Question: Old Unused Oil

[sam98177]

Howdy,

Anyone know how long oil will keep, without opening the container? I have several quarts of Castrol that's a few to several years old, but never been opened. I was thinking of using it, but not sure if it still good.

Sam

[CatatonicBug]

Good question! I'd never thought of that before. I did a small amount of online searching, and there seems to be no "real" concensus. The guy on this link says that engine oil should have a shelf life of 3-4 years, but some others have used 10-year-old oil with no reported problems. I guess if it was really that important, there would be an expiration date on the carton, right?

[fredintoon]

Howdy,
Anyone know how long oil will keep, without opening the container? I have several quarts of Castrol that's a few to several years old, but never been opened. I was thinking of using it, but not sure if it still good.
Sam

Hi Sam,
that stuff has been in the ground for millions of years
(or if you are a creationist, since God created the world ~4,500 years ago including all the evidence saying otherwise)
But either way, I reckon that even several decades in a plastic jug won't hurt it any.

[tarzan]

I would use it.
It is not like gas,it wont go bad like that.I have used old oil several times.Buying old broken down cars you end up with a lot of stuff people leave in their trunks.I bought a Cordova a few years back that the guy had the trunk crammed to the top with oil, antifreeze,trans fluid,cloths tools,and all kinds of junk.He drove around town with all that stuff for years.I dont think he even knew what all was in there. I bought the car from his estate.

[sam98177]

Thanks for the replies.

Fred, you have a point, if it's been in the ground for a few thousand years, a few years in the jug it should be good.

I've been doing some chores on the XS11E and hope to have it in riding order in a few weeks. Anyways I came across some bottles of unopened oil; no experation date, so I was hoping to use it when I change the oil on the bike. I did just find a few opened bottles, but with the caps on tightly. I reckon it's left over from previous oil changes. You think these are still good?



Sam

[fredintoon]

Thanks for the replies. - - - I came across some bottles of unopened oil; no experation date, so I was hoping to use it when I change the oil on the bike. I did just find a few opened bottles, but with the caps on tightly. I reckon it's left over from previous oil changes. You think these are still good?
Sam

Hi Sam,
I'd unhesitatingly use the oil from containers that are still sealed.
I'd have doubts about using oil from previously opened containers unless I was the guy who cracked them in the first place and was dead sure that what it said on the container was what was actually in the container.

[sam98177]

Hi Sam,
I'd unhesitatingly use the oil from containers that are still sealed.
I'd have doubts about using oil from previously opened containers unless I was the guy who cracked them in the first place and was dead sure that what it said on the container was what was actually in the container.

Ok. I was the one that cracked the containers, so I'm sure of what's inside. The containers have been stored in a metal cabinet away for the elements, so I guess it would be good to use too.

Thanks,

Sam

[b.walker5]

As longs as the containers were airtight it'll be perfectly safe to use. All oils are hygroscopic to some degree (i.e. they absorb moisture) if left open to the atmosphere, and there can be a degree of evaporation of some additives as well. Some are worse than others but all do it. It's a big problem for us in the refrigeration industry, with the biggest offenders being new generation synthetic oils (some can actually absorb up to 20 times their own weight) so we go to great lengths to ensure containers are well sealed. A properly sealed container will ensure the oil lasts for years and years and years and years and ye......, however any additives in it may not. They can degrade to some degree, slightly changing the viscosity and perhaps the API rating, but you will never notice and it won't cause you any harm, providing you stick to a regular change schedule.

[HobbyMan]

Just keep them. They are great for when you just need to top off a little bit.

[Ivan]

I originally had the same thought as Fredintoon, although the creationism vs evolutionism debate wasnt on my mind. Now it is. There is much "evidence" for either viewpoint. Whay you really have to ask yourself is: "Does my value as a human come from a pool of organic ooze that was jolted to life by pure happenstance so rare I probably shouldn't exist, or was my intrinsic value created by some being much greater thsn I?"

What that has to do with old oil, I haven't a clue. Personally, I think oil is cheap. Use new in the engine, and use the old as fire starter for a bon fire

[cywelchjr]

On the creationism vs darwinism issue I have to come down on the side of "we don't know". That said, we also don't know the TRUE timeframes for what was written down, and frankly we don't know the methodology base for creationism. I have my specific beliefs, and I don't think that we need to debate too much here, but I believe that if we actually knew all the information correctly, there would be no discrepancies between the two.

Just my 2 cents for what it's worth (real copper pennies too, so actually worth more)

[sam98177]

Ok, now you guys got me started...There's much evidence for one side of the debate and many theories for the other side.

Someone once said, ""The Big Bang" is like a tornado going thru a junkyard and producing a Cadillac."

Anyways, thanks much for the oil suggestions.

Sam

[randy]

So has this become the oil thread to end all oil threads? One can dream.....

[oseaghdha]

Not yet

So has this become the oil thread to end all oil threads? One can dream.....

What oil would Jesus use?

[sam98177]

What oil would Jesus use?

I love it!