First Oil Change (for me) UGH! What an OILY mess!!

[flyingvee201]

Ok....this is the first time changing the oil in a Mooney. Im used to swimming inside the cowling of a Cherokee Six...LOTS of room and I never spilled a drop....EVER!

 

This is the first time I had the opportunity (other times we just had done at annual) to change the oil on this bird.

 

I have a quick drain, but it turns out that the nipple was 3/8" instead of the Cherokee's 1/2"....sooooo, I had to go back out to the auto shop and buy a new drain hose...no big deal.

 

Then I studied the oil filter removal situation. It seems easy enough to get from the top, but how can I capture the oil after unscrewing the filter?  I couldnt figure a way to place a pan or channel it to a bucket without removing the lower cowling. My F model has the full J cowling with the oil cooler behind the rear jug.

 

So I crammed (or so I thought) a bunch of towels under the filter and proceeded to remove the filter.

So far so good, saw that the towels had oil and I thought I was good. I put the new filter in, plugged up the quick drain and then......  UGH!!  The nose wheel COVERED in dirty oil!!

The towels didnt catch everything!

 

I wish I could put an empty quart of oil under the fitler, cut out to fit, but the bad thing is, Im not sure I can remove it without making a mess.

So much easier in the Cherokee with that big fat O-540!!  LOL

 

-Vic

[flyingvee201]

Oh....and I forgot to add.....

My oil pan/container had a hairline crack in it. "Somebody" decided to stand and jump their little feet on it and didnt tell anyone!

I thought these plastic containers were sturdy but al lit takes is a little bit a deformity and it creaks a little crack.

Another oily puddle on the hangar floor.

LOL

[N33GG]

Sounds like you did everything just right! 

 

After all, there is nothing like a good protective coating of oil on your aircraft to keep corrosion away. 

[N201MKTurbo]

I've found the best way (for me) to drain the oil without making a mess is to hook up the quick drain and go home. Come back another day and remove the oil filter. It won't leak at all.

[rbridges]

my filter was moved to the pilot side, and it's much easier to access.  I was looking at someone's '64, and wow, that is an awful place to stick a filter.  I thought I read posts where people used sheet metal to act as a chute to catch the oil and drain it to a bucket.

[neilpilot]

I've had good luck placing a gallon zip lock bag over the old filter before loosening. 

[PMcClure]

On our F, we did the same thing as suggested above - we would park it warm and drain the oil through the quick disconnect overnight. Then we placed cardboard (actually thick paper) under the filter before removing. That caught the last few drops that were in the filter. 

 

I always felt like working on the F was more like model building than automative repair. 

[RobertGary1]

it tasks a good amount of time to drain the oil out. You want to leave it for at least 30 minutes. You don't need to change the filter every time. The filter is good for 100 hours. The oil should be changed every 6 months. So unless you are flying 200 hours a year you don't need to do the filter each time.

 

The biggest hassle on these planes is pulling the oil screen. You probably want to do that at least every year. Its at the bottom of the oil pan near the pickup against the firewall. 

 

-Robert

[Mooneymite]

Ok....this is the first time changing the oil in a Mooney. Im used to swimming inside the cowling of a Cherokee Six...LOTS of room and I never spilled a drop....EVER!

 

 

Over the years, I've discovered the tricks for the "dripless oil change" on my 'C'.

 

However, cutting open the oil filter and inspecting the filter media is still a mess, even after letting the filter drain for days prior to opening it.

 

 

[BigTex]

Welcome to the club! It happens to all of us for the first one. You'll find change number two, you'll hardly spill a drop.

[Awqward]

I use a cutout empty quart but rather than leave the cap on (which as the OP points out would make it difficult to remove without spilling), I have a half-round piece of 1-1/2" PVC piping under it to channel the spillage into a bucket....sounds complicated but it works even on a windy ramp... I don't have a picture but will take one next time...

[1964-M20E]

Last time I did mine I used a plastic shopping bag and threw a coupe of old oily rags in it under the filter easy in, easy out, disposable and it worked great.

[RobertGary1]

When I changed my engine a few months ago I pulled the support frame off and stripped it down to the firewall and just cleaned up years of accumulated oil, dirt, etc. It was kind of cathartic. 

 

-Robert

[gsxrpilot]

I've had good luck placing a gallon zip lock bag over the old filter before loosening. 

+1

 

This works really good. 

[bonal]

Mine has the old screen and it's easy to work and since it drains most of the oil out there isn't much mess. At first I was kind of bummed that I did not have a spin off but now that I see how it works and because I never go over 25 hours on my oil I'm good with it. The hardest part is removing and replacing the cowl.

[Guest]

It's really not that difficult to change the oil without baptizing the engine in old oil. In my shop we have a variety of plastic oil bottles cut in various shapes which will fit in below the filter.

For four cylinder non J models I use a Shell oil bottle cut diagonally leaving the spout with cap on as a handle. I position it under the filter adapter lip, spin the filter loose allowing oil to collect in the bottle, when partly filled spin the filter back on, maneuver the bottle out and drain it. Repeat this process several times until the filter is empty, then leave it in place and remove the filter, after the last drop come out of the adapter remove the bottle and install the new filter.

Clarence

[M20C]

I punch two holes in the top of the filter (side of the filter on the upper portion), one forward the other aft, using an awl.  Drain the oil over night, tape two small patches of duck tape over the two holes and hold a shop rag around the filter as I unscrew it.  Minimal oil spillage.

[dcrogers11]

When you do spill some oil, and I usually do, a quick once over with my cheap Harbor Freight solvent gun and some Varsol does wonders.  While I'm at it, I usually hit the undercarriage and nose wheel and it's good until the next oil change.  

 

Don

[Shadrach]

I punch a hole aft and on top of the filter, then I deliver a quick burst of compressed air through the hole and into the filter. Open quick drain and give it a half hour or so if it's still relatively hot, overnight if it's cold.

[flyingvee201]

I use a cutout empty quart but rather than leave the cap on (which as the OP points out would make it difficult to remove without spilling), I have a half-round piece of 1-1/2" PVC piping under it to channel the spillage into a bucket....sounds complicated but it works even on a windy ramp... I don't have a picture but will take one next time...

 

I would love to see this technical marvel of piping!!

[HRM]

PIG® Form-A-Funnel® Flexible Draining Tool

[Awqward]

Yes...I guess my PVC half-pip is the CB version of the Form-a-funnel...

[Dale Logsdon]

Airwolf makes a remote mount oil filter kit that moves the oil filter to an aera where you can acess the filter without making a mess.

[DaV8or]

Build this. I change my oil and filter and don't spill a drop. It works slick. I have since gone to the next version and added a 90 degree elbow and a pipe that goes right in the bucket. Wind, or breeze no longer matters.

 

 

The Oil Trough. All Home Depot parts.

 

 

The tricky cut you have to make.

 

 

Installed on the plane. Use vise grips to clamp the pipe hanger to the cowl strut. Here comes the oil!!

 

 

Oil from the filter goes right in the trough.

 

 

The river of oil.

 

 

Oil goes right in the bucket. Add a 90 degree elbow and a length of pipe to make sure no drops get away in a breeze. (Version 1.5)

 

 

Use a cap at the end to make sure the dirty tool doesn't drop any oil. Store the tough in the empty bucket open end down and it's clean, ready to go next time!

 

On the drain plug I have a quick drain and always use a hose clamp to secure the hose. I had it fall off once with the hot oil! I always fly the plane and then open the drain and come back the next day to finish.

 

Hope this helps!

[carusoam]

Great photo-documentation Dave!

Best regards,

-a-