OIL FILTER RECYCLING

How to Prepare For Oil Filter Recycling

There are many different kinds of oil filters. Common types of oil filters include:

• Primary Oil Filters or Full-Flow Oil Filters — This is perhaps the most widely used oil filter by many automakers. Whereas some filters only clean some of a car’s motor oil, full-flow filters are designed to remove impurities from all of the oil used by an engine. Full-flow filters are especially useful in colder temperatures because motor oil can thicken in lower temperatures. When a filter is too restrictive, an engine may not receive all the oil needed to prevent damage. The full-flow filter will allow oil to move more freely through the engine than other types of filters, so it can provide all the oil needed for efficient performance at any temperature.

• Secondary Oil Filter — The secondary oil filter may be installed to support a vehicle’s full-flow filter, and it is designed to clean less than 10 percent of the motor oil used by the engine. These kinds of filters remove contaminants that could have been missed by the full-flow filter and help extend the life of a car’s motor oil and provide additional protection for the engine.

• Cartridge Oil Filter — The cartridge oil filter is a type of full-flow oil filter that is easy to use, and when mounted upright, can usually be inspected without needing to remove oil. Cartridge oil filters often have no metal parts, making them easier to recycle than many other choices.

• Spin-On Oil Filter — Another type of full-flow oil filter that features a steel canister paired with a paper element. Spin-on filters consist of several parts, including a steel canister, drain-back valve, bypass valve, and gasket. They do feature a simple installation process and a minimal need for any tools, but they also carry a number of environmental concerns. 

• Spinner Oil Filter — The spinner oil filter is a kind of secondary filter that uses centrifugal force to trap contaminants in a car’s motor oil. These filters are capable of generating a force that’s over 2,000 times greater than the force of gravity, and they can efficiently remove the tiniest contaminants from a car’s motor oil.

• Magnetic Oil Filter — Like a spinner oil filter, the magnetic filter offers secondary support to a full-flow filter and effectively cleans the oil of metallic contaminants, although it does not do much to remove dust and grime. A magnetic oil filter does not need to be replaced because regular cleaning is all that is required to keep it functional.

• Conventional Oil Filters — Conventional oil filters are another form of secondary filters that use basic cellulose membranes. While they filter out smaller contaminants, they also need to be replaced more often.

• Thermal Chamber Oil Filters — Thermal chamber oil filters work in two ways. First, they filter oil to remove impurities, but secondly, they raise its temperature so that certain contaminants in the oil burn off or get destroyed. While these filters work to refine the oil, they require electricity which can reduce fuel efficiency.

Oil filters have different membranes inside of them to filter out and clear the contaminants of the motor oil as it circulates. Filter membranes are classified into three types according to their properties.

The three kinds include filter membranes with superhydrophobic–superolephilic properties, filter membranes with superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic properties, and filter membranes with hydrophilic switchable wettability. The three kinds of membranes are generally classified as:

• Cellulose Filter — Most disposable oil filters have cellulose filter media that can restrain particles of sizes ranging from 8 to 10 microns and can clean up to 40 percent of the oil. These need to be checked or replaced every 3,000 miles.

• Synthetic Filter — Many higher quality filters use synthetic media that is effective in removing 50 percent of the particles in sizes ranging from 20 to 40 microns, and 24 percent of particles in the 8 to 10 micron range. Synthetic filters need to be checked or replaced every 5,000 to 7,000 miles.

• Microglass Filter — Several high-end oil filters include an extremely fine metal media or microglass. Microglass mesh is usually made from fibers 10 times finer than cellulose fibers and presents far less restriction to the flow of motor oil, only needing to be checked or replaced every two to five years or 10,000 miles (whichever comes first).

When it comes to changing your car’s oil filter, take the following steps:

1. Drain your vehicle’s oil into a drain pan. 
2. Clean up any spills with an absorbent material instead of hosing down the area. Use something like sawdust or cat litter on spilled oil and bag any soaked material in a leak-proof bag.
3. Pour the used oil from the pan into a plastic container with a tight-fitting lid. You should try to use a funnel to minimize spills. Make sure not to add any other waste liquids to the oil. 
4. Place the used oil filter in a sealed plastic bag. 
5. Store any used oil and oil filter properly until you can recycle them. 
6. Contact Tri State Oil Reclaimers, Inc. for assistance with recycling efforts.
7. Take your used oil and oil filter to Tri State Oil Reclaimers, Inc., or have them pick them up for you. 

The Oil Filter Recycling Process

As for what happens when oil filters are recycled, shops typically have two options. First, a company could gravity-drain a filter for an amount of time sufficient to ensure all free-flowing oil has been removed, but this method can require an amount of drain time that will vary based on the size of the filter, temperature, and fluid viscosity.

The more common method is usually crushing the oil filter using an appropriate crushing method that forces excess residual oil from the filter. Crushers such as the Ranger RP-20FC and RP-50FC connect easily to the existing shop air supply and are designed specifically to crush dirty oil filters and remove up to 95 percent of the sludge and used engine oil. 

A Ranger RP-20FC oil filter crusher will apply 10 tons of air-operated pressure to most used filters and reduce them to a quarter of their original sizes. The RP-50FC applies 25 tons of force. 

Wyoming Oil Filter Recycling Resources

Managing, Reusing, and Recycling Used Oil | US EPA — Visit this section of the EPA website to learn more about basic information on handling used oil at home, the benefits of reusing and recycling used oil, and how recycling used oil and oil filters works. You can also find links to the You Dump It, You Drink It Recycle Used Motor Oil Brochure, the Earth 911 Recycling Search Tool, and the American Petroleum Institute Used Motor Oil Collection and Recycling Site. There is also a link to frequent questions for small businesses.

Guidance and Summary of Information Regarding the RCRA Used Oil Rebuttable Presumption — Use this document to learn more about what exactly is used oil, what total halogens are, and what recordkeeping is required. You can also find information about regulatory exclusions to the used oil rebuttable presumption and rebutting the presumption of mixture with a halogenated, listed hazardous waste. You can also find total halogen test methods for used oil, tables of lubricant additives, and a rebuttable presumption flowchart.

Find Oil Filter Recycling Near Cheyenne, WY | Tri State Oil Reclaimers Inc.

Tri State Oil Reclaimers, Inc. considers itself to be an environmentally-friendly company that is reliably committed to its customers. We will work closely with you throughout the oil filter recycling process so you can easily have your oil filters taken care of in the safest and most efficient manner possible.

Tri State Oil Reclaimers, Inc. is a Cheyenne, WY-based company that helps commercial clients of all sizes throughout the US with Oil Filter Recycling efforts, Disposing of Used Oil, Antifreeze and Coolant Recycling, Recycled Fuel Oil Sales, and Delivery. Contact us at (307) 635-5332 for a quote today.