How many of you use the saftey clamp on you fumoto drain valve? Is it really necessary...its better to safe than sorry, i know.
fumoto drain valve safety clamp
- Thread starter ARB1977
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Used 2 Fumotos over 6 years without a clamp and have never spilled a drop.
Partly depends on which way the lever points when closed. Mine is up and against the pan, so not likely to be knocked open.
Is there a clamp now? I had no idea, I've been using mine for over 3 years on 2 different cars (same valve though just transfered) and I have not lost a drop. 3 years is about 75k miles for me FYI.
I'll have to look into this clamp though. I have an F150 that gets drowned and bashed, basicly abused in every way possible that it might work quite well for. No valve on it now for the aforementioned reasons.
Thanks everyone, today i finally installed it after having it for 2.5 years. Im still looking for that clamp, no parts stories ive been to carry them...i may order them online but as of now not a single drop. I look forward in getting my first sample in the next six months.
I installed a Fumoto on my F-I-L's '97 Expy 8 years ago, and every summer since then from March until November he drives over 100 miles a week on gravel and dirt roads on Minnesota's Iron Range. He's never experienced an incident with the valve, and it opens and closes the same now as it did 8 years ago.
Do you need the clamp? Based on his experiences, I'd say NO.
Do you need the clamp? Based on his experiences, I'd say NO.
Im confident its not going to open...I just kick myself that i didnt install this thing when i got it alittle over two years ago.
I thought the safety clamp was simply small hose clamp like the worm gear type. Available at any auto parts store.
To open the valve you have to pull it up against the closing spring and turn it- it is unlikely that this would occur by accident- however I always put a small cable tie around the groove when I have finished the change. I need to cut the cable tie off when doing the next change- just added security.
Zip tie would work Wire spring clamp would work better and is available most auto parts stores. But I would use the hose clamp, not the worm gear, but the one with tabs and a screw. Clamp it down firmly and something would rip the whole valve out of the oil pan before it would open the lever.
Of course, a better solution would be that the valve not have a lever. Instead you would just insert an allen wrench or even an awl or something and that is the temporary lever. That would also prevent the (very unlikelly scenario) opening of the valve by hoodlums (like they would even think of such a thing (so don't put a "Fumoto Oil Drain Valve--Easy Opening" sticker on your back window).
Ive been to auto zone and pepboys...came up short, either way im still looking for one but am pretty confident it will not open on the road.
I got pretty lucky when tightening it down because the lever is in the same direction as airflow which is pushing down on the lever. Even if it wasnt it would take a pretty good gust of wind to even budge that sucker. Im over paranoid i know.
Oh the wind will never move that lever unless you drive through a tornado. What might move it is a big stick or rock kicked up by the tire. I ran over an alligator (truck tire tread) once and it tore out the running board support and halfway ripped the muffler off my generator (motorhome), so there are things out there that can take out a Fumoto. Any time you run over something or hear something kick up and hit the bottom, watch your OP gauge for a bit.
Speaking of things kicking up on the road, about 20 years ago I saw an article about a guy who ran over one of those old fashioned bumper jacks, the one with the long post, and it kicked it up so that it stubbed the road and was driven through the bottom of the car and through the guys seat and gut. Pretty sure he died. Gory story, but demonstrates the point that there are worse things than a Fumoto accidently opening.
Speaking of things kicking up on the road, about 20 years ago I saw an article about a guy who ran over one of those old fashioned bumper jacks, the one with the long post, and it kicked it up so that it stubbed the road and was driven through the bottom of the car and through the guys seat and gut. Pretty sure he died. Gory story, but demonstrates the point that there are worse things than a Fumoto accidently opening.
There is no way wind could open it. It's a very deliberate motion to open the thing. Lift and push toward the open end to make it flow. Anyone that installs Fumoto should pile up washers to get the lever up high out of harm's way, and if that's done, it would take a really freaky circumstance hitting debris to open it, something that would wreck the oil pan or engine block anyway. The beauty of Fumoto is an OCI experience without tools, without digging a drain bolt out of a drain pan, and without replacing crush washers and bolts and pan threads. If you feel compelled to install clamps, tie wraps, lockwire or other means to hold it down that then requires tools to operate the valve, mightn't you just as well go back to a standard drain bolt?
I have five on cars now, (one at least 10 years on there) even ran over a concrete median last year and scraped one but it never leaked and is still functioning fine. they are built like tanks IMO. just love them!
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