What does happen to used motor oil

[Karl Roth]

The stuff we drain from the sump is still as good as the crude pumped out of the ground...

What Happens To All That Used Motor Oil From An Auto Salvage Yard?

Used Motor Oil Collection and Recycling - American Petroleum Institute

Where is your oil going?
karl

[mike-in-sa]

As an owner of a salvage yard, I can assure you that the industry takes care to reclaim and dispose of used motor oil properly. It is so much cheaper to do it right the first time than to remediate later. We used to have to pay to have oil picked up, now some recyclers get paid for the used oil. Here in Texas, I don't know of any yards burning it for heat. The biggest problem is determining how responsible the company is that picks up that used oil. If you are having hundreds of gallons of used oil hauled off every year, you should do a personal inspection of the facility. If they get busted and deemed a major pollutor (superfund) the government will come back to every customer of that facility to recoup the cost of clean-up. You need to know how clean they are. Just because the oil gets hauled away dosen't mean you are off the hook even though you did nothing wrong.

[Old smart]

I am totally in synch with Mike. I have been faced with the responsibility chain of waste oil. In my case it was when I would have my port agents arrange for slop barges to take off my ship's oily waste that I could not dispose of at sea (my areas of operations were international no-disposal zones). If the slop barge operator did something illegal with the discharge, I as Master (not the Chief Engineer), could be thrown into jail by any country signatory to the U.N. MARPOL treaty. Unlike Mike, I had no oversight or control over the contractor, and in later years it got scary. That, among other litigious maritime circumstances, makes me very happy to have gotten away clean and now retired.

[SubSlr88]

Check your local trash facility~! I only change the oil in my mower anymore, preferring to leave the cars to a garage. Our local county trash facility recycles everything! Especially oil and paints. They'll take up to five gallons of oil or paint & solvents per visit.
They recycle used flourescent lamps, all the standard metals; aluminum, steel, copper, etc. They recycle your yard waste into mulch you can pick up free. All types of paper and plastics, too. Even slick magazines and mail flyers.
No reason to over burden the already overflowing dumps. RECYCLE IT ALL~!

[Dave Van]

I change all my own oil in the fleet. (8 cars) Mine goes next door to my friends shop where he uses it as heating oil. Between his race car, trucks and my cars he heats all winter. Good use in my book.

[Fredvon4]

Dave Van

I suppose burning it is slightly preferable to putting it on gravel roads for dust control

BUT, in either case the toxic byproducts get into the ecology

The base oil is not really an issue in my opinion. The additives and wear metals are the real issue in used oil

Motor bearings for rod ends and crankshafts are made from lead, beryllium, aluminum, Tin, Antimony, Copper, and up to six other metals.

The typical oil additive package also has some bad stuff in it; detergents, friction modifiers, viscosity modifiers and such.

Your neighbor burning this concoction of dangerous compounds is adding to air pollution in a very bad way for everybody.... something to think about

No...not a tree hugger by any stretch...just a pragmatic and informed citizen.

Used motor oil should not be released into the air or ground water for very real reasons

[Jim R]

I change the oil in our cars myself.It goes in a plastic jug for use as bar oil in the chainsaw.I cut a lot of wood for heating so the oil gets used up pretty fast.Where does it go from the chainsaw? I don't know.Maybe in to the ether.

[Duckhunter]

I never change my oil, problem solved