Copper levels in oil,

[gjones813]

New to forum, I did try to use the search to no avail, seems like it won't take anything I put into it.



anyway, how many parts per million is considerd normal? don't have my sig filled out yet so heres what I have.

07 Mega w/5. 9L 31,000 at time of sample, auto, 15w40 Val PB non-syn.



Thanks.

 

[GaryOwen]

I have read that 25 ppm is considered a "safe" level, but it isn't unusual to have 50 ppm or so until the engine is broken in. Can probably find more info at "BobIsTheOilGuy" website. My oil analysis copper results on my 03 was always at 1 ppm, but had over 100k miles on the truck before my first sample.

 

[gjones813]

I have read that 25 ppm is considered a "safe" level, but it isn't unusual to have 50 ppm or so until the engine is broken in. Can probably find more info at "BobIsTheOilGuy" website. My oil analysis copper results on my 03 was always at 1 ppm, but had over 100k miles on the first sample.

Thanks Gary, I just had my first oil sample pulled last month and my local CAT dealer did the analysis, they don't have as much info like the Blackstone lab reports do but they are just down the street and I can drop off and have my results in 24 hrs.

mine was showing the following:

let me know if something looks wrong,



copper- 15

Iron - 33

Chromium- 2

Alum- 9

lead- 1

SN- 0

Silc- 3

sodium- 5

Potas- 25

Moly- 44

Calcium- 995

Magn- 797

Zinc- 1050

Positive- 848------------don't know what this is, maybe there grading?

Antifreeze- none

Water- none

Fuel- none

Visco@ 100* C - 14. 3

9,000 miles on this sample with non syn 15w40 Val premium blue, stock air filter, fleetguard stratuspore filter, this is the longest I ever ran oil before.

 

[GaryOwen]

I'm no expert, but I think your numbers look okay for an engine as new as yours. Copper, Iron, and Aluminum should be watched, but will probably go down as the engine gets more broken in. Don't know what the "Positive 848" is all about. Viscosity is right in mid-range of normal.



You might want to get a TBN (Total Base Number?) analysis done for longer oil changes. It is just to make sure your oil doesn't get acidic. New oil should have a TBN of around 8 or 10. Need to make sure it doesn't go below TBN of 1. 0. I use Shell Rotella dino and TBN number was 6. 6 on a 12k mile sample. You are probably fine on TBN, but I would want a sample just to make sure you are okay. I think if you do this once and it is okay, and you stay with the same oil and driving conditions, you probably only need TBN tested once.



When I started testing my oil on my 03, I was changing every 6k miles. Finally worked up to 12k miles with good sample results. I did a lot of highway miles though.



Overall, I think you have nothing to worry about.

 

[gjones813]

Thanks Gary, I'm sticking to a 5,000 mile oil change for the next sample and will send it out to Blackstone and get a full report.

 

[TCDiesel]

I know it's a hard habit to break, 5k is just a waste of good oil, unless you detect a problem. How about just getting the sample at 5k and then determine the change?

 

[gjones813]

There you go I will do that, heck my dad used to add oil never changed it but once every two to three years and all his stuff lasted forever.

 

[JWadford]

33 iron is high

 

[gjones813]

Is there a sticky somewhere on here that can give some indicators of an oil analysis and what should be and shouldn't be?



You say 33 Iron is high on a 9,000 mile oil change that oil started on a motor with 12,000 miles on it or 13,000 miles cant remember right off.

 

[amsoilman]

Thanks Gary, I just had my first oil sample pulled last month and my local CAT dealer did the analysis, they don't have as much info like the Blackstone lab reports do but they are just down the street and I can drop off and have my results in 24 hrs.

mine was showing the following:

let me know if something looks wrong,



copper- 15

Iron - 33

Chromium- 2

Alum- 9

lead- 1

SN- 0

Silc- 3

sodium- 5

Potas- 25

Moly- 44

Calcium- 995

Magn- 797

Zinc- 1050

Positive- 848------------don't know what this is, maybe there grading?

Antifreeze- none

Water- none

Fuel- none

Visco@ 100* C - 14. 3

9,000 miles on this sample with non syn 15w40 Val premium blue, stock air filter, fleetguard stratuspore filter, this is the longest I ever ran the oil.

This report looks very good to me, and the viscosity is certainly as good as "New" oil!



Every Engine is unique when it comes to oil analysis, simply due to varying tolerances during manufacture, as well as how the operator uses the vehicle, so no two vehicles will come out the same in an oil analysis comparison. The best method for people using oil analysis to determine OC Intervals is to sample on a continual basis, and then determine through the analysis a "trend", which you can then use to evaluate the OCI, as well as the condition of the engine.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[gjones813]

Thank you Wayne, I just wanted something to go by.