Pre-Filter Magnet for FF

[Bio-T]

I have seen numerous posts on oil/trans filter magnets. The Forcefield screws on the full flow filter housing and the full flow screws on to the Forcefield. This unit is from Emergingent.

The Magnefine by the same company works great on the transmission and power steering.

Edited to remove the www from the Company name.

[ October 26, 2002, 02:21 PM: Message edited by: 59 Vetteman ]

 

[Dominic]

I don't understand the point of oil filter magnets. The magnet is not strong enough to pull something from the fast moving oil, and what it does collect would be stopped by the filter anyways. Right?

 

[BOBISTHEOILGUY]

posted by
Sciguyjim on another thread and relocated here.
Junior Member
Member # 434

posted October 14, 2002 01:06 AM
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Just a FYI here, I've had magnets around my oil filter and a 3" long magnet on my oil plug for 13 years now and I'll continue to use them. They always grab ferrous metals out of the oil stream. It's surprising how much. The magnets on the filter are some very strong ones I got from a science supply house. The stronger the better.
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Posts: 20 | From: Near Chicago, Illinois | Registered: Oct 2002 | IP: Logged

 

[Chris]

Also free out of dead computer hard drives.

 

[Chris]

Bob, have you cut open your filters to determine the best place to locate the magnets? Have read to put on the end or 1" from the base around the perimeter.

 

[OneQuartLow]

quote:

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Originally posted by Chris:
Bob, have you cut open your filters to determine the best place to locate the magnets? Have read to put on the end or 1" from the base around the perimeter.

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Perimeter magnets see more of the oil but the location limits size.
Cap magnets see little oil flow but can be larger.

Everything helps I suppose, but I'd start with a drain plug magnet & maybe another on/in the pan. Follow those with filter perimeter magnets to catch stuff that makes it to the pickup.

David

 

[Chris]

I already have a superplug drain plug and I have seen it work. The mags on the filter is easy to do and can be easily transfered to the new unit.

 

[OneQuartLow]

Nothing says you can't do both. How many MGauss before genetic mutation occurs?

Would be interesting to try both and cut the filter open for comparison.

 

[OneQuartLow]

BTW, I've seen 4500 gauss cap magnets selling for $26. Edmunds has 8000 gauss Samarium Cobalt magnets (happy in high temps) for < $10.

 

[Sciguyjim]

quote:

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Originally posted by OneQuartLow:

quote:

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Originally posted by Chris:

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Perimeter magnets see more of the oil but the location limits size.
Cap magnets see little oil flow but can be larger.

Everything helps I suppose, but I'd start with a drain plug magnet & maybe another on/in the pan. Follow those with filter perimeter magnets to catch stuff that makes it to the pickup.

David

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I have flat magnets that have the poles on opposite sides so there is no problem putting all 8 around the perimiter of the filter. If you buy blocky magnets with the poles next to each other you may run into problems with the available space.

Here's a little extra tip. I put my magnets on the filter with all the fields pointing in the same direction. The fields spread out farther into the oil than if they were positioned with oposite poles attracting.

Bob,
Thanks for finding that previous post of mine.

 

[MolaKule]

Question on the filter magnets:

The magnetic lines of force produced by a magnet, called "flux," always align themselves with and stay inside steel, iron, or nickel materials.

How does the magnetic flux of the magnet capture or hold metal particles when the flux lines can't get inside the space of the filter?

 

[Dominic]

I still stand to my opinion that all the magnet does is draw the already filtered magnetic particles to the edge of the filter - it does not trap them. The filter media traps the particles and the magnets on filters are a gimmick.

I do like drainbolt magnets though, especially in unfiltered cases like rearends and transmissions.

 

[Chris]

My thoughts are if you can pull any metal out before the filter, the filter stays cleaner. It certainly cannot hurt anything!

 

[OneQuartLow]

quote:

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Originally posted by Dominic:
I still stand to my opinion that all the magnet does is draw the already filtered magnetic particles to the edge of the filter - it does not trap them. The filter media traps the particles and the magnets on filters are a gimmick.

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Dominic, one of the benefits touted by magnet marketers is that many wear particles are smaller than 10 microns. Too small to be stopped by a full-flow. Can't say if the sizes are right but the stuff against the filter wall is like dust. Interestingly, the mix on drain pan magnets is more varied. I'm guessing larger particles present enough surface area to be washed away into the filter, as you suggested, and they settle to the pan magnets more readily.

Just re-installed magnets on my Jeep Sunday. It's the first vehicle I've used analysis on. I had removed my pan magnet to get accurate wear counts and left it stuck to my roll-around. Good thing, everything else was lost in a move.

For the record, the last two changes show Fe ppm 33@3581 miles and 40@5071 miles. Give me a couple months.

David

 

[Sciguyjim]

quote:

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Originally posted by MolaKule:
Question on the filter magnets:

The magnetic lines of force produced by a magnet, called "flux," always align themselves with and stay inside steel, iron, or nickel materials.

How does the magnetic flux of the magnet capture or hold metal particles when the flux lines can't get inside the space of the filter?

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I thought so too, once, but if the metal is thin enough and the magnet is strong enough the field will go right through the metal. Try it, you'll see. I find little piles of metal around every one of my filter magnets. I don't have any way to get a size range measurement, and I'm sure some would be stopped by the filter, but there's nothing saying smaller particles can't be stopped too. The magnet on my drain plug always has much finer metal on it than I see around the can magnets. So microscopic, in fact, that it looks like black powder instead of silver metal pieces.

 

[MolaKule]

Maybe so, but most of that "dust" would be entrained in the oil's dispersant and drained out with the oil.

I still think that a strong magnet in the drain pan or a magnet that is part of the drain plug is best.

If you ever replace a heater/AC blower motor, break it open and retrieve the magnet. These magnets are neodymium types and have to be the strongest available ouside of the physics' labs.

They are semicircular and can be broken up into smaller slivers and put inside the drain pan.

 

[OneQuartLow]

quote:

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Originally posted by MolaKule:
Maybe so, but most of that "dust" would be entrained in the oil's dispersant and drained out with the oil.

I still think that a strong magnet in the drain pan or a magnet that is part of the drain plug is best.

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Absolutely.

David

 

[GeorgeCLS]

Obviously drain plug magnets work best as they are in the oil stream and thus their power is maximized. However, Neo's on the outside of an oil filter do indeed work. I have cut many a filter with neo's on the outisde and the amount of ferrous material is significant. As per oil analysis results, iron/steel is always the #1 wear component: likewise, the wear particles are also significant wear generators, especially for softer bearing material, pistons, etc. If we can minimize the amount of free iron/steel, we are going to minimize wear creation. An additional side benefit is by capturing the free iron/steel, we reduce the loading on the oil filter enabling better filtration of the non ferrous contaminants and longer effective filter life.
George Morrison

 

[Chris]

George, thanks for confirming my beliefs! Should the magnets be on the sides only or do they need to be on the end also?

 

[Chris]

George, you still out there for a final comment, any other "cutters"?