Replacement air filter and warranty problem

[rbattelle]

I think you should'a saved that rat for science! Obviously an uncommonly clever rat. Are you sure it wasn't Mickey Mouse?



You might prevent rats from entering the filter compartment by putting some chicken wire over the inlet.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by rbattelle

I think you should'a saved that rat for science! Obviously an uncommonly clever rat. Are you sure it wasn't Mickey Mouse?



You might prevent rats from entering the filter compartment by putting some chicken wire over the inlet.

You'd think DC woulda thought of that, wouldn't you? 'Course, that would mean stickin' with the stock rig and there goes what little power I'd pick up by goin' the other way. But you're right: he was an uncommonly clever sucker. And a dead one now.



But it coulda been worse ... I've heard of hundreds of dollars worth of damage done by rats that had a little time to work on stuff under the hood. Just the insulation under the firewall costs $235 to replace, plus installation.

 

[SWendell]

I just installed a BHAF and I think the metal grid its covered with would slow down your rat ... at the least.

 

[BarryG]

I might very well be wrong here but I think for a manufacturer to approve a filter or at least not be able to deny warranty is that it needs to meet the filtering spec of 99% effeciency (the same as the stock one). I think the afe progaurd 7 meets this criteria and still flows a ton more. BHAF probably meets the same standard as it is original equip on some other engines.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by SWendell

I just installed a BHAF and I think the metal grid its covered with would slow down your rat ... at the least.

That's another solution. I'm pretty sold on the aFe Pro-Guard 7 though. Maybe I'll rig a piece of chicken wire around it.

 

[SWendell]

Better get some "big a$$ rat" wire instead!:-laf

Don't think chickens are the problem... .....

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

" it needs to meet the filtering spec of 99% effeciency"



UMMMM - exactly WHERE did you come up with that number?



Last *I* heard, the minimum spec was more like 95%, and came direct from Cummins...



I'd appreciate a pointer...

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Gary - KJ6Q

" it needs to meet the filtering spec of 99% effeciency"



UMMMM - exactly WHERE did you come up with that number?



Last *I* heard, the minimum spec was more like 95%, and came direct from Cummins...



I'd appreciate a pointer...

The 99. 5 percent figure came from the aFe manufacturer. They put their corporate honor on the line, so word will get around fast if the filter proves to be less than that.

 

[Tony T.]

Rat's

I HATE MEECE'S TO PIECES! Had two rats from hell do around, a thousand dollars worth of damaged to my Skeeter Bass Boat an custom tarp cover. I did get both of them though. I do wish I would have thought to capture them alive so I could of had a trial and me being the executioner long an slow. :-laf. And by the way I use a stock filter.

 

[frijole]

Mouses

Had mouse/rat problems up in the mountains of NM. My Boston terriers love to chase and nail squirrels, but the mice elude them. SO, I finally got my first cat, and she kept bringing the damn mice in the dog door for me to see. I finally convinced her to keep the little critters outside. She did, and one night she went for a ride with a very large white owl. So now I got another cat, but no mice or rats. Gonna let this one have a litter or two, and keep the mouse/rat population down, and feed the owls too! Ron

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

"The 99. 5 percent figure came from the aFe manufacturer. They put their corporate honor on the line, so word will get around fast if the filter proves to be less than that. "



WE'RE talking 2 different animals here - I was referring to a filtering percentage spec set by CUMMINS for these engines -

and it LOOKED like that was what you were referring to:



"I might very well be wrong here but I think for a manufacturer to approve a filter or at least not be able to deny warranty is that it needs to meet the filtering spec of 99% effeciency"



Or, who IS it that would be "denying the warranty" if it didn't meet the "99% spec"? DC? Cummins? AFE?



sorry for the confusion - and still, as *I* remember, Cummins calls for somewhere around 95% efficiency as adequate - more is ALWAYS better!

 

[radar doctor]

FITERED RATS CATS OWL'S AND DIRT

:-{} :-{} :-{} . . DARN'EST STORY I EVER HEARD..... COULD THE SOULTION BE , TRADE THE TRUCK OFF EACH YEAR???????

 

[JRG]

Filter Test Data



AIRAID®'s "4 +1" filter construction out-performs the others in clean air testing. Our competitors' airflow gains come at the expense of inferior filtration. AirAid® provides the optimum balance between maximum airflow and maximum filtration by utilizing 5 layers. The Fifth and "last layer of defense" is a synthetic media assuring the cleanest air possible from any washable filter.



We test to SAE standard J726, the method for testing fractional efficiency of a filter. We could say that we capture 99. 997 percent of particles of 10 microns and larger, most air filters, capture the full range of particulates, even down to 2 microns. Our filters are so efficient that we test all the way down to 0. 3 microns. At 2 microns, our filters capture almost twice the percentage of particulates that our competitors do, and more than 6 times the amount at 0. 5 microns.

SKU:

Fits:



300-128

03-04 Cummins 5. 9L Turbo Diesel



Description:



This is what you have been waiting for - AirAid's Premium Intake System for the 2003 Dodge 5. 9L Cummins Diesel. This system enhances the performance of your new Dodge by 11 Horsepower! Our patented QF Series installs in minutes with simple hand tools, and utilizes our Premium High Flow Air Filter for maximum airflow and superior filtration

SKU:

Fits:



300-928

2003 Dodge Cummins Diesel 5. 9L



Description:



Designed to work with either the original air box or the new 300-128, AirAid’s 300-928 Modular Intake Tube (M. I. T. ) for the 2003 Dodge Ram Cummins Diesel will wake up even the tamest of engines. This is possible because the M. I. T. flows 20% more air than the factory unit. The M. I. T. is constructed of cross-linked high-density polyethylene for strength and durability. All M. I. T. kits come complete with all the mounting hardware needed. Like the AIRAID Intake Systems, they bolt right on in minutes with simple hand tools.

I like my Airaid



JRG

 

[Jeremiah]

Re: Rat's

Originally posted by Tony T.

I HATE MEECE'S TO PIECES! Had two rats from hell do around, a thousand dollars worth of damaged to my Skeeter Bass Boat an custom tarp cover. I did get both of them though. I do wish I would have thought to capture them alive so I could of had a trial and me being the executioner long an slow. :-laf. And by the way I use a stock filter.

I've heard some horror stories about mice and rats under the hood. I consider myself lucky, although I was just kidding about which filter to buy. I'm getting the aFe. It'll be up where I can watch it; I'll also put some wire around it to keep the pack rats out.

 

[BarryG]

Gary:

I thought I had read an article a while back about the filtering effeciency of a stock filter and it was 99%. That is why the manufacturers, in this case Dodge, don't recommend aftermarket filters as they don't meet that spec (or at least none that I was aware of except the BHAF possibly). So in theory dodge could negate your warranty if they followed the Moss Magnesson act etc etc by using a non 99% effecient filter and it was found to be the cause of the problem.



Also bear in mind that Cummins really has nothing to do with our warranty at all. What Cummins recommends doesn't have to be the same as what DC says unless of course you bought the engine directly from cummins.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

I would think DC would follow Cummins lead pretty well as to filtering specs - after all, these engines are used in MANY other applications besides our trucks - many industrial and commercial ones that DEMAND reliability and long life...

As I recall, the K&N spec for their filters lags behind the paper ones by about 2%, but still better than Cummins minimum spec - their greatest advantage being their ability to go MUCH longer in dirty environments without clogging - situations that would collapse a paper element filter and cause LOTS more potential damage than an evil K&N. After all, K&N got their start in dirt track, off road and motorcycle use - and while some of those guys rebuild more often than we do, they STILL want the most effective filtration they can get.



My K&N served entirely satisfactorily on my old '91 - still unsure as to how efficient the different style will do on the '02 - I suspect it won't be as effective, since it looks to have less surface area - will know next oil change and analysis. If it doesn't prove out to my satisfaction, I plan to install a Fleetguard marine-style BHAF to replace it - I may be a K&N supporter - but NOT a fanatic!

 

[Jeremiah]

Cummins v. DC

Originally posted by Gary - KJ6Q

I would think DC would follow Cummins lead pretty well as to filtering specs - after all, these engines are used in MANY other applications besides our trucks - many industrial and commercial ones that DEMAND reliability and long life...

As I recall, the K&N spec for their filters lags behind the paper ones by about 2%, but still better than Cummins minimum spec - their greatest advantage being their ability to go MUCH longer in dirty environments without clogging - situations that would collapse a paper element filter and cause LOTS more potential damage than an evil K&N. After all, K&N got their start in dirt track, off road and motorcycle use - and while some of those guys rebuild more often than we do, they STILL want the most effective filtration they can get.



I heard a Cummins rep say the company defers to Dodge on everything. Something about an agreement at the upper corporate level.



My K&N served entirely satisfactorily on my old '91 - still unsure as to how efficient the different style will do on the '02 - I suspect it won't be as effective, since it looks to have less surface area - will know next oil change and analysis. If it doesn't prove out to my satisfaction, I plan to install a Fleetguard marine-style BHAF to replace it - I may be a K&N supporter - but NOT a fanatic!

 

[JRG]

What good does it do to argue about % effeciency without a micron size?

IE. 100% @ 10 micron vs. 50% @ 5 microns. For all you know, you guys are talking the same thing. Hence my post above.



P. S. Cummins/DC said "we don't recommend" not "you can't. "



Just my . 02



JRG

 

[BarryG]

As I stated in my orignal reply I may very well be wrong. Just going from memory (what was that I was going to say) about an article I read.



I am a user and believer in K&N or AFE among others. I have used K&N on all my vehicles for many many years. In fact the only reason I switched to the AFE was 2 reasons one the orignal K&N drop in sealed poorly in my airbox and probably even more importantly was the price I got on the AFE setup (happen to be on the TDR within a minute of when a local member posted about a local shop that was selling them for 135, gave them a call verfied the price, they said it was an introductory price and I purchased one, they said I bought the last one at that price).



As far as DC following Cummins specs closely I agree that they probably would but DC also would be well within their right to make it even tighter.



I think JRG has an excellent point on the effeciency ratings. I even noticed that on AFE's website in their flow rating comparsion that the competitors flow ratings are at different levels of h20. If I remember(uh oh memory again) K&N's was at 6 inches and AFE's was at 1. 5 inches of water. So much for apples to apples in that flow comparsion.

 

[Jeremiah]

Flow rate of water?

Originally posted by BarryG

As I stated in my... ... ... . I even noticed that on AFE's website in their flow rating comparsion that the competitors flow ratings are at different levels of h20. If I remember(uh oh memory again) K&N's was at 6 inches and AFE's was at 1. 5 inches of water. So much for apples to apples in that flow comparsion.

I must have missed that water comparison, but thought I would offer the observation that these filters filter particles from air, not water. There might be a difference.



The micron observation, which Amsoil is big on in pre-filtration, is also a good one.