shake before using?

jrschremser · Mar 5, 2007

Should there be a "Shake before using" statement on the label of oil containers? I cut apart a bottle immediately after emptying it. It was a well known diesel rated brand. I noticed what appeared to be sediment in the bottom of the container. Does anyone know if this sediment is part of the oil additive package or is it impurities that settle out after sitting on the shelf for a month or more? If it is additive I need to change my routine and shake the last bit then pour out the rest. If not then maybe I need to change brands. The container was sealed when I opened it.

PILOON · Mar 5, 2007

WAS THIS A SYNTHETIC OIL?
From my aviation background I recall early synthetic oils tended to seperate leaving silicone deposits that were undisolved.
This in turn caused blockage of some smaller oil passeges.
Makes one wonder.

jrschremser · Mar 5, 2007

It was Chevron Delo 15w-40.

john_bud · Mar 6, 2007

EVERY bottle of oil I have ever inspected had some settled out particulate material in the bottom of the bottle. May be from the mfg of the bottle, the cap, the filling or the oil.

It's why I don't try and get evey last drop of oil out. But that's just me, YMMV.

jb

DieselPower · Mar 6, 2007

No need to shake it. It's a mix of a small amount of the additive package that has dropped out of suspension and depending on the quality of the base oil probably some from that to. Oils that use a very high quality base oil will usually show much less of this in the bottom of the bottle.

As PILOON mentioned, synthetic base stock oils tend to not hold additives in suspension as well as mineral base oils. They have a lower solvancy and is the reason most synthetic oils have a small amount of brightstock or GP1 in the blend to help disolve the additives.

MarEng · Mar 6, 2007

I used to buy my truck oil in 5 gal pails from Royal Purple. Given the size of the container, the oil would sit for a while before being used up. I noticed a white sludge in the bottom of one bucket after emptying it. Called my buddy who works for RP and he asked a ton of questions. Seems they had a period where they where experiencing additive precipitation and had to modify their blend a bit to avoid it. He said even with the modified blend, oil that sits for long periods of time and at cold temps may drop some additive. He said it caused no harm but suggested kicking the pail on its side and rolling it around a bit to mix the additives back in and make sure I got the full benefit of the add package. Have since switched to oil changes at the local Kwik Lube and by my RP in quarts so I don't have any recent experience.

firemanpat2910 · Mar 6, 2007

if you get your oil changed at the quick lube what makes you think your not getting the sediment from the bulk oil tank? I insist that bottled oil be put in my vehicles.

MarEng · Mar 6, 2007

Because I'm still using RP - it comes in quarts, even at the Kwik Lube. The bigger issue in my mind is not that I might get the sediment but that I might get a bunch of base stock devoid of additives because they've settled into the bottom of the tank. I suspect that the bulk tanks at the local quick lube enjoy pretty quick turn-over and probably don't have a precipitation problem - but I haven't used the bulk oil in 16+ years.

schiker · Mar 25, 2007

I found this too once. I usually like to fill my oil filter up before install then cut the bottom out the bottle and use it for a funnel for filling the truck up. I cut open a bottle of Delo 15w40 and found a coffee with milk/cream like sludge substance in bottom of bottle. The bottle had been recently purchased from Walmart and should have been good.

So I called the oil company to ask about it. The Rep. said it was a small amount of sediment and additives that comes out of solution. He eloborated that dino oil will start to drop out "stuff" after sitting for 3-6 months or so ... depending. Oil stock should be rotated to keep it fresh. Some bottles have a batch/date code on it. I asked around and talked about it to a few people. And someone said they followed advice from an old timer that said shake everything except beer and Coke. So now I shake most everything unless it says not to shake it ; then I swirl it. And unless I want it to stay seperated.

Occasionally I will see some stuff in bottles of other oils too but rarely if ever do I see anything in the cheaper brands that turn over fast off the retail shelf.