Recycled motor oil end users

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Most all parts stores now accept used motor oil, and then it is picked up and taken to a recycle center for processing. Anyone here know who the big end users of the recycled oil are? Is any of it used for motor oil again? (Valvoline NexGen was a flop apparently). Are the end users primarily industrial, as in burning in oil fired boilers, or maybe asphalt/road tar, and roofing tar?
 
Interesting, there was an executive order way back in 2000:

Presidential Executive Order
Executive Order 13149: "No federal agencies shall purchase, sell or arrange for the purchase of virgin petroleum motor vehicle lubricating oils when re-refined oils are reasonably available and meet the vehicle manufacturer's recommended performance standards."

Full text:

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2000-04-26/pdf/00-10551.pdf
 
Originally Posted by Electromotive
Most all parts stores now accept used motor oil, and then it is picked up and taken to a recycle center for processing. Anyone here know who the big end users of the recycled oil are? Is any of it used for motor oil again? (Valvoline NexGen was a flop apparently). Are the end users primarily industrial, as in burning in oil fired boilers, or maybe asphalt/road tar, and roofing tar?



At the quick lubes around me a local waste oil company collects it and a asphalt company buys a bunch off them.

At my work, we use Safety Kleen 5w30 "ECO POWER 5W30 blend and "ECO ULTRA" Synthetic 0w20 by Safety Kleen
 
Originally Posted by tahoe_hybrid
why do you think they accept it for free its worth a lot of money as fuel or other use


Because they feel they are providing a "service"

They should be purchasing it.
 
Originally Posted by Linctex
Originally Posted by tahoe_hybrid
why do you think they accept it for free its worth a lot of money as fuel or other use


Because they feel they are providing a "service"

They should be purchasing it.

Growing up, we use to dump our used motor oil in the 'fields' behind the house.
Today, I am more then happy to drop the used oil at any auto parts store / seeking forgiveness for my sins

How much profit does the store make on a drum ?
1) They have to dedicate floor space for any drums / which could be 2-3 pallets
2) Have an employee empty the containers into a drum
3) Discard the empty gallon containers
4) Deal with any spills

Let them make any profit they can.
When I shop for parts, I have a lot of options for getting the best price and quality.
 
I can vouch for military using recycled engine oil in their engines. I see it all the time. Drums of 15W-40 from safetykleen in just about every motorpool.
 
Any options out there for selling used motor oil? For example, I generally keep my scrap parts/metal until I have approximately $20 worth to take to the recycler... who pays me for it. I wouldn't mind keeping, say a 5-10 gallon jug of used motor oil on hand until its full to sell.
 
Originally Posted by SubieRubyRoo
As long as contaminants are removed and the add pack/TBN is replenished before new use, what's the problem?


Nobody said there was any problem...
confused2.gif
 
Originally Posted by Electromotive
NextGen was a flop


Just because consumers were finicky doesn't mean the idea itself was without merit; it just means it was not the correct idea for consumer sentiment at the time it was implemented.
 
Originally Posted by SubieRubyRoo
Originally Posted by Electromotive
NextGen was a flop


Just because consumers were finicky doesn't mean the idea itself was without merit; it just means it was not the correct idea for consumer sentiment at the time it was implemented.


They certainly missed the marketing mark with it. I think they would have been better off putting a price differential in there between 'new' and 're-refined'. The straight up 'recycled' pitch just didn't sit with consumers. Why pay the same for something that 99/100 people see as 'used' when you can have 'new' for the same price. They didn't really want to hear that you'd probably never be able to tell the difference between the two of them.

Personally, as long as they re-refine it properly I'd be ok with doing away with the rule where you can only use XX% of re-refined oil in a product and call it 'new'.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by tahoe_hybrid
why do you think they accept it for free its worth a lot of money as fuel or other use


I recall a shop getting paid $0.50/gallon for used engine oil several years back. No idea if that price is good, bad, or average. The parts store I take recycled oil to sometimes has a 1,000 gallon container if I recall correctly. I'm curious how often it gets filled up because there's always next to nothing in it when I've taken oil in.
 
As kids a friend's father who was a genius told us used oil was simply inserted into the flow of the oil refining process and that many an oil had a percentage of re-refined oil in it. I think Sears Roebuck's oil was known to be re-refined but they didn't say so on the cans.

While Mr. X was smart he surely couldn't have know everything about everything.

I'd bet there's a denastification step or two on the dirty oil side before the refining streams could be "confluenced".
 
Originally Posted by ctechbob
Interesting, there was an executive order way back in 2000

If I'm not mistaken, executive orders can be cancelled or voided by the next president. That one was written by Clinton in his last year so Bush may have voided it just months later. I'm not sure if that one had a built-in expiration date, was cancelled by a later president, or is still in effect.
 
Originally Posted by Linctex
Originally Posted by tahoe_hybrid
why do you think they accept it for free its worth a lot of money as fuel or other use


Because they feel they are providing a "service"

They should be purchasing it.

The companies, like Safety Kleen, that collect this normally could just tell the stores, "you get rid of it yourself". Stores, repair shops, and so on don't want that hassle or headache so yeah, they'll pay for a "service" that takes care of it for them.

Now, just one example I know is the local O'Reilly. They have a Safety Kleen tank but they told me they give the collected oil to some of their 'commercial accounts', presumably for burning in furnaces. I bet they have to call Safety Kleen at least a few times a year to collect oil or Safety Kleen will ask for their tank back.
 
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