Reusable Oil Filters

[Pete]

I saw that we have a group buy going on for one of the reusable oil filters. Trust me guys, I'm not trying to rain on anyone's parade. I almost bought one of these filters until I saw that it was rated at 35 microns. That rating will let a lot more junk get through that would be caught by my 5 micron Harley oil filter.

Another concern is that the total surface area of the reusable stainless steel filter is much, much, less than that of a throw away filter. Essentially, when a mesh filter stops a particle, it blocks one hole in the matrix. With a reduced filter surface area, it would seem that reusable filters have less overall capacity to handle contaminants.

The manufacturers of throw away oil filters are moving toward more high-tech filter media, some of which can help neutralize acids in your oil to further protect your engine. Reusable filters can't do anything to neutralize acids.

While there do seem to be some advantages to reusable filters, such as their reduced resistance to oil flow, some of the claims such as large gains in horse power and significantly cooler running engines, that are made by some manufacturers sound a lot more like marketing department sales talk than good engineering.

That big twin in my Super Glide is a pretty big investment. The thought of running what could very well be a less efficient oil filter is not something that I want to do. If the filtration rates of the reusable filter were the same as a throw away filter, I'd buy one, just because they look so cool!

Am I missing something guys?

Pete

[SCHMIDTYS]

Wow ... this post brought something to memory . Anybody remember the filters that used a roll of toilet paper ! ? ! The element was a roll of toilet paper , when it got dirty ya take it off unscrew it and pop in a new roll and away ya go !!! Wondering what micron they figured those to be ?

[Blackdog 15]

Pete...FYI...oil molecules are 12 microns....

[ruby4me]

I remember the toilet paper filters infact I had one in 1948 chevy truck I used to have!

[gruss]

Originally Posted by Blackdog 15

Pete...FYI...oil molecules are 12 microns....

what brand of filter are you talking about pete? 35 microns ?
no filters on the market have media that size to my knowledge....

[gruss]

my scotts filter media is rated at 5 microns......runs great, motor is spotless inside....been there, seen that.....g
also rated to pass 1 GPM of 90wt. oil at 1psi, 70 degrees ambient temp......great product....

[Pete]

Originally Posted by SCHMIDTYS

Wow ... this post brought something to memory . Anybody remember the filters that used a roll of toilet paper ! ? ! The element was a roll of toilet paper , when it got dirty ya take it off unscrew it and pop in a new roll and away ya go !!! Wondering what micron they figured those to be ?

I never used one, but I do remember them. I think that JC Whitney used to sell them.

Pete

[Too Badd]

This was pulled from K&P's web site.

4) How does this type of filtration compare to paper oil filters?

We use ASTMF316 testing procedures which eliminate many of the user variables found in the SAE procedures. Basically, the filter media is pressurized from one side, and when the media starts passing particles, that is the micron rating. We sent filter media from several common brands of paper filters to the lab to be run through the ASTM test. We sent the media to the lab with no names, just numbers for identification so they wouldn't have any idea what brand filter they were testing. The results for the paper filters ranged from 48 microns for the best filter to over 300 microns for the worst filter. Our tests were right in line with other testing results we have researched that have paper media filters passing particles anywhere between 50 and 90 microns. What does this mean? Paper filters are rated on averages, percentages of efficiency (also known as beta ratios) and multiple passes, so a 10 micron rated paper filter (as advertised on the packaging) may be letting particles 50 microns and larger through. The medical grade stainless steel cloth that we use is consistent across the entire media surface and is rated at 35 microns, meaning nothing larger than 35 microns should pass through the material. The bottom line is we meet or exceed the filtration performance of OEM filters, eliminating any warranty issues.

[Pete]

Originally Posted by gruss

my scotts filter media is rated at 5 microns......runs great, motor is spotless inside....been there, seen that.....g
also rated to pass 1 GPM of 90wt. oil at 1psi, 70 degrees ambient temp......great product....

I checked the Scotts site and they claim that their filter is rated at 35 microns.

Scotts Performance Products

What I have not found is any independent testing that where various oil filters, including the reusable filter media, have been tested.

Pete

[Pete]

Originally Posted by gruss

what brand of filter are you talking about pete? 35 microns ?
no filters on the market have media that size to my knowledge....

The filter that I was looking at recently was the Scotts Performance filter.

Scotts Performance Products

They claim that their filter passed the ASTMF-316 test for 35 microns. One of the other replaceable filter makers claims 30 microns. Both sounded like they were not filtering contaminants as well as the 5 micron filter that I get a Harley.

Pete