Oil analysis, where?

[JFlagg]

Been reading about getting your engine oil analysed, and am curious who does it and where? I assume I just take the sample myself and send it to them, but do I need to contact them first, use their bottles, etc. ? Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks

 

[JJPage]

If you have a Cummins Dealer/Parts close by, they sell a kit for around $14. 00 if I remember correctly. It comes with a small bottle, a list of info you have to fill out, and a prepaid shipping container.



You do your part, mail it off, and you will get the results in about 10 days!



Hope that helps.

 

[BGlidewell]

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/diesel_engines.html

Here is one I've herd of and was going to ask the same question but you beat me to it

 

[JFlagg]

Thanks guys.

 

[Buffalo]

I've been using Caterpillar UOA's (used oil analysis). They just may have a local lab since your in the St. Louis area. (They have one in the Phoenix area).



Their prices have gone up, a bit. The first one was $15. 00, second $17. 00 & the last two were $18. 00. But, they are convenient.



In phoenix, there are a number of Caterpillar repair facilities scattered around town. Each of them has the sample bottles, which, you buy & after filling, just return the samples to the store where you bought it. They have a service that comes by each of Caterpillars satellite facilities, each day, & picks up the samples. You get your results in just a few days. I have been getting my results both by e-mail & land mail.



If you think you are having an oil related issue, you may want to go to BITOG (bob is the oil guy.com). It's a free website that is lubrication related. On that site, you will find a guy named Terry Dyson ( he advertises there). Basically, what he does is analize your UOA & tell you what is wrong & what to do about it. He uses Blackstone Labs &, the UOA, plus his indepth analysis, costs around $40. 00, as I understand.



Personally, I wanted to extend my oil drain intervals, safely, & decided to use UOA's to do that. I went from 7900 miles to 8300 miles to 9626 miles, on the last three oil changes. The oil still looks good, according to the UOA's. When I sent this last sample in, I asked them to check it closely because I had never gone this far on an oil drain. I got the results back, yesterday & , they said the oil still "looked good" & to continue its use (Chevron Delo-400, 15X40, CI-4+).



I know many of us like to change the oil at 3000 to 5000 mile intervals but, after reading on BITOG just how strong some of these diesel rated oils are, I thought I'd get more bang for my buck on oil changes by extending the drain intervals. The UOA's seem to support this.



I am, in no way, trying to criticize anyone who wants to change at 3000/5000 mile intervals. That, surely, isn't going to hurt your engine & if it makes you feel good, Great!



I was doing the 3000 mile OCI's (oil change intervals) myself, until I read of a guy that tows travel trailers, for a living, & he was doing 5000 mile OCI's & had 1,153,000 miles on his engine (without a rebuild) & it was still running well. That's when I extended out to 5000 mile OCI's.



I do my own oil changes, on both my trucks. I don't like doing it but, I know it's done right. So, being able to extend the OCI's means I don't have to crawl under the truck, all the time. It, also, saves money on oil & filters. Guess that makes me lazy & cheap!!!



Joe F. (Buffalo)

 

[amsoilman]

Been reading about getting your engine oil analysed, and am curious who does it and where? I assume I just take the sample myself and send it to them, but do I need to contact them first, use their bottles, etc. ? Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks

There are many Oil analysis labs around the country, you just have to look around and find a reputable one. Just remember to take the samples from the same spot each and every time, and take the samole when the engine is hot. If you start an oil analysis program, you should do it on a continuing basis so you can "trend" the results, which will give you a better picture of how the oil and Engine are doing, as a onetime analysis will not really prove much.





Wayne

amsoilman