When you’re shopping for an oil drain, you should take a minute to ask yourself a few questions:
- How many oil changes are done in your shop daily? This will determine how big your oil drain needs to be.
- How do you store waste oil, and do you have a suction pump? This will lead you to the best oil drain style: self-evacuating or pump-assist.
- Do you work with expensive vehicles? This will help figure out whether to go with a poly or steel oil drain (You could damage cars with a steel version).
What’s the Best Scenario for a Pump-Assist Oil Drain?
You can make the most out of a pump-assist oil drain if you have a waste oil tank with a suction pump already in your shop. This type of drain lets you hook up a suction hose directly to a full oil drain and transfer oil from the drain to the waste oil tank. Shop air usually runs the suction pump.
Pump-assist oil drains vary in size from 8 gallons for a smaller shop with a couple of bays to around 30 gallons for a high-volume operation with multiple bays.
What’s the Ideal Situation for a Self-Evacuating Oil Drain?
A self-evacuating oil drain would be more efficient if your shop doesn’t use a suction pump. This drain uses shop air to pressurize the oil drain when it’s full of used oil to push the oil out of the drain and into a waste oil tank or 55-gallon drum.
Self-evacuating oil drains require a lower initial investment and fewer pieces of equipment. Various sizes are available to meet your shop’s needs.
The Bottom Line
If you already have a waste oil tank with a suction pump in your shop, a pump-assist oil drain would be the best route. If you don’t have a suction pump, a self-evacuating oil drain will serve you better.
We offer an extensive line of oil drains. Take a look here!
