wondering if anyone knows when to clean the Donaldson filter? Theres a guage but I haven't seen it move. What does the guage look like when you have to change it? Does it say filter change?

thanks medvette99

i'm going now on 15000 miles with it on.

 

I think the gauge pops in and you see a different color when it needs cleaned

Jerry

 

I don't even know where this gauge us...

Patrick :confused:

 

The gauge is on the left rear portion of the filter as viewed when it is mounted on the mass airflow sensor. The gauge will show a red indicator in the clear window when the filter needs to be cleaned and re-oiled.

 

thanks for the help everyone.

:seeya

medvette99

 

I don't think the guage is a real good indicator. I was told that the filter would have to be really clogged before the indicator would move. 15,000 mi and no indicator should be proof, the filter shoud have been cleaned by 10,000 according to the instructions (5,000 mi. under dusty conditions). I did mine at 5,000 mi and I couldn't tell how dirty it was - but cleaning it wasn't that big a deal. One thing I did do wrong was to spray too much oil on the cleaned filter - my filter dripped oil for over 2 weeks!

I'd say cleaning it every 5,000 mi would be similar to changing oil every 3,000 mi.

JohnS

 

If it is a gauge similar to this one, it is good.


Yes, the link says "diesel", but they're also made for gasoline engines.

http://www.dieselpage.com/epc.htm
We use these at work and they really are quite good. These are in equipment that cost $1 million dollars, the motor alone is worth about a 100 grand. :)


(Remember, a resuable filter works better after it gets a little dirty).
Most people don't realize that how the filter looks is not a good indicator of when to clean it.




[Modified by GWPII, 3:38 AM 2/8/2002]

 

Use the gauge as an indicator. Trying to clean the filter and doing so improperly will only cause more problems and could possibly damage the engine (by over-oiling and the excess oil getting on the MAF wires) -- see above.

Here are the actual Donaldson instructions that come with their cleaning kit. Under normal (not offroad) conditions, you can go up to 100,000 miles -- at that point just buy a new filter -- depending on how long you keep the car, you may never see the filter indicator "pop." Also, some dirt on the filter is actually beneficial -- better than too much oil or improper over-cleaning, which can damage the filter media. :eek:

BTW, trust Donaldson -- they have been in business 85 years -- they are one of the world's largest filter manufacturers -- I deal with them on other applications (buildings) and they know their stuff. See http://www.donaldson.com

Hope this helps! :smash:








[Modified by EHS, 8:58 AM 2/8/2002]

 

EHS,

thanks for the link.
I have the Donaldson LS6, I believe it came out before the Blackwing? Would the same rules apply to my LS6 as to the blackwing? And where can I buy a kit for the LS6, could I use the same kit as the Blackwing kit?

Thanks!

 

2000^C5:

I got my cleaning kit from SLP Performance (www.slponline.com) last year, before I realized I may never need it.

Here's the link directly to the Donaldson brand cleaning kit ($10.95):
http://www.slponline.com/view_produc...RTNUMBER=25015


The LS6 and the Blackwing are identical (I have a 2000 C5 as well with the LS6). The name was changed when the "official" supplier was changed.

Important to this discussion is that you can do more damage to the filter and/or the car by fussing with it too much than too little. The filter media is synthetic (not paper like some other brands), and if cleaned improperly (too much water pressure, high pressure water from outside to inside, "blown" dry to aid the drying process, "heat" dried at too hot a temperature to speed things up, over-oiled, use of silicone based oils, etc., etc., etc. You can get holes into the thing, compromise the integrity of the filter, damage your MAF sensor, throttle body, etc.

The Donaldson rep I dealt with also said the filter is fine as it is -- use the pop-up indicator. If you're entering the Baja 1000 with the C5, obviously you'll probably need to clean it at the end of the race. BTW, on the building side, we use $20,000 Donaldson filters, and they also are more effective when "a little dirty."

TRUST Donaldson; but if you must fuss, then be careful and just don't over do it.

Hope this helps again. :smash:

 

Thanks for clearing that up EHS!

So bottom line, trust the indicator that came with my filter?
I am going to check it today.
I was concerned that going 30,000+ miles without cleaning it was bad, but it looks like I may do more harm than good by cleaning it.
Thanks again! :cheers:


[Modified by 2000^C5, 8:18 AM 2/8/2002]

 

I too purchased the cleaning kit and then read the instructions which indicate I don't really need the kit. I'm still not convinced since dirt would mean less air flow. Anyone else have any thoughts?

 

50,000 to 100,000 miles - WOW! I could've sworn that I saw 10,000 miles somewhere. If I had known this, I wouldn't have bothered buying the cleaning kit. I was worried about getting the sensor wires covered with oil, but that hadn't happened. My MAF screen isn't removed so that may have helped. I also let the car sit until the oil stopped dripping - well over 2 weeks!

JohnS

 

When I received mine, it didn't have a vacuum gauge. :confused:

 

I think "works better" may only mean it catches dirt better, not flows better. If I was entering a competition that was important to me, I would start with a freshly cleaned filter. Otherwise, these kinds of filters can hold a lot of dirt and still work well. I have one on my car.

 

fxrhm:

I had the same thoughts. Then I looked at my Donaldson Blackwing, took note of its size and overall surface area, mentally completely covered half of it, and thought that it still had more surface area than any other filter for the C5 on the market.

:yesnod:

 

The filter area is the top reason I bought the Donaldson. The vortex is tiny compared to it :yesnod: