Re: Bottle Bills for motor oil bottles?

[<ACOLEMAN@central.epa.ohio.gov> (Art Coleman )]

Brian Noble statement's on the motor oil bottle disposal problem:

I eliminated the problem for myself and reduced generating oil bottles. 
Switch to one of those many fast lube service outfits.
*They're eveywhere & it takes less than 30 minutes
*You don't get dirty
*You don't have a disposal problem for oil, filter or bottles

The economics work.  Shop the sales, and if your car is out of warranty
go to 7,500 miles instead of every 3-5,000.  Now you have a 50%
reduction in cost and waste generated.  (Conditions will vary by your
driving habits and local environment)

You can go one step further. I use Wal-Mart and have them replace it
with re-refined oil instead of virgin.  Some locations have it in bulk.

>>> <g-whiz@ix.netcom.com> 02/18/97 03:55pm >>>
Kirsten Rosselot wrote:
> 
> I have curbside recycling and we're not allowed to put used motor oil
> bottles in the recycle bin.

Have you asked your recycler why?  Is it because the petroleum fouls
their aqueous washing systems?  There are over 3.4 billion of those
bottles produced in the U.S. every year, so they are really missing out
on a big landfill space taker.

Thanks for your reply.

Anyone else have the same experience?

Gerard Forgnone
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Brian brought up some good P2 pointers on the used oil/filter issue.  The
problem with getting the oil changed by an oil changer is they still have to get
rid of the plastic containers, and the question still remains, how do they get rid
of them?  Federal regulations now allow non-terne plated oil filters to be hot
drained (by one, or a combination of, four methods).  After which, the filters can
be disposed of in the ordinary solid waste stream.  Anecdotal info I have
received suggest, in some cases, that filters processed (probably improperly)
in this manner still may contain significant quantities of oil.  Studies have shown
that hot draining the filters, followed by crushing, maximizes the amount of oil
removed from the filter.  There is currently a national push to get used oil filters
recycled as scrap metal

The American Plastic Council sent me a list (November 14, 1996) of firms that
accept HDPE containers that originally contained motor oil.  If anyone wants a
copy (its one page) I will be glad to send (fax) it to you.   To expand Brian's
comments, I am aware of a manufacturer (info on file) of an in-line automotive
oil rerefining/reclaiming device.   The device is connected to the car's oil
system.  It operates in a "closed-looped" fashion.  It reportedly cuts down on
the number of oil changes 

Art Coleman, Ohio EPA
Division of Hazardous Waste Management
P.O. Box 1049
Columbus, Ohio 43216-1049
(614) 644-2968
Fax (614) 728-1245 or (614) 644-2329
art_coleman@central.epa.ohio.gov