Engine oil extractor pumps

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shaula

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Can any one recommend a good oil change pump (via the dipstick pipe) I have used various types in the past, the standard brass pump, the vacuum pump type and recently an electric suction pump. The electric one was great the first time, but by the 4th time I used it it had lost all its suction and would no longer prime. The hand operated pumps took much effort and took for ever to remove the oil even if the oil was at working temperature. Is it just me or is there an efficient,reliable and resonably priced pump that you would recommend?
 
I have been using a Pela, vacuum pump for years and it is excellent. Mine is the cylindrical one; I don't know if it is better or worse that the spherical one. I think that the only difference is capacity.

In addition to removing oil from the engine sump, it also gets into the hidden corners of the area between my engine bearers that is deliberately isolated from the bilge, allowing me perodically to wash the area out.
 
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I use a "Pela" vacuum pump. Works best on Diesel oil if you fit a bigger tube to it than they use as standard though I find. The usual tiny tube takes ages....
 
My PELA has been in service on two boats now for 17 years. I bought it when the pipe came off an electric pump and it sprayed black oil all over the white carpeting in the stern cabin of the boat we had then.

The features I like about it are:-

Controlability - the oil comes out at a speed in proportion to the number of strokes on the pump and the flow can be stopped in an instant by a flick of the air inlet valve.

Cleanliness - the oil goes into a transparent reservoir which cannot be over-filled due to a syphon breaking valve.

Versatility - if you are suspicious of some oil being left in the sump, the suction pipe can be manipulated into the corners without too much difficulty. It is also excellent for removing other liquids from otherwise inaccessible places

They come in two sizes at least and are easy to store on-board and disposing of the oil into the marina tank is just a matter of pouring it out.

Chas
 
Pela pump every time. Best thing for the job. Make sure the oil is warm, pump it up (or should that be down?) Find a cold beer to drink while it does the job for you.

If you know of something better then please post. I'll buy one tomorrow!!!
 
Agree Pela(I have the round one) is good.I also have a little one for sucking up bits of water from hard to reach places.The secret is to have the oil really warm.I run my engine for 20mins before I use the Pela.
 
You remind me that engine-servicing time is coming round. Must buy some more oil.

I use a Pela as well, it's fab. I also use it for sucking water and any bacterial gunge out of the bottom of my fuel tank.
 
I have always found the vacum pumps to be useless. So are the pumps you add to a drilling machine. Waste of time in my view. Usually I just pump out by hand using an old fashioned brass bilge pump.

My boat has about 50 litres to remove which is a chore to say the least. This year I thought sod it, I am going to buy something decent regardless (within reason) of the cost. When I got information on what was available I was surprised to see that they were electric motors with a jabsco styple neoprene impeller. I remembered I have had one of these lying around in my garage from years ago, so I thought I might as well give it a go. I cobbled some hoses together, poured in some oil to lubricate the impeller blades and wired it all up.

I made sure the oil was hot, switched on the motor and was amazed. It was brilliant! The old oil flowed through the hose almost like water and emptied 20 odd litres from each engine easily and quickly i.e. 5 to 10 mins or so per engine. Easiest oil change ever. Before the next oil change I am seriously thinking of making it a permenant fixture in the engine room, wired and ready to go at the flick of a switch. If the impeller only last a few oil changes what the heck, as it's only a small impeller and it's well worth the cost every 3 or 4 years.
 
I have the pela football type. A mate's dad is a self-employed car mechanic and also swears by pela suckers (his is the bigger cylindrical one).

Not sure why FlyingDutchman's sucker doesn't work; perhaps it has a fault? A few strokes and mine will suck as long as you need (oo err missus!)

Pete
 
shaula said:
Can any one recommend a good oil change pump (via the dipstick pipe) I have used various types in the past, the standard brass pump, the vacuum pump type and recently an electric suction pump. The electric one was great the first time, but by the 4th time I used it it had lost all its suction and would no longer prime. The hand operated pumps took much effort and took for ever to remove the oil even if the oil was at working temperature. Is it just me or is there an efficient,reliable and resonably priced pump that you would recommend?
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The Pela works fine, BUT the metal tube is very narrow, so you do need to make sure you dont ram it into the bottom of the sump, or there isnt any "hole" in the tube to suck the oil up.Also, the oil really does need to be warm; not hot, but room temp makes for a very very slow process. I havent really timed it, but I'd guess the 6l version draws the oil out in 10-15 mins maybe, so its worth having a second task at hand, and give an occasion re-pump to keep the vaccum.
Whether an electric one is quicker, I dont know, but with the Pela, and copies, you do get the spill proof bowl, etc etc, so its all clean and tidy.
 
I am another Pela fan.

One word of caution though. I used it to extract water from the bilges and clearly a fair amount of it was salty.

A month or 2 later I used it to extract some oil. I then discovered that the salt water had corroded part of the release valve mechanism. Pumped the oil and didn't realise the mechanism had failed until oil started to ooze out from below the top flange, drip onto the cabin sole and down into the clean bilge.

I stripped it down and cleaned the corroded bits. It works fine, but from then on i have always flushed it after using it for salt water.
 
I have no idea why my football type Pela looses its vaccum. I tried everything, I even greased the connections for the pump and the cap to empty the thing with a thick silicone grease to avoid leaks. It is a very simple device, not much to go wrong. Next time I use it, I will have a closer look again. It is not a big deal, I have less than 5 liters of oil to do, but it is annoying.
 
Another Pela fan, but as already writen, the oil needs to be hot. I made up an extra extraction tube that I use for sucking up water, fixed to the blanking cap. Basically a small brass ball valve at the cap, a length of reinforced hose, a ca. 1m length of 5/8" rigid PP pipe and a smaller diameter flexible pipe at the end. All from bits and pieces I had in the garage, knowing I'd find a use for them someday!

Re the vacuum being lost, don't forget that as the oil level increases, the pressure in the headspace increases, so the "suck" decreases progressively. The "vacuum" in the chamber is not really a vacuum, but rather a reduced pressure compared to atmospheric, so there is always some air in the chamber. With a small capacity chamber the effect occurs quicker than for a larger capacity chamber (assuming the same vacuum/ starting pressure), for any given quantity of oil sucked up. So, the 6 litre one for sure needs "topping up with vacuum" when draining 4-5 litres of oil. It also seems to help if the filler cap is off the engine so easily allowing air to enter to replace the oil being sucked out.
 
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Graham - can you give a little more info on your water solution please. Struggling to visualise.

I use mine for both oil and bilge water - for the latter I attach a length of 4mm ID aluminium pipe to the Pela hose, but would prefer a completely dedicated water solution that just used the Pela's 'suck' not store!
 
shaula said:
The electric one was great the first time, but by the 4th time I used it it had lost all its suction and would no longer prime.
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I had exactly the same problem with my electric pump after the second or third use. So I took the pump apart and found that part of the rubber gasket under the screw-on-cover (provided to prevent oil leaking out of the inlet port during storage) had been drawn into the mechanism.

It has worked for another four or five oil changes since, but it took a long time to prime when I last used it, and makes a devil of a racket. I am thinking seriously about fitting an impeller pump to the engine permanently connected to the sump instead of the sump plug.
 
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