Engine oil and hydraulic fluid are literally the lifeblood of your machinery. Selecting the correct oil for your machine and application is important, but are there things that can be learned by using oil and fluid analysis? The answer is most definite: yes.
A few years back, our Smyth County Extension farm management group had a program on the topic of machinery maintenance, and Mr. Jason Threewits from our local Caterpillar dealership gave a fascinating look into his world as the manager of their oil diagnostic laboratory.
Threewits’ laboratory runs a dozen tests per sample looking for the presence of additives that protect the engine or transmission, and he is also scouring the sample for the presence of contaminants as well.
Specifically, samples are tested for the presence of lead, copper, silicone, chrome and aluminum, and the precise amount of each in the sample. These contaminants can serve as your “crystal ball” to what the future of your machine’s powertrain is and what may be the source of forthcoming failure.
Dr. Bobby Grisso, biological systems engineer at Virginia Tech, and Robert Pitman, superintendent of the Eastern Virginia Agriculture Research and Extension Center in Warsaw, Virginia, also see oil and fluid diagnosis as an important piece of machinery service and maintenance.
Grisso and Pitman share that a detailed look at a sample of engine, transmission or hydraulic oil is a valuable preventative maintenance tool. In many cases, it enables identification of a potential problem before a major repair is necessary, and downtime during critical operations can be avoided.
Oil analysis is a means of monitoring wear and oil contamination. When conducted on a regular basis, it establishes a baseline of normal wear and can indicate when abnormal wear or contamination occurs.
It is important to get an oil sample that is representative of all of the oil in the machine. Remember, your analysis will be based only on the sample that you send in for analysis. Always have the oil hot and thoroughly mixed before sampling. Handle hot drained oil with care – it can cause serious burns.
The easiest way to obtain a sample may be when the oil is being drained for an oil change. Sampling at this time usually involves letting some of the oil drain and then catching a sample in an appropriate container. Depending on the machine and the amount of dirt and debris present, this can also be a source for an adulterated sample.
Samples also can be obtained without draining oil by suctioning it out through plastic tubing routed down into the oil reservoir. In the case of our Caterpillar dealer, they sell a kit that includes everything needed to pull a sample from the dipstick tube.
In any case, it is important to have an appropriate container and follow sampling directions thoroughly. Remember, many of the tests are for measuring materials on a parts-per-million basis, so safe, effective and clean sampling is needed.
Cost of oil analysis will vary according to the laboratory and extent of the analysis. Typical charges are $10 to $30 per analysis. The expense can be justified if it alerts the owner to a major problem that can be corrected in the off-season and prevents downtime when the machine is needed.
Several companies have developed oil analysis kits that make oil analysis convenient. These kits include the sample bottles, suction pump and tubing, and possibly a pre-addressed, postage-paid mailing container.
Your local fuel and oil supplier or machinery dealer may be the most convenient and economical source for oil analysis, although not all fuel and oil suppliers or machinery dealers are involved with oil analysis.
Independent laboratories are another source and probably can best be located by looking in the yellow pages of telephone directories under the classification of “laboratories.”
Results of the laboratory analysis are typically returned in two to four days after the lab receives the sample. The laboratory may note when the analysis shows an abnormal condition and issue a caution or recommendation accordingly.
Most maintenance experts realize the oil change intervals for both engines and transmissions are decided by the “average need.” No two pieces of equipment have the same preventive maintenance needs. Each machine has different imperfections and is used under different conditions.
Operators doing smaller or lighter jobs can cause different conditions on engines and transmission wear than those that occur during more extended use. When using oil analysis to determine maintenance intervals, there is little guesswork.
Records show that some equipment can safely run two or three times longer than recommended intervals. The oil analysis may show that you are changing the oil more often than necessary or not often enough.
By eliminating unneeded oil changes, you reduce the cost for oil and servicing and also reduce the amount of used oil to deal with. This is an important pollution prevention method – reducing the source.
Oil sample analysis saves you repair and maintenance dollars, has the potential to reduce used oil and increases equipment resale value. PD
Andy Overbay holds a Ph.D. in ag education and has more than 40 years of hands-on dairy and farming experience.
Andy Overbay
Extension Agent
Virginia Cooperative Extension
