculate. The bypass filters are more expensive than the regular filter. You can add a bypass filter to almost anything using oil, hydraulic fluid, etc.

 

[fieldserviceengineer]

......With oil analysis readily available it seems you could pretty easily monitor the situation and change the oil as needed rather than on a relatively arbitrary schedule......

Engine oil change intervals are never decided by some arbitrary method. Engine companies like Cummins (my employer) base change intervals and lube sump capacity on fuel consumption and engine load factor. Consumption is based on engine load factors (% of maximum) for the market the engine is intended to operate in. Knowing the fuel consumption and the assumption that the engine is operating normally, the amount of contaminant entering the oil from blow-by gases is not some Scientific Wild A.. Guess! This also must take into account that the engine has a an air intake filtration system operating as designed. Engine companies would like to be able to offer extended service intervals as having them promotes the lower operating costs and thus becomes a selling point. What holds them back is the wide range of lubricant and filtration quality that exists plus customer maintenance practices.

 

[IslandTractor]

Engine oil change intervals are never decided by some arbitrary method. Engine companies like Cummins (my employer) base change intervals and lube sump capacity on fuel consumption and engine load factor. Consumption is based on engine load factors (% of maximum) for the market the engine is intended to operate in. Knowing the fuel consumption and the assumption that the engine is operating normally, the amount of contaminant entering the oil from blow-by gases is not some Scientific Wild A.. Guess! This also must take into account that the engine has a an air intake filtration system operating as designed. Engine companies would like to be able to offer extended service intervals as having them promotes the lower operating costs and thus becomes a selling point. What holds them back is the wide range of lubricant and filtration quality that exists plus customer maintenance practices.

That is an interesting point and I trust is valid for large diesels where the manufacturer has some pretty good notion of how the things will be used. I am not sure it works so well for smaller diesels however where there are many different uses and users. Why does almost every manufacturer suggest oil/filter changes at just about 3000 miles (for a car) or 50 or 100 hours for a small diesel? Isn't that just a tad arbitrary? Where is the recommendation that if you plow for 10% and lawnmow for 50% and do loader work for 40% then you should change your oil/filter every 67.4 hours? There has got to be a lot of rounding up and down here (very reasonable) which is why I used the term 'arbitrary'. I agree that arbitrary is not the perfect word but my point is that following oil analysis rather than the hour meter or odometer to determine when oil should be changed seems reasonable and more scientific.

By the way, as someone who is clearing in the middle of this business, what do you think of bypass oil filters and limited oil changes?

 

[Chilly807]

We have some pretty big diesels at my work, most use a centrifuge system, as well as self-cleaning filters such as Moati, for example. Oil isn't changed on an hourly basis, they use a Kittiwake oil analysis kit to check for insolubles and viscosity at a given temperature. Once the oil reaches a given limit, it's change time.

I'd have to say I'd sooner change the oil than trust the bypass system without analysis being done, and when I factor in the cost of oil analysis I'm better off to simply change the oil anyway.

Chilly

 

[AMP762]

Just a question that I have every time I read one of these oil topics.I have put a lot of miles on a lot equipment,dino oil and standard filters at about 3-4K mi.I have never had an oil related failure,have you?

 

[Gary Fowler]

Someone in this thread mentioned that car manufacturer recommend 3000 mile oil changes. The only folks I have seen recommending this is oil changing establishments. Every US made vehicle I have seen since 2003 recommends 7500 for normal oil changes with more frequent in towing or dusty conditions. MY Chevy dealer specifically told me to only change the oil when the onboard computer said to or twice a year if the mileage didnt add up. Only once have I gotten close to the mileage (the computer gives you % of life left) since I am rarely home to drive it. The wife runs hers up on the miles and we usually change at 20% or more oil life left. This usually equates to about 7500 hiway only miles with little to no towing. I dont know what all the parameters the computer uses to establish this, but now I follow the computer rather than the Jiffy lube sticker so they dont see me nearly as often as they would like. Talking to one of my work mates and he mentioned changing the oil in his 'vette' every 6 months since he works overseas a lot like I do. Last time the mechanic said that his odometer must be wrong as it only had 70 miles since the last oil change. He said nope, 35 miles from here to my house. One round trip=70 miles.