Cutting open filters??

[stchman]

I know people on here cut open filters and show them. What can one really tell from cutting open a filter?


Obvious defects like torn media or ADBV defects would be easily seen, but I don't think one can see how well a filter filters oil just by sight. So to say that a filter "looks good" is kind of meaningless when it comes to how well it filters oil. I've cut them open before and while ones with steel end caps may "look" better, but that probably has little or nothing to do with filtering ability.

 

[WiskyBadger]

No one would have caught the Purolator debacle without cutting them open......

 

[stchman]

Originally Posted By: ChevyBadger
No one would have caught the Purolator debacle without cutting them open......


I did say OBVIOUS defects like torn media.

I am more talking about filtering ability from visual inspection.

 

[NMBurb02]

I don't think I have ever seen a BITOG comment on a cut open filter post saying that the filter looks like it has high filter efficiency due to the appearance of the guts.

The comments are usually about defects and build quality.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: stchman
Originally Posted By: ChevyBadger
No one would have caught the Purolator debacle without cutting them open......


I did say OBVIOUS defects like torn media.

I am more talking about filtering ability from visual inspection.


Yep, nobody can look at the filter media and tell how well it filters, or how much life is left in it.

 

[dmack2]

I check to see if the engine is making metal. The end caps are cut so the media can be stretched out for a visual then a magnet is run along the creases.

 

[stchman]

OK, then why do people call Fram orange filters OCOD? I have read PLENTY of people that refuse to use a Fram orange filter because of the cardboard end caps when in actuality Fram orange filters do a good job of filtering oil.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: dmack2

I check to see if the engine is making metal.


Yep, one of the main reasons I also cut them open. Seeing how the filter held up physically is also good to know.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

You can check for metal particles, or if the filter is really nasty and yucky and couldn't handle the OCI.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: stchman
I know people on here cut open filters and show them. What can one really tell from cutting open a filter?


Obvious defects like torn media or ADBV defects would be easily seen, but I don't think one can see how well a filter filters oil just by sight. So to say that a filter "looks good" is kind of meaningless when it comes to how well it filters oil. I've cut them open before and while ones with steel end caps may "look" better, but that probably has little or nothing to do with filtering ability.


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