I had a filter slip out of my hand and it rolled all the way across my garage spilling used hot oil all over everything. Can you spell Jiffy Lube??

 

Hmm I should have said "not laugh too much" ??? Oh yeah its laughable after the fact and of course reading about someone else doing the same thing too!!

BigPigDaddy I like those Blitz USA products----have more than a few great containers for oil changing---I'm considering a few of them myself now. I already have the open top version and it is large enough diameter that the standard drain plug can be used and still catch that first spurt all the way to the pan eventually emptying out. Thanks for posting that link BPD!!


JasonCW has a great idea----one I've been using for a while now. Instead of the 2 liter soda bottle though I use a one gallon jug, like washer fluid or similar. I really like the soda bottle idea as it would definitely contain the filter quite well and be a bit easier to handle with an oily hand. Ideally I'd like to make a catch can that could attach to or hang from something near the filter housing to allow spinning it free, drop just a few inches and collect the oil dripping from the engine for a few minutes. If I ever devise something I'll be sure to re-visit this thread.

Great ideas over a shared occasionally miserable result we've all seemed to deal with.

 

I have on occasion drained my oil then moved the drain pan under the filter and drilled a 1/4" hole in the bottom corner of the filter canister and let it drain that way before attempting to remove the filter. That works more often than not. Two things to consider before you start...use a drill you don't care much about just in case and you gotta be **** sure the last guy that changed your oil didn't "torque" your oil filter to 8 million ft lbs. Once you drill it you gotta pull it.

 

RedSled that's another good idea---in fact a screwdriver or anything somewhat sharp can be used to punch a drain hole in the filter---used to do that myself.

Worst case of a too tight filter was on a brand new Chevy S-10 a friend had bought---I convinced her to change oil after the first 1,000 miles. Should be simple right---took a few tools to her work parking lot to do it while she worked. Using one of the spider type filter wrenches it seemed to spin off a bit tight, no biggie---new truck and all. The more I tried spinning the filter the tougher it seemed to move--of course I'd already punched a hole!

As it turns out the can itself was spinning inside the heavier steel "bottom" which is merely crimped to the thinner can. I'd NEVER seen this before---wasn't sure what to do! Tin snips to cut the can away, longest screwdriver I had and a hammer to nudge the remaining flange 1/16 of a turn then it spun right off. This was made more difficult because the truck was sitting flat on the ground and not much clearance anyway.

These days I'm the only one touching my oil filter so have some idea what to expect during changes!

 

JWA - I think we've all been there. Tightening the crap out of oil filters on new vehicles must be some sort of assembly line humor that's lost on most of us. I don't get it but that's ok. I always do my own and the first one's always a booger. I always tighten the filter the same way cause like you said, I'm the one that has to take it off next time. I always wipe the gasket surface and double check that the old gasket is accounted for. I take my time and do it right and never have to worry about it. Ford sent me a coupon in the mail today for a discounted oil change, tire rotation and battery check. Thanks but no thanks.

 

Red like you I'll pass on anything like a coupon for a discounted service. If the downside isn't the wrestling match for up selling once there to redeem it then shoddy work due a "hurry up, git 'er done....." mentality often makes such offers a bigger risk than a benefit.

Trust me I've laid under my own truck a few cold winter days changing oil but its still worth it considering all things.

 

I've only ever taken leased vehicles to the stealership for oil changes. It's theirs anyways so let them screw it up if they want. I got "free" oil changes when I purchased my truck, they can keep em. I use a channel lock style wrench and just deal with the few drops by putting old work shirts under the pan. I usually wear rubber gloves I got from my EMS buddy, they keep your hands clean, but more importantly you can still grip well with oil on em. I'll be looking into the drain valve as I'm always nervous of over tightening the drain plug. I've broken the heads off leaving the threads on my quad's oil pan once. I got it out with a drill bit and extractor easily, but I dont need that stress in my life.hahaha

 

Lol. You're not tightening the drain plug like you're tightening your lug nuts. I just hold the ratchet about an inch from the center and then tighten as hard as I can. This way, you don't over torque it.

 

Are saying that you broke a steel bolt off that was threaded into extremely thin aluminum cases? It had to have been partially broken before you ever tried tightnening it because the plug on my quad only has about 5 threads holding it in place. Man, I thought I had bad luck!

 

My quad has a seperate oil ressy. It's steel. I change the oil after every race usually a couple times a month. I only swap out the drain plug bolt once a year, well atleast I used to. haha The oil plug bolt in the motor is into aluminum cases so I'm a tad more careful there, also it's easier to spot a leak on the side of the motor vs. the bottom, so I feel if I leave it a tad loose I will spot it quickly.

 

I do the same on my race quad also. Just sucks that the oil and filter are 50 bucks. When I pull the motor drain plug, My bottom skid plate is like a rain gutter and the oil runs out by the front bumper.

 

I was at the dealer recently and a guy who had evidently just bought his first quad also spent $50 on two quarts of "motorcycle-specific" oil and a filter. There really ought to be a law protecting people from their dealer. Having ridden and raced bikes and quads since 1969 without an oil-related failure, I think I'm qualified to say that the $17+ a quart stuff the dealer is pushing is unnecessary. I use conventional oil with ZDDP in it to protect the cams and piston ($5 a quart) and have never had any sort of problem whatsoever. I'm not easy on my YFZ450, either. I wring it out at the dunes, trail ride it and generally use it like a quad, all with no consequences, ever. I buy my filters by the case online for about $30 for 6 rather than hand the dealer $15 for a filter so tiny it could get lost in my glovebox if it weren't in a box. Most (not all) dealerships are absolutely full of criminals when it comes to parts and service prices.

 

I picked up some nice big deep drain pans from O'Reilly that'll hold more'n 7 quarts. They're nice. My oil shoots out to bout halfway to the tire. I change it warm but not hot. I just get it in place and stay under and keep sliding it back under the oil pan as needed. For the filter I just wait til the oil pan is mostly empty, turn it til oil starts to come out, wait til it slows down, turn it some more and wait again. I get a little oil on my hands, but a shop rag will handle the mess. Just gotta watch it as you're takin the filter loose. One time I turned it a quarter turn, let go, and that apparently was the lastt quarter turn. Dropped right into the oil pan, and splashed oil all over my arm.

Gotta say though, isn't it nice to not have to jack your truck up at all to change your oil? I've got the x code springs up front, so I even have room to lay on a creeper and slide under without jacking anything up.

 

I changed my oil today and the zip lock bag trick did not work well. It did catch the oil overflow, but you can't set it down cause there is no structure to it. Oil just dumps out.

I will use the 2 liter bottle trick next time.

 

Wish I had read this before doing 3 oil changes today Taurus, Explorer and F350. I use a big piece of cardboard, a fairly large drain pan set on blocks for the 350. The dang filters are the only messy part here, but I am gonna try the 2 liter bottle trick on my next oil change, thanks for the tip.