Maintenance accomplishment and peril

[Skywagon]

You know how much a feeling of accomplishment it is when you change all the fluids. Makes me happy... well almost. Do you remember how annoyed you were when you set that bucket under your final drive and knocked it over right as the plug came out. It’s amazing how fast it can completely drain when hot and how far it can spread. It’s also amazing how fast the wife can say what’s all over the garage and your shoes. At least I don’t have to haul it to the recycler 

 

 

[realshelby]

Hmmm. Similar to the feeling one gets when allowing the oil drain pan to fill up rather full? You ease it out from under carefully....then kick it with your foot after you forget it was moved?

[Rougarou]

No, what sucks is when you are teaching you 12 year old daughter how to change oil using the Powerstroke diesel and you forget to remove the plug for the drain pan,......yep 15qt’s drained on the concrete 

[TEWKS]

The last oil change on the RT, I dumped all four quarts on the floor when I moved the pan to catch a little drip from the filter.  

[Rougarou]

Or, when you remove the lid to the 5qt jug of new oilto lube the filter seal, turn too fast and knock the jug over

[TEWKS]

Yup, then right at that very second life goes into slow motion. Ooooh Noooo, piiiick iiiiit uuuup!!!  

[Hosstage]

I don't know what your you guys are talking about....

[wbw6cos]

Kitty Litter!    Just sayin'

[Skywagon]

Well it looks like I'm not the only case in the group....Kitty litter is a staple.  I even have a special pair of shoes for grinding it in.  I think 15qts in the driveway might take the prize.  Anybody worse than Rougarou?  

[wbw6cos]

I  had about 2 gallons of waste oil leak from a jug under the work bench..  There is about 1/2 a bag of oil dry still piled up under there.   

[Hosstage]

I've got to think 15 takes the win.

I actually have real oil dry absorbing product. In case I ever do spill in the future.

[MachineJoe]

You guys are actually starting to make me feel normal.  

[Hosstage]

I may not have ever dumped oil and made a mess (um, yeah, right), but somewhere in my garage is a transmission oil drain plug and the allen socket to remove it. I searched everywhere, the trash can, twice, the drain pan, under the bench, in the driveway, in the drain pan again, my pockets, gone.

How the hell does a drain plug get lost in a matter of minutes?

Had to wait until the next day to go buy a new one. That should have turned up the old one, but nope.

[Rougarou]

12 hours ago, Skywagon said:

Well it looks like I'm not the only case in the group....Kitty litter is a staple.  I even have a special pair of shoes for grinding it in.  I think 15qts in the driveway might take the prize.  Anybody worse than Rougarou?  

 

C'mon man, I can't possibly take the win on this, anyway, it's an honor to be the winner.

 

Also, my kitty litter can is combined with sawdust..........and a jug of muriatic acid is always on standby for something.

[dduelin]

The drill for changing the oil in my ST1300 was to drain the sump while on the center stand then placing the bike on the side stand to remove/replace the oil filter. So this one time I forgot to move the oil catch pan to the left and completely out of the way. I got on the saddle and pushed the bike forward off the center stand. The bike came down on the right edge of the pan and flipped it up into the air. 4 quarts of oil got on everything and every surface nearby except on the garage ceiling. The left and top side of the bike, the right side of the Miata next to me, all over me. I think I would rather have 15 qts on the driveway than 1 quart in my hair but it might be close.

[9Mary7]

1 hour ago, dduelin said:

I think I would rather have 15 qts on the driveway than 1 quart in my hair but it might be close.

This has got to be a close second........

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

It's great fun when the oil drain hole is at an angle on the edge of the sump (instead of on the flat bottom).  You pull the plug, and now oil is blasting out at a 45-degree angle.  But you were smart (um, "experienced"), and put the collection pan in the right spot to catch that angled stream.  And then while you weren't paying attention, the sump started to empty, the strength of that angled stream faded...and now it's drooling on the garage floor directly under the drain hole.

 

[eddd]

Bunch of amateurs!  

Many of you don't know that I changed my name.  It used to be Hazelwood.

[ltljohn]

Change the oil in the car, missed the filter gasket stuck to the block, Filter tight, Check, drain plug in Check fill with fresh oil, check. Fire it up pull out of the garage oil light comes on at the end of the driveway uh oh.  Trail of oil in the garage and down the driveway.  Never made that mistake again.

[West_Coaster]

Thread title says maintenance, so here's my maintenance mishap...

 

After coming home from desert camping for a week, I was going to dump my motor home tanks. I have a clean out near the motor home to make it easy.

 

After getting all setup with the drain hose, I pull the blackwater tank release lever.........and it rips off the bottom of the tank instantly.....dumping 25 gallons of "nasty stuff" right in my driveway. 

 

I would gladly trade that for 15 quarts of oil.....

[realshelby]

There is nothing, and I mean NOTHING like the smell of a blackwater rv tank that has ripened for a spell in hot weather. 

 

Talk about making bombs to disable the enemy! Who would you get to fill the balloons though....?

[Car 54]

Well not on a bike, car or truck but...  In 1970 I went to work at Pratt and Whitney in East Hartford, CT. Worked in experimental assembly. We got a JT9D engine back from the test cells. This was the engine for the 747s. Supervisor told me to strip several specified items off of the engine, including the oil tank. I asked “Is the oil tank drained?” Supervisor stated “Yes. They drained it before they brought it in here.”  I asked “ Are you sure boss?” Answer, “Of course I’m sure.” Can you imagine how many gallons and gallons and gallons of oil can come out of an “empty” tank and supply lines? And who had to clean it up?

[Oldironken]

I was a laborer on a job laying sewer pipe in ‘83.  We were using a big Link Belt excavator for the digging.  One day while waiting for supplies the owner ( who was a real SOB) decided it was a good time to change the oil in the machine.  So with the machine straddling the open trench the owner showed another laborer what plug to remove to drain the oil, when he pulled the plug i told the owner that it wasn’t oil draining out, he told me to shut up, so i did.  25 gallons of diesel fuel later the owner wondered why there was still oil showing on the dip stick... Needless to say we waited for the fuel truck to come by to finish digging that day.    

[Rougarou]

On 11/10/2020 at 8:22 AM, realshelby said:

There is nothing, and I mean NOTHING like the smell of a blackwater rv tank that has ripened for a spell in hot weather. 

 

Talk about making bombs to disable the enemy! Who would you get to fill the balloons though....?

Meh, 1992 deployment USS Austin, the Navy pumped CHT into the fresh water, it was not immediately known,...... there were a lot of sick people for the next few days and zero fresh water available 

[TEWKS]

An acquired taste thing....   Nasty! The pic below illustrates Tewksbury’s wisdom in selecting the town’s water pickup in the Merrimack River. SP= Shite Plant WF= Water Flow WP= Water Pickup. We’re assured it’s cleaned properly, but I drink bottled water. 

 

[realshelby]

I worked with a company  for a couple years around 1989-90 that updated/enlarged/built water and sewage treatment plants. Many things about them are the same sort of equipment. 

 

The sewage plants do an amazing job of cleaning the water. 

 

Until they don't. I have seen pure brown water going out the effluent stream straight into the river. Don't believe they report that every time it happens......

[wbw6cos]

Sort of reminds me of Atlanta's water source:  the Chattahoochee River, which is also the same place treated waste water is discharged.  The old saying when fishing south of ATL is to beware of The Headless Brown Trout.  Just sayin'

[Rougarou]

1 hour ago, TEWKS said:

An acquired taste thing....   Nasty! The pic below illustrates Tewksbury’s wisdom in selecting the town’s water pickup in the Merrimack River. SP= Shite Plant WF= Water Flow WP= Water Pickup. We’re assured it’s cleaned properly, but I drink bottled water. 

 

 

I'm on a well, I'm good

[BrianM]

1 hour ago, Rougarou said:

 

I'm on a well, I'm good

As long as no animals pee in your yard.

[Rougarou]

2 hours ago, BrianM said:

As long as no animals pee in your yard.

 

Three horses, more deer and turkey than I can count, a ten year old grandson and 52 year old grandfather.

[BrianM]

9 minutes ago, Rougarou said:

 

Three horses, more deer and turkey than I can count, a ten year old grandson and 52 year old grandfather.

Drink up!