Upside Down Spin On Filter Changing

[Birken Vogt]

How do you guys deal with changing upside down spin on filters? On old equipment where they did not think it necessary to drain back internally.

I have found that poking a hole in the side above the gasket area, and another one up high to vent it, makes it only run down one part of the engine instead of all over when you unthread it.

But I have been thinking it might be nice to have some kind of sharp hollow tap to direct it to a catch can that can be driven in. Maybe welding an anvil of some kind to a piece of steel brake tube for driving with a hammer.

I wonder if the engineers who designed this were unclear on the concept of how a spin-on usually works, or was their first day on the job or something.

 

[hosspuller]

I agree … the upside down filters are a major mess. And it's not any particular engineers. Deere, Porsche, VW, etc. Darn them all … I've wrapped rags around the filter to catch oil, to making aluminum foil oil diverters.
The best solution I've seen was a Kia car. the oil filter had a catch basin built in to the filter housing. I think it was the 4 cylinder.

 

[kshansen]

It's not just the "upside down" spin-ons that are a problem I have run across a few "right-side up" spin-ons that make a major mess when loosened.

One(2) in particular was the KTA-19 on the WA600 Komatsu at the quarry. But at least that one was pretty easy to work around I would just take say a #12 Philips head sheet metal screw and with a quick smack puncture the can. Then a couple turns in the screw would seal it till I positioned my catch can under it. Remove screw and drain a quart or two then reinstall the screw while draining the other filter. Once filter was off and on the drain table I'd remove the screws for use the next time.

Birken, Is this problem filter on a machine you need to service on a regular basis? If so any room to drill and tap a hole for a drain plug, the one the factory should have provided up front?

 

[Birken Vogt]

I have a lot of these in the field from different customers. Nothing too regular though. I did have the filter adapter off one one time to replace the o-ring and I don't remember what it was like inside or even if I looked for a drain plug. There are a few plug things on it but I do not take them out for fear that pressure regulator springs, etc. will come out with it.

 

[92U 3406]

Never seen those before. What a dumb idea.

 

[kshansen]

What make is that engine? Model?

 

[Birken Vogt]

That one is an Isuzu C240.

 

[DIYDAVE]

On the right side up ones, I would take a paper cup, loosen the filter, slide cup up, oil that slops out, gets trapped by the cup, just don't push it up too far, to make an airlock. Now them up-side down non drainers are bustards, no matter whacha do...

I have this thing that napa sells, its a piece of lead, with plastic coating, you can form it into a sort of funnel, and it mostly retains its shape, but in a tight spot, a mess is still a mess...

https://www.ebay.com/i/382454772981?chn=ps

 

[Old Doug]

I have poked a hole in them and biown air in. I have a airplane magizen and there is a deal in there for draining fillers on planes were you clamp it on the filter and it works like a hot tap were you can poke a hole were it is sealed.

 

[Old Doug]

I wonder if you could use the suck bucket hook up to the drain plug hole then poke a hole in the filter.

 

[Camshawn]

On my dodge with the Cummings B engine, I cut a piece of EMT conduit on an ange and drive it into the filter from below directing the filter oil into a bucket. Easier than cleaning up the spill from the ac hoses and fron axel. I would try the same approach driving the pipe just above the housing to remove most of the oil. Cam

 

[Old Doug]

The way fiters are on the dodge cumins i dont think they were met to be changed.

 

[willie59]

I wonder if you could use the suck bucket hook up to the drain plug hole then poke a hole in the filter.

Or...maybe drive a big hole in the top of it with a center punch, stick the tube from the suck bucket in and do the evacuation. Never tried that before, but maybe?

 

[John C.]

My Toyota pickup has a catch basin below the oil filter with a hole. Under that hole is room to put an empty plastic oil bottle with the top cut off. It works great. On the wife's 4 runner the filter is almost horizontal and it's underneath the driver's side head and above the suspension arm. You have to bent your arm about three different ways, grab and turn the can while it's hot and if you are lucky you have moved just so the oil draining out of the bottom of the filter base doesn't make its way through capillary attraction down your arm all the way to your armpit. Now since you have been burned your body's natural inclination for self preservation drops the filter which rolls all the way to the back end of the sheet metal belly pan. Now hot and bothered in the wrong way I've left that bothersome filter where it was and put on the new filter filled the engine and drove the car back in the garage with the pristine concrete floor. I didn't say anything about it to the wife because I was so angry with who ever designed that little piece of life shortening aggravation. Unfortunately the wife said plenty after the first run to the store. It was raining a bit and when she got to the store where there are plenty of leaf lickers who believe it is their duty to save the world and notice things like oil sheens going down the store sewer drains. One of those busy bodies just had come up to the wife and inform her that whales and salmon were dying because of a piece of Japanese engineering was choosing that spot to dump it life fluids. The wife now afraid to drive the car of course calls me in the middle of something at work demanding I drop everything important to me and come and get her and the car. I told her it was OK, that I had just changed the oil and made a little mess. I asked her if she heard anything strange when going to the store and she replied she thought she heard something bump whenever she hit the brakes. If the oil pressure light wasn't on the car was fine. That pacified her until she drove home. I knew I wasn't going to be when I got there. She hit the button to open the garage door when she got home and because she was looking forward to drive into the garage of course she saw the half a quart of oil that didn't make it to my arm pit, all over her pristine garage floor. At least I thought a head enough to pick up a bag of floor dry on the way home.

 

[Birken Vogt]

Or...maybe drive a big hole in the top of it with a center punch, stick the tube from the suck bucket in and do the evacuation. Never tried that before, but maybe?

I liked this idea, until I thought of possible shards remaining on/in the filter base because of the things being driven through the filter.

I would not hesitate to do this on a regular mounted filter because the shards would fall away, but of course on one of them, it's not necessary.

Contamination, yet another reason not to mount a filter like this.

 

[willie59]

I liked this idea, until I thought of possible shards remaining on/in the filter base because of the things being driven through the filter.

I would not hesitate to do this on a regular mounted filter because the shards would fall away, but of course on one of them, it's not necessary.

Contamination, yet another reason not to mount a filter like this.

Why I mentioned a center punch and further driving it open with the tapered portion of the punch. Shards would be minimal compared to drilling, just a thought

 

[gtermini]

My Toyota pickup has a catch basin below the oil filter with a hole. Under that hole is room to put an empty plastic oil bottle with the top cut off. It works great. On the wife's 4 runner the filter is almost horizontal and it's underneath the driver's side head and above the suspension arm. You have to bent your arm about three different ways, grab and turn the can while it's hot and if you are lucky you have moved just so the oil draining out of the bottom of the filter base doesn't make its way through capillary attraction down your arm all the way to your armpit. Now since you have been burned your body's natural inclination for self preservation drops the filter which rolls all the way to the back end of the sheet metal belly pan. Now hot and bothered in the wrong way I've left that bothersome filter where it was and put on the new filter filled the engine and drove the car back in the garage with the pristine concrete floor. I didn't say anything about it to the wife because I was so angry with who ever designed that little piece of life shortening aggravation. Unfortunately the wife said plenty after the first run to the store. It was raining a bit and when she got to the store where there are plenty of leaf lickers who believe it is their duty to save the world and notice things like oil sheens going down the store sewer drains. One of those busy bodies just had come up to the wife and inform her that whales and salmon were dying because of a piece of Japanese engineering was choosing that spot to dump it life fluids. The wife now afraid to drive the car of course calls me in the middle of something at work demanding I drop everything important to me and come and get her and the car. I told her it was OK, that I had just changed the oil and made a little mess. I asked her if she heard anything strange when going to the store and she replied she thought she heard something bump whenever she hit the brakes. If the oil pressure light wasn't on the car was fine. That pacified her until she drove home. I knew I wasn't going to be when I got there. She hit the button to open the garage door when she got home and because she was looking forward to drive into the garage of course she saw the half a quart of oil that didn't make it to my arm pit, all over her pristine garage floor. At least I thought a head enough to pick up a bag of floor dry on the way home.

A more perfect description I've never read. On the VW commuter car, you have to either pull the charge air hose or the coolant reservoir to get your meat hook down in there to the filter. It's a funky angle designed to drip smoking hot oil right on your hand the instant the filter comes off the threads, causing you to drop it, jerk you arm, and gouge yourself open on the 300 pointy things you got your arm weaseled through. Not amount of mental conditioning will prepare you to pull the stunt off cleanly. It's a learning experience every 5k miles. I figure it's how the engineers designed the front suspension to get its standard maintenance lubrication taken care of.

 

[Numbfingers]

I like the idea of using EMT to punch a hole and drain it. Kinda like getting sap from a maple tree, eh?

 

[JPV]

When I know I am facing one of those that is going to burn me as described above I wait until it is cooled down or barely warmed up if possible. I know it is probably best when the oil is thin to drain the most but I DON'T CARE!
My wife also had a 4 Runner, great rig right up until oil change time.

 

[kshansen]

I like the idea of using EMT to punch a hole and drain it. Kinda like getting sap from a maple tree, eh?

Not a bad analogy, maybe someone should contact a tool company with the idea of making a modified tree tap out of hardened steel that could be used for that purpose?

Wasn't there a guy non this forum who "invented" a digital voltage meter built into a test probe and go a tool company to actually put in in production?