Rotella T 10w30 additive fallout?? pics included

[wavinwayne]

If any of the other HDEO brands on the market were in white containers, you would see the same thing. This is not a Shell Rotella oddity.

Also, listen to what bruce381 says. He's forgotten more about oil than I will ever know.

 

[Merkava_4]

I guess I'll drain the oil out and pour it back into the 5 quart bottle; shake it up real good; and then pour it back into the engine.

 

[Rock_Hudstone]

Originally Posted By: tackleberry625
Just speculation here.....if additive seperation is the reason for the "shelf life" on an oil (2-5 years), if you shake the bottles before you pour them in your engine, won't the additives mix back in with the oil and the oil will be good as new?

Additive separation isn't the only reason for the shelf life. Moisture contaimation is another possibilty, especially with the large drums, and shaking won't help that.

But seriously, I was on the phone recently with Shell about shelf life. I asked the same logical question; if shaking the bottle put the additives back in suspension since they were simply added to the base stock oil. The answer was yes, but at the time of manufacture the oil is also heated and agitation applied.
However, his and another Shell chemist was of the opinion the oil should be fine to use.
(This was regarding some 4 year old Shell Rimula 15w-40 I bought on sale the other day). They said they prefer to see an oil used within 4 years.

Shell also suggested if in doubt, before shaking, pour the oil into a clear bottle or glass and look for any obvious separation. The oil should look nice and clear with no cloudiness that might indicate moisture contamination.

 

[Shannow]

Back in '87 I was working at a service station (Shell).

The Oils that were sold on the forecourt were Shell Super SF 20W-40, and XMO 15W-30.

The punters would quickly our a litre of oil in their engine and toss the bottle.

I collected the bottles, and upended them into an empty. Picked up a free litre per week that way.

The bottles were white, the oil was months old, and EVERY SINGLE BOTTLE had that residue on the bottom.

as did Castrol GTX and Valvoline XLD.

Those oils that I collected must have been gold given that they were mostly additive fallout.

 

[Johnny]

Originally Posted By: wavinwayne
If any of the other HDEO brands on the market were in white containers, you would see the same thing. This is not a Shell Rotella oddity.

Also, listen to what bruce381 says. He's forgotten more about oil than I will ever know.


bruce381 is correct. Most quality oils or overbased anyway and they expect some additive fallout. And as Wayne said, that's why some oil companies use black bottles, plus black bottles are cheaper to make.

 

[Bluestream]

Here is your answer:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/posts/52805/

 

[Rollins]

Heh,strange....I see it happen all the time,mostly with a 1 liter bottle(the fill-up one in the truck compartment,actually)...dependless(Shell Rimula,Mobil Delvac,local brands) on the manufacturer and age of oil-which is maximum 6 months...even if i shake it,it settles down in several days....

 

[MolaKule]

Just warm it up on the heating ventillator/register and shake it before use.

No big Thang!

 

[G-MAN]

I've seen this in every oil I've ever used, including Mobil 1. But wonder why you never see this in those clear Quaker State bottles?

 

[Ramblin Fever]

I've seen it quite frequently, and I don't store hoards of extra oil around my place. We do have a shelf and a half of extra quarts of oil for each different vehicle, or yard machine, or some times have an extra case or 5 qt jug of oil around, but never shelves full of the stuff.

I see that kind of suspension quite frequently; we are using Delo 15w-40 in our cummins, Rotella 5w-40 in our Rodeo, Castrol 5w-30 in our Toyota, Johnson motor oil in our boat and our yard machines are using up our left over 30wt Havoline oil - which IS a few years old.

 

[99]

Just shake your bottles up before using or don't buy so much oil if you aren't going to use it in a timely manner. I don't keep more than a couple of gallons of my favorite oils in the garage at any one time.