Mityvac 7400 problem

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
42,357
Location
Great Lakes
I purchased a Mityvac 7400 fluid extractor a couple of years ago. Lately, when I try to pump it, oil spews out of a small exhaust hole near the handle. The unit's suction power has been rather weak, too, right from the beginning. It takes more than half an hour to pull 7 qts of oil. Not sure if that's considered normal.

Is there anything that can be done to fix this? Or is it not worth it and I should just look for a new extractor?
 
I bought my topside oil extractor from Griots and never had a problem. The "T" handle broke and I fixed it with a wooden ball from Hobby Lobby.

Later while making an order at Griots, I mentioned having to make a new handle for it and the rep I was working with asked me to send it in, lifetime warranty with all Griots purchases. I told him to forget it, It's all good, but he did say if it ever fails send it in for a new one, free of charge.

Griot says he wants life time customers; I guess he really backs it up.....
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
I purchased a Mityvac 7400 fluid extractor a couple of years ago. Lately, when I try to pump it, oil spews out of a small exhaust hole near the handle. The unit's suction power has been rather weak, too, right from the beginning. It takes more than half an hour to pull 7 qts of oil. Not sure if that's considered normal.

Is there anything that can be done to fix this? Or is it not worth it and I should just look for a new extractor?


My brother in-law just bought a new 7201, there is an instruction/warning about tighten the 6 screws on top lid once in a while. My 6 years old 7201 is still working good, it took less than 15 minutes to extract 8.5 quarts, and I did tighten the screws after 4-5 uses. The other possible problem is the gasket between the top and the container is defective therefore it did not seal well and the vacuum is leaked.

For the "oil spews out of a small exhaust hole near the handle", I think you should talk to Mityvac via email (you may want to mention the weak extraction/gasket too):
[email protected]
[email protected]
 
Mityvac's response:

Quote:
the seals have gone bad in the pump tube. We do not offer any replacement parts for the pump tube. You would have to replace the unit.


Kind of disappointing as I haven't really used it that much.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Mityvac's response:

Quote:
the seals have gone bad in the pump tube. We do not offer any replacement parts for the pump tube. You would have to replace the unit.


Kind of disappointing as I haven't really used it that much.

Very disappointed !!!

My 7201 had been working for more than 6 years on my 3 cars and my brother in-laws 2 cars without much problems. I just tighten the screws once in a while. It was working so good that my brother in-laws bought one some months ago, because he tired of borrowing mine every few months. His 7201 is working very good too without problems.
 
Got my Pela 14K yesterday and already used it to do an oil change on my 530i. Seems to be working fine, alas, still a bit slow, but I think that has to do with the fact that I'm using the thinnest of the 3 tubes provided. That's the only one that properly fits in my dipstick...

Pela_14k.jpg
 
Well, less than 3 years later, and the Pela developed the same problem as my old Mityvac - oil spewing through the pump handle.

I'm starting to think that there is something wrong me and not the tools. I am guilty of keeping some oil in them, waiting until they're full before I empty them out. Could this be the reason for the seals to go bad on the pump tube? I've contacted Pela to see if it's fixable at this point...
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
I'm starting to think that there is something wrong me......

A quick straw poll at BITOG indicates that your assumption is correct.
grin.gif



Sorry to hear of your problems. It seems wrong that these tools can't handle the task they are designed for. I'm guessing that leaving the oil stored in the container is the problem, along with less than stellar seal material.

I have the Mityvac 7201 model where the cylinder sits outside the container and never touches the oil. So far, no problems after 6 years.
fee_07201.gif


Could you figure out a way to attach a shop vac to either canister to create the vacuum??
 
Last edited:
I had the same problem and it was indeed caused by not dumping the extracted oil. However, I was able to get mine to self correct. I confirmed with a call to Mityvac that the problem was being caused by the stored oil leaking past a seal in the bottom over time. First I dumped out the old oil. Then I pumped to it for about 3-5 minutes. A small, diminishing amount of oil came out the first minute or two and then nothing. It has worked flawlessly since then. Give this a try on both your extractors, you might be able to save them as well.
 
I suspect that all these extractors are made overseas. Cheap. Does anyone know what the dealerships use?
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
It takes more than half an hour to pull 7 qts of oil.


A quicker way is to use a vacuum cleaner with the crevice tool attached. Just remove the hose from the mity-vac pump and insert it into the middle of the crevice tool and use your fingers to plug up the remaining area around the crevice tool. Works like a charm!
 
Originally Posted By: TooManyWheels
There are some interesting negative reviews on Amazon about this unit and this problem -

Negative Amazon Review Re Synthetic Oil . You should add yours...

Perhaps some BITOG traffic to the Amazon site will get someone's attention.


Good idea. I have one and I'm happy with it. OTOH I wouldn't be happy with a response like the OP got. Bad news travels fast, and I'd be sure to let people know of the problems associated with this unit and the lousy response from their CS people.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top