Oil Changes sometimes suck

[Stevens03]

Ok, I was in a little rush, but not to bad... I just needed to be efficient.... I needed to change my oil. With a quick trip to Walmart after work today and got what I needed.

 

Got my sheet of cardboard out and started to drain. Now normally I do a pretty mess free job but I guess just because... today it wasn't. I get under the truck and pull the drain and of coarse my hand was in the way of the stream and got oil all over the place. I got some paper towels, and wiped my hands and let the truck finish draining.

 

While draining, I went inside and got a samich bag for the oil filter. I snug the bag up and give it a twist and of coarse the bag wasn't as snug as I thought and the dang oil went down my arm and all over the cardboard... so i had to get out and get more towels to wipe up.

 

Then to finish it off, I go to drain my used oil container into the 5 quart container and SPILLED the oil all over the cardboard. Thank god I had the card board down. I guess you can't get near 6 quarts into a 5 quart container..

 

So... in the end, the oils changed but it wasn't as smooth as I'd hoped.

[latreille89]

O you gotta love changing oil. Couldn't tell you the number of times ive spilled the oil while doing the atvs. Never fun to clean up.

[ATMINF]

I think we all have had one of those days before! gotta love it.

[j13smiley]

the sandwich bag is a good idea to catch oil while unscrewing the filter.... :hmm:

[Mikeb52r]

Changing oil is fun, and yes, everyone has one of those days... but still trying to figure out why you were putting 6 quarts of oil into a 5 quart jug? Did you think you had a 5.3 and had burned the 6th quart off? Just kidding!

[jdubub]

man that sucks. I absolutely hate when its time to change the oil.

[Stevens03]

the sandwich bag is a good idea to catch oil while unscrewing the filter.... :hmm:

 

 

I thought so too but it didn't work out so good this time

 

but still trying to figure out why you were putting 6 quarts of oil into a 5 quart jug? Did you think you had a 5.3 and had burned the 6th quart off? Just kidding!

 

 

I was watching it.. watching it... watching it... then oopsie..

[=v8-only=]

pick up one of these 12 Liter rubbermaid containers makes any screw up when changing oil almost impossible to spill on the garage floor or your driveway they are about 2'x3' rectangle and can get anywhere to ensure even backsplash gets into your drain pan.

 

And to drain the rubbermaid container the corner works perfect to drain into your favorite collect bin.

[Mojavered]

Time to get a lift in the garage! Much easier to get out of the way of that stream...I only wish! I just made a big mess in my garage changing the oil on my old Dodge. 440 has a filter that sticks straight out and right over the k member. Pisses me off every time. But, an easy way to get it cleaned up is to have a bag or box of dry cement mix and you sprinkle it on, soaks it up way better than kitty litter. Pulls it from the concrete.

[2010LTZ4x4]

I hear ya!

My first oil change on the truck wasn't exactly a clean one.

Pulled the plug while the oil was still warm and it shot out like a giser and completely missed the pail.

[fishbones182]

I think i agree that the 5.3 does eat a little bit of oil at least mine does. I hate where they located the oil drain plug too. Every 3000 miles on mine i get the mess in the drive way. Everything can seem to be going great and then comes a qust of wind or a dog chasing a cat its always something.

[dsr611]

I have one of the black plastic oil catch pans. The previous house we lived in had a old, small, rotting playhouse the previous owner had built for his daughter. Before I decided to tear it down, I would empty the oil catch pan into the empty oil jugs, then place the oil catch pan on the roof of the playhouse. Oil change time come around on my old truck, and I grab the catch pan, ratchet/socket, and oil filter wrench and slide under the truck. Take the drain plug out and get it to draining, and didn't get my hand in the oil stream. Slide over a little and break the oil filter free and get it to draining (the catch pan was long enough to catch the oil from the oil pan and the oil from the filter. For the 1st time ever, I never got a drop of oil on me. Slide out from under the truck, go in grab a cold beer, and wait on the oil to finish draining. About 45 minutes later, I walk out and find a huge puddle of oil on the driveway. I jump in the truck, throw it in neutral and push it back away from the puddle of oil, and start looking for what had happened. When I picked the oil catch pan up, a small stream of oil came out from one corner. I got to looking at it and found that a squirrel had chewed a hole in it. Needless to say, there was 5 qts of oil in the driveway and not nearly enough kitty litter to absorb it all. Finished changing the oil and headed to the hardware store to get a bag of oil dry. Since then, I check the catch pan like crazy to make sure there aren't any holes in it before changing the oil!!!

[MikeNH]

I did the first oil change on the truck this summer and a couple weeks ago I was beginning to dread doing the job in the cold crappy weather but I got a call from the dealer asking why I had never taken advantage of my free oil change. Guess all new vehicles get one for free so I made my appointment, dropped it off and chatted with a few of the sales guys about the new stuff in the pipeline. Indoors. Where it was warm. In a nice chair.

[Morgan1986]

I change my oil every 5000 kmls . Get oil up and down my arm all the time . It can be alittle hot sometimes warm up the engine before i change it so that the oil comes out nice . Use the same type of container that is in the pic above . and a grease rag and clothes i dont mind getting oil on. Then i grease up the 6 grease nipples by the tires with a good grease . Taking into a place they wont do that .

[MikeNH]

No matter to me if they don't grease the two fittings on my truck, it's all warrantied till 100k. Normally I do my own maintenance but I wasn't gonna turn down a freebie from a shop I trust.