Water in WMO

[dakotajeep]

I am trying to get the water out of some oil that I have from a friend. I trust the oil is good quality since his pickup is new(ish).

My question is how long should I heat the oil to ensure the water is all out. Are there any distinct things I should be looking for?

Thanks
Thad

 

[DragRag]

I never dewater, I do filter though. If the oil has not been subjected to rain etc, and is from a clean source I doubt there is a significant amount of water in it. If you oil has water in it, it will rise to the top since it does not mix, or be a white color. If you are not seeing either of these I wouldn't worry about it at all. I run alot of WMO like this without issue.

 

[cranknrods]

I never dewater, I do filter though. If the oil has not been subjected to rain etc, and is from a clean source I doubt there is a significant amount of water in it. If you oil has water in it, it will rise to the top since it does not mix, or be a white color. If you are not seeing either of these I wouldn't worry about it at all. I run alot of WMO like this without issue.

water will kill a injectionpump quick!
the water will also settle to the bottom making it much harder to tell if you have water in the oil (water is heavier then oil)--another problem is that wmo will hold water in suspention. the only way that i know of to seperate it, is to use a water seperator or boil the water out. i boil mine by setting my drum of wmo onto a 4'x4' steel sheet that is supported over a small fire pit- make sure to use a closed drum with small opening and shelter the opening from hot embers inorder to decrease the risk of lighting the oil on fire. when the oil stops crackling like bacon then all the water is removed--this method is dangerous-great care must be taken inorder to not catch 55gallons of oil on fire!!! the safest way to do it is to have very little flame and have a big mound of hot coals

 

[rock mafia]

I never dewater, I do filter though. If the oil has not been subjected to rain etc, and is from a clean source I doubt there is a significant amount of water in it. If you oil has water in it, it will rise to the top since it does not mix, or be a white color. If you are not seeing either of these I wouldn't worry about it at all. I run alot of WMO like this without issue.

Oil is lighter than water, water will not rise to the top.

 

[DragRag]

Oil is lighter than water, water will not rise to the top.

The oil will rise to the top after sitting. And I have heated oil from my sources, there is never water in it though. I will not be wasting my time heating my oil in the future.

 

[Full Monte]

Dakota,

You are right to be concerned about getting the water out of your oil. It's not good for injection pumps. If you let it settle in a white plastic 55 gal drum sitting in the sun, you should be able to see where the oil and water stratify. If you set it up so you can drain the water off the bottom, and drain a little more off for safety, you should be OK.

 

[subway]

i havent had a problem with water but thinking out loud here. couldn't you just put a vacume on the oil? the water should boil right out a MUCH safer temp.


like mentioned water is heavier than the oil and will go to the bottom. using that to get the water out and a water block filter should take care of it just fine.

 

[milner351]

I have a large oil tank I got from a friends basement when he converted from fuel oil to natural gas furnace. It's about 300 gallons.

It had a NPT threaded hole in the bottom for a drain.

I keep all my waste oil / atf / etc in that tank (I have a waste oil furnace) I occasionally drain off the bottom of the tank to make sure I don't have water / coolant / garbage in there -- I will at times of weather changes get a quart or two of water off the bottom of the tank - this is not to say I get all the water out - but just that water that settles to the bottom (oil floats on water)

My furnace suction screen is located 12" off the bottom of the tank per the instructions for the furnace - so far, I've had no issues with the furnace burning whatever mixture of waste fluids in the tank - regardless of the amount of water in suspension..... but - it's not a high pressure direct injected diesel engine - it's basically a torch in a drum!

I would love to pre heat / de water / filter 3 stages down to 1 micron / etc the waste oil that goes into my engine...
... but at what point does it become so time consuming and filter consuming - that it's cheaper just to pay at the pump?

 

[mcbg]

you know how to party!

water will kill a injectionpump quick!
the water will also settle to the bottom making it much harder to tell if you have water in the oil (water is heavier then oil)--another problem is that wmo will hold water in suspention. the only way that i know of to seperate it, is to use a water seperator or boil the water out. i boil mine by setting my drum of wmo onto a 4'x4' steel sheet that is supported over a small fire pit- make sure to use a closed drum with small opening and shelter the opening from hot embers inorder to decrease the risk of lighting the oil on fire. when the oil stops crackling like bacon then all the water is removed--this method is dangerous-great care must be taken inorder to not catch 55gallons of oil on fire!!! the safest way to do it is to have very little flame and have a big mound of hot coals

not sure if these would get the same temps but http://bayareabiodieselsupply.com
has weld on water heater ports that can be put on a 55 gal. drum.
they also sell cone bottoms that weld on to 55 gal. drums so if you put them both on the same drum that should dewater good.

you should also be able to put vacuum on the drum- not too much.