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Post by Starguy on Sept 20, 2015 10:32:26 GMT -5
I've cleaned out my saw twice now, (16" Covington). I was surprised how little oil I recovered. The gunk in the bottom was getting pretty thick. I used the method recommended with the saw instructions and filtered everything through a paper grocery bag. Then scraped all the gunk into the bag and let it drain a couple days. It seems like I recovered less than half of the oil.
Is that about standard? Is there something I could do to recover more of the oil?
The oil isn't cheap. Is losing more than half your oil just part of sawing slabs?
thanks for any responses.
Brent
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herb
spending too much on rocks
Member since November 2011
Posts: 469
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Post by herb on Sept 20, 2015 11:08:31 GMT -5
Give it more time! For only draining a couple of days recovering about 1/2 of the oil is about right. You'll still get oil dripping out for weeks or even months. I had some sludge that I processed late last summer. After about a month, I emptied the oil out of the bottom bucket in the fall and then left it sitting in my garage over winter. It was early summer before I finally got around to dealing with it. I was surprised to see that there was an additional 16 or so ounces that continued to drain out.
I originally bought 15 gallons of oil, and after 4 clean outs, I probably have about 8 or 9 gallons left. It helps alot if you can just leave the sludge drain for a long time.
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Post by Starguy on Sept 20, 2015 12:27:20 GMT -5
herbThanks for the reply. I'll give the sludge more time in the future.
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Post by Peruano on Sept 20, 2015 12:57:17 GMT -5
Time is your recovery friend. However, I'm usually satisfied with a 3/4 to 2/3 recovery. You can always put the sludge in a tin can and make tiki torches out of the residue. Sometime I stir the sludge a bit after a few days because the oil in the middle can't purculate through the side or bottom of the gunk mass. Obviously filtration in the winter is slower than the heat of the summer. I presume you are talking about mineral oil. There are differing weights (viscosities) of mineral oil but all should filter through paper given sufficient time. Cheers. Tom
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QuailRiver
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since May 2008
Posts: 1,640
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Post by QuailRiver on Sept 20, 2015 15:15:56 GMT -5
After I've recovered all the oil I can from filtering through paper I pour the sludge into a five gallon bucket with a lid and let it sit over winter. By spring, from a full bucket of sludge I can usually siphon off another inch or two of clean oil off the top. I use an inexpensive fluid pump similar to this one www.harborfreight.com/fluid-siphon-pump-60598.html . Larry C.
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,709
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Post by Fossilman on Sept 21, 2015 9:49:10 GMT -5
I have a 14" saw,I use to recover my oil,but quit! Not worth it in the long run......All that work for so little recovery on the oil...
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Post by DirtCleaner on Sept 21, 2015 22:41:46 GMT -5
One thing to keep in mind when filtering with gravity. The rock bits go to the bottom and clog the bottom of the paper. The filtering then is done at the top, liquid layer, and the oil has to siphon down the length of the bag. I do this and it works but it gets slower and slower as the process continues. So get what you can after a day or two. Then let the rest sit for MANY days as the capillary action is SLOW but it will work
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Post by Rockoonz on Sept 21, 2015 23:36:51 GMT -5
I drain my saw into a bucket and let the solids settle a bit before pouring off as much of the clean oil as I can and then pouring the more runny mud into my reclaim setup. When it gets real slow I fold the bag over the top and put heavy rocks on top of a disc to push more out. My setup looks like this. Top Bucket Bottom Bucket with center removed from stackable lid. Set up to strain out. I have several so I don't have to strain more than a couple gallons in each. Hope it helps
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Roger
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2013
Posts: 1,487
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Post by Roger on Sept 22, 2015 9:47:54 GMT -5
I purchased a set of plastic gold panning screens that stack and fit over the top of a 5 gallon bucket.
I think I paid $30.00 for a set of 6 sizes. Filtering takes under an hour for my 16" Covington saw and recovers maybe 70%.
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Post by Drummond Island Rocks on Sept 22, 2015 10:02:40 GMT -5
During my very first clean out I bought enough new oil to refill the saw so I could use it right away then dumped all the old oil into the buckets to drain. This way there is no concern for how long it takes. I only clean the saw every couple months so by then the process is complete and I always recover at least half of the oil as good as new. So now every oil change I pretty much purchase half the oil required and it works out great. Temperature plays a huge part in the time to filter. Here in Michigan during the winter I have to take the oil out of the garage and into the basement or it will never go through the paper bag.
Chuck
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Post by captbob on Sept 22, 2015 10:25:54 GMT -5
Temperature plays a huge part in the time to filter. I bought a 55 gallon barrel of food grade mineral oil, so I just throw my old away (at Jiffylube). Will have oil left when I die! Anyway, I was thinking that the warmer the better. Wonder if sticking your drain bags & buckets inside a 55 gal steel barrel with the lid on and set it in the sun if the heating would really speed things up.
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gerard
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2011
Posts: 218
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Post by gerard on Sept 22, 2015 11:48:45 GMT -5
What is the downside of leaving the gunk build up so deep that the saw oil cavity is mostly rock sludge. How long can you go until you HAVE to clean out?
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jerrys
spending too much on rocks
Member since February 2014
Posts: 263
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Post by jerrys on Sept 22, 2015 11:59:43 GMT -5
I call the gunk build up pudding. Too much pudding, the lubricant quality decreases and shortens the blade life. Think of it as an investment in blade life.
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Post by Peruano on Sept 22, 2015 21:23:15 GMT -5
Think of it as gunk that you have to clean off of every slab removed from the saw, and from every stub, partial rough block and your hands every time you cut something or remove the products. I know postponing cleaning is tempting, but once its pudding, and not a cloudy lubricant, you are just postponing the pain. Cleaning the saw is like changing your socks, you know when its time, or even better its best to predict before its time. Just my technique. Tom
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