Usually in the grocery store you can find Brass or Stainless Steel pads that are used for cleaning pots and pans. Seems to me to be a better alternative.
Steve

 

But they came in a 12 pack

 

I used some of the left over aluminum grill material (gutter guard) from my hood scoop mod to make my own baffle for both of my cans. So far has worked great.

 

as if it is needed.
Yesterday I emptied my OCC (plumbed the preferred way, as per my diagram) and it had about 1floz of oil in it after 7k miles, and no water at all--Only oil. I had checked my IC less than 1k ago and there was absolutely no oil, not even the odor of oil.
I'm totally convinced the OCC works if plumbed correctly. Absolutely.

 

DrPhils diagram (i.e. perferred method) seems to be the most effective in trapping oil. I clean mine out yesterday and pulled out a teasponn of dark rich color oil - no water. I also encourage installing a filter of some sort inside to maximize trappings.

 

I'm using some aquarium mechanical filtration media in my OCC in lieu of the steel wool - these fit through the drain plug of the OCC perfectly (they also don't fall out when I remove the plug to empty the can), and I had plenty of it left after my aquarium-keeping days.

 

These won't get sucked up into the tubing coming from, and going to, the engine/supercharger, will they? There is pressure in the OCC system, but I am not sure what psi, or if it is constant.

 

Good points, Dr. Phil. I had considered that. The media is inert (ceramic) and is too large and heavy to get sucked into the tubing leading out of the OCC. It doesn't break easily, nor does it decompose/wear down significantly over time, so it's as safe to use as SS wool. I used the aquarium media instead of SS wool because my OCCs wouldn't open up all the way - any media I added would have to go through the oil drain plug, and I didn't want to cut up SS wool into pieces that were small enough to get sucked up by the vacuum.

 

Sounds great! Do I get this at a supermarket aquarium supply, or something more specialized? cheers,

 

I have a homemade OCC(sorry no pics yet) and I use a piece of the green foam from a small engine/lawn mower air filter inside the can.
It's made to be cleaned and re-oiled, so I know it won't break down from the oil in the can. It works really well.

 

I don't think it's available except at specialty aquarium retail stores or online, but considering that you don't need an entire bag and I've still got quite a bit on my hands, I'd be more than happy to ship you some to try out so you can make your own judgment about this media. PM me your mailing address when you have the opportunity. Thanks!

 

Foam is a terrific idea! Do you have an inlet tube leading under the foam so that all the air must rise through the foam to reach the OCC outlet?

 

Thanks, and yes, It must pass through the foam to exit the can.

 

How many of those little suckers do you put in the can?

BTW - I have been reading all the OCC posts for a month now, I think it's time to take the plunge.

ANy suggestions on type of hosing or clamps(xouplers) to use?
Can we dress the hoses up?
I rec'd 2 different sizes of inlets to use with the M7 OCC any suggestions on which is better and why?

Thanks for ALL your help!

 

1) size of inlets - Which ever one is closest to the tubing you will be tapping on the engine.
2) type of hosing - use the black heavy duty hose sold at auto stores. You don't want it to collapse.
3) fill the can w/ that stuff, shake it so it settles but don't pack it down and you should be fine.

 

I wanted something small and cheap so I put this together. The "bracket" is a pipe strap I had in my miscellaneous junk heap which I "straightened out" and hand filed for better hose clamp fit. The Home Depot oil/water separator has a little drain valve at the bottom but it was easy to open and close so I used some tubing to zip tie closed. I did not have to butcher the factory tubing so it is readily reversible.

I originally had it mounted square to the engine mount bracket but found that there was interference fit between the top of the separator and the headlight washer device, so I pivoted it a little. I also filed it down a little and used magic marker to bring back the black. I used some playdo in plastic bag on top of the separator and squished the hood down on it to make sure there was enough room. There was. I know the engine will rock a little so I am hopeful that the hood will not develop a ding. It should rock forward and down under acceleration.

Not counting tools the parts are about $25.

I had to get an E12 torx external bit (snap-on $11.00) and 18 mm deep socket (sears/Osh $8)

Then the quandry about what to clean the intercooler with. I declined the usual hydrocarbon sprays which all said to dispose of in accordance with federal, state and local laws and regulations, and prohibited disposal the way we always dispose of such stuff. I bought "purple power" from Kragen, which is ostensibly "certified biodegradable product" $6.00 the 40 oz container. It uses hand power instead of propellant and is useful for home as well. The Intercooler came out real clean. I noted that it is time to get new intercooler boots, though. My Mini is 2003 with 58,000 miles.

I'll see how it goes in terms of oil accumulation. I noticed that the intake side boot (larger) had oil in the groove and the outlet side boot was dry.

 

Is that fuel line going to and from the HDOCC?

 

I simply interposed the HD fluid separator between the valvecover and the line going to the intake tract. There was no change in the stock line routing.

 

I know. I didn't say the fuel line; I said fuel line, as in the type/grade/labeling of line added between the valve cover and the intake tract. The path is obvious, but I was curious as to what kind of tubing you added. However, I can now see from what is printed on it that it does indeed appear to be fuel line.

 

after you've run it for a while and see what you collect, try putting some filter material in there and see if it collects more. I found that to be the case.

 

The Home Depot "separator" has an internal filter built into it.

 

Have a question about the "Aquarium pre-filter" media.....

Is this stuff going to break down and shed white particals of "pre filter" through my engine?

I have the same pre filter media, but it seems, sandy or dusty to me.

Any thoughts? It's going on to my OCC as I type this.

Thanks for any help!

 

The only time this media should "shed" anything is if it is being bounced around. I would not recommend this as an OCC filter media as it is a ceramic product that is very abrasive. When used in an aquarium, like my 50 and 30 gallons ones, they work great because they are stationary and surrounded by water. You would be better off using some stainless steel or brass wool as a media.

 

Here is accumulated oil from one month - about 1000 miles - of around town driving. It looks like 1/4 to 1/2 inch has been collected. Better that it be here than in the intercooler.

 

Hi. Sorry for bringing this subject again but i made the OCC installation today using the instructions posted above by "DrPhil" using a Alta OCC and the supllied tubing but i noticed that with the engine on at idle the can itself looked crushed like vacuum from the inside.
Is this normal?

It´s needless to say the i put everything back together again until further notice...