Forgot to sample from sump, dipped my sample :(

[himemsys]

I'm kinda bummed. Was changing the CRV oil this morning. Had my sample container sitting right there and still forgot to grab a sample as it was draining. It drained into a somewhat clean pail, but there was definitely drips of old oil and some dirt in there. I made a quick decision and dipped for my sample in there. I'm curious to see how much contamination there will be. Hopefully the crap stayed at the bottom of the pail and I dipped pure oil from the sump. lol

Oh well, live and learn. Sample is going to OAI tomorrow. I should have results by Friday.

 

[Eddie Hudson]

Don't feel bad, I did the same thing on Thursday. I just dipped the sample bottle in the drained oil and sent it in. It happened once before and the sample came back normal.

 

[nate379]

Why sample it if it's already drained out?
Plus it holds what, a gallon of oil?

Sample on lets say a 10 gallon sump makes sense, $250 of oil sitting there.

 

[fantastic]

I sampled the truck oil the other day & I made sure to grab the bottle before I went to drain so I know what you mean on the old noggin tricks (Forgetting). If you plan on an oil change then write a note & tape it on the hood of your car the day before to "Grab the bottle" LOL before going down under the car to drain the oil. Glad you didn't give up & tried your best to get what you could out of the drain. I think so long as the container was relatively clean & very little old oil it shouldn't throw it off too much. How much old oil do you think was inside the drain jug you drained this oil into?

 

[fantastic]

Why sample it if it's already drained out?
Plus it holds what, a gallon of oil?

Sample on lets say a 10 gallon sump makes sense, $250 of oil sitting there.

There are several good reasons to do an UOA even when draining the oil.

Check how the selected viscosity grade is performing for the mile duration
Check fuel dilution
Check contamination of the engine oil to see if it's abnormally out of line for any reason, which could point to mechanical issues
This is a DIY oil forum we can share our data with

If one was trying to squeeze out many miles out of an oil drain then I could see not draining & just testing. Just b/c one drains doesn't mean there's no data to be had or learned from a cheap UOA.

 

[himemsys]

I sampled the truck oil the other day & I made sure to grab the bottle before I went to drain so I know what you mean on the old noggin tricks (Forgetting). If you plan on an oil change then write a note & tape it on the hood of your car the day before to "Grab the bottle" LOL before going down under the car to drain the oil. Glad you didn't give up & tried your best to get what you could out of the drain. I think so long as the container was relatively clean & very little old oil it shouldn't throw it off too much. How much old oil do you think was inside the drain jug you drained this oil into?

The thing is, I remembered to take the sample bottle out to the garage and laid it down next to the oil jug, filter, and wrenches, right next to the car! Then I got under the car and took the splash guard off and next thing you know, I'm draining the oil without a care in the world. lol

 

[fantastic]

The thing is, I remembered to take the sample bottle out to the garage and laid it down next to the oil jug, filter, and wrenches, right next to the car! Then I got under the car and took the splash guard off and next thing you know, I'm draining the oil without a care in the world. lol

LOL
We'll see those mishap results soon enough eh? (OAI)

 

[himemsys]

LOL
We'll see those mishap results soon enough eh? (OAI)

Yep! This is my winter sample on the CRV. Last year I decided due to high fuel dilution to isolate the winter oil, so I ran the oil for 4 months (11/17 to 3/17). Then I won't change the oil again for 8 months (3/17 to 11/17). Because it's a low mileage short tripper, this sample only had 1500 miles. The 8 month sample will probably have <4000 miles.

The idea being, fuel dilution is greatest during the coldest months. Rather than carry over high fuel dilution from the winter in oil that will then be run for several more months in warm weather, keep it isolated. My hope is the 4 month sample will be the sacrificial lamb and have super high fuel and the 8 month warm weather sample will benefit by having much lower fuel. We'll see if that works out or not!

 

[nate379]

If your oil is fuel diluted what do you do?

Not like it has a carb and you can adjust it. I guess computer tuning if you're into that stuff.

I keep oil simple and just do 250hr changes whether it's really needed or not. Makes it simple to keep track. Have probably 25-30 things with engines

 

[himemsys]

If your oil is fuel diluted what do you do?

Make sure the 8 month run has as much less fuel in it as possible. I'd rather the 4 month run have the higher percent, especially if it means the 8 month run will be improved because of it.

 

[nate379]

Make sure the 8 month run has as much less fuel in it as possible. I'd rather the 4 month run have the higher percent, especially if it means the 8 month run will be improved because of it.

Not understanding.

You change the oil every 8 months and if it has fuel, go to 4?

 

[himemsys]

Not understanding.

You change the oil every 8 months and if it has fuel, go to 4?

The basis of my theory is that fuel dilution is worse in the coldest months. So if I change my oil in October, run it 5-6k miles and change it again the following October, then the higher rate of fuel dilution from Nov through March (my coldest months) will remain in the sump all year long, effecting viscosity for a full year.

If I change the oil every 6 months, the same issue occurs, but for a shorter period of time. So an October to April oil change interval will still have more fuel dilution in the oil for a month or two. The April to October oil change interval will have the lowest fuel dilution.

If I isolate the winter oil change to Nov to March, this captures the highest concentration of fuel dilution, then removes it from the engine after only 4 months when I change it in March. Then the following 8 month run from March to November will have a lower rate of fuel dilution and less effect on the viscosity for 8 months (2/3 of the year).

Does that make more sense?