Changing Your Oil Filter By Levi Quinn At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Changing your own oil and filter sounds much harder than it really is. Many people opt to take care of this maintenance feature on their own to avoid the cost of having it done by a professional. You do not need a very advanced knowledge of vehicles either. It is pretty straight forward and once you successfully do it once, you will be able to do it for life. If you are new to this you may want to have someone assist you the first time.

If you need some help determining the exact location of the oil filter then you should try looking it up in your user manual or online. There are many great resources that can help you with pictures and steps to find it. It should be clearly labelled so that you know when you have found the oil filter.

You have to remove the oil filter completely and take it out. Some oil will drip down when you do this. Because it tends to be messy you need to have a drip pan there to catch the oil. This is something you don’t want to make the mistake of doing without a drip pan. Leaking oil beneath the car and on the ground or your garage floor is not going to make the process any easier. It will just slow you down.

There is a small rubber gasket on the top of the oil filter. You must make sure that this piece is also removed from the car. If the gasket is not taken off then there could be an oil leak when you put the new oil filter in. You must double check that this step is properly done.

The oil drain plug must be removed now so that you can drain the old oil from the car. You should see the bolt that holds this plug on. You may need a wrench to get at it. Once it is off the oil will pour out so be prepared with the drain pan before you even take this plug off. Make sure the pan you are using is big enough to catch however much oil your engine holds.

It’s a really good idea to wear some rubber gloves while you do this. Rubber gloves are easy to move in and not at all restrictive but they also keep your hands clean. Oil is very greasy and smelly and some people can’t stand the smell. It’s wise to keep this process as clean as you possibly can.

Before you put the new oil filter in you must be sure to rub a little bit of oil on the rubber gasket that is on the top of it. This is necessary for making it fit properly and securely. Try not to forget any of the little things. Make a checklist if necessary for the things that you want to double check on. A reminder can save you time and trouble later.

Put the new oil filter back in the same way that you took it out. It must be tightened according to the instructions that come with the filter. Do not use tools to tighten it because you could damage the gasket.

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