How to tell your oil is aged and needs change
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From: digging for oil
How to tell your oil is aged and needs change
So there are a few ways to determine that your oil is getting old and is not doing its job anymore. Some of those methods have been debated but they all get the job done.
1) Send a sample of oil to the lab get results back that are concidered very accurate, this wil normally cost you less than 25 buck
2) Or look at the dipstick and try and tell what is the oil looking like from there, many folks argue this process because it is not going through an actual lab and being scientifically analyzed. But listen up this may be able to be usefull.
FOR THOSE THAT DONT WANT TO SEND AN OIL SAMPLES AND LIKE TO LOOK AT THE DIPSTICK AND DETERMINE IN WHAT SHAPE THE OIL IS IN:
Oil is not like a fine wine that gets better over time. Instead, it ages at a rate that is influenced by driving conditions, fuel quality, engine age, motor oil quality and climate. If not changed in time, your oil will break down and fail to protect your engine.
So, let’s take a close look at the oil on the dipstick. The oil should look smooth and glossy and somewhat transparent. If it has sludgy deposits or grainy particles of dirt, it’s time for an oil change. The same is true if the oil looks too thick, is too dark (opaque), and/or has a putrid rotten-cheese smell.
If you still don’t know whether you need an oil change, consider doing a blotter spot test.
Oxidized and contaminated oil will lose interfacial tension. A simple test for interfacial tension is to place a drop of used oil from the dipstick on the surface of water. If the oil drop spreads out over the water’s surface (instead of beading up like a new oil) it may be time for an oil change.
1) Send a sample of oil to the lab get results back that are concidered very accurate, this wil normally cost you less than 25 buck
2) Or look at the dipstick and try and tell what is the oil looking like from there, many folks argue this process because it is not going through an actual lab and being scientifically analyzed. But listen up this may be able to be usefull.
FOR THOSE THAT DONT WANT TO SEND AN OIL SAMPLES AND LIKE TO LOOK AT THE DIPSTICK AND DETERMINE IN WHAT SHAPE THE OIL IS IN:
Oil is not like a fine wine that gets better over time. Instead, it ages at a rate that is influenced by driving conditions, fuel quality, engine age, motor oil quality and climate. If not changed in time, your oil will break down and fail to protect your engine.
So, let’s take a close look at the oil on the dipstick. The oil should look smooth and glossy and somewhat transparent. If it has sludgy deposits or grainy particles of dirt, it’s time for an oil change. The same is true if the oil looks too thick, is too dark (opaque), and/or has a putrid rotten-cheese smell.
If you still don’t know whether you need an oil change, consider doing a blotter spot test.
Oxidized and contaminated oil will lose interfacial tension. A simple test for interfacial tension is to place a drop of used oil from the dipstick on the surface of water. If the oil drop spreads out over the water’s surface (instead of beading up like a new oil) it may be time for an oil change.