Community Forums

Tha_Rooster · 02-04-2012, 09:26 AM

Does anyone change their air filter even though the gauge says it's not dirty enough. Just because of time of use.

Harm · 02-04-2012, 10:18 AM

I have changed mine every year since I purchased the coach. Even though I never drive in dusty conditions my gauge is always up to 22 by the end of one year with only 6 or 7k miles. Spartan and Newmar have both checked the installation and say it's all okay. Spartan even replaced the vaccum gauge but no change. Spartan changed the filter one year and a year later said the glue inside the filter was breaking down and the filter would collapse if not changed. They would not stand behind a one year old filter so I was forced to buy another. My gauge will read 11 with a new filter just going around the block. So yes mine has been changed every year. I have a relative with the same coach and 3 year filter still showing below 10 and no problems so go figure! It's my understanding that Cummins and Spartan now specify a yearly change due to the glue possibly breaking down inside the filter.

slickest1 · 02-04-2012, 12:00 PM

I think a good visual inspection is the best policy. I have never found those gauges to be that accurate.

Tha_Rooster · 02-04-2012, 12:38 PM

I've got a new one ordered $116.00 I wish you could just change the element.

Dutch Star Don · 02-04-2012, 04:29 PM

I know that most don't change them every year, but I change every filter on my coach when I service it myself in March or April. I was at the FMCA Rally last month and talked to a guy who was carrying his air filter over to the Spartan truck to buy another. It hadn't been changed since 2007. I asked him about his air dryer filter. He didn't know he had one. I later showed him where it was at.

I figure its cheap insurance....I buy all of my filters from the Spartan Chassis truck every year, its right about $300.00, Engine = (1) air, (2) fuel, (1) air dryer, (1) oil and (1) hydraulic, Generator = (1) oil, (1) air and (1) fuel. With 27 quarts of oil, the yearly service is about $400.00.

JimM68 · 02-04-2012, 05:21 PM

Mine just has this go/no go thing, kinda like those tip indicators on packing crates?
I consider it worthless, and will replace my air filter in the spring and every spring after.

Gary RVRoamer · 02-04-2012, 05:22 PM

I recently changed mine after 3 years and 3 months. The gauge still said it was ok, but I had been losing performance on grades and it wasn't the fuel filter. Guess what? Power restored!

Freightliner has begun recommending annual changes, even though the filter manufacturers say go by the gauge. Apparently some people have had air filters fail internally, with the adhesive coming loose and letting paper or glue particles get sucked into the engine, causing major damage. Personally I can't see this happening unless water gets into the filter cartridge, causing the filter to deteriorate, but I suppose that can possibly happen in some air intake designs. Freightliner doesn't want to take any chances with lawsuits, so they are now officially recommending annual changes. Or so I am told - I haven't seen a TSB from them.

Racor, the manufacturer of my filter, still says "Just go by the filter minder gauge".

slickest1 · 02-04-2012, 06:16 PM

I have ran trucks under heavy dust conditions and when that filter minder finally says change, that filter is way beyond dirty. Depending on how much you drive each year and what conditions it may not be necessary to change the air filter. I check mine every service and last year I didn't put enough miles on to get it dirty.

Mr_D · 02-12-2012, 02:02 AM

On ours a new filter shows 15" of water, if I run it hard it shows 22". This is way more than it should be but I guess adding the Banks kit with a new turbo housing and waste gate actuator really upped the air requirement. Still trying to figure out what to do, looked at the no oil K&N truck filter and the AFE but neither company will give a cfm rating and that's the only way to know if they'll do any good. The standard Ecolite is good for 1200 cfm @ 8" of water. Going to a larger Ecolite would help but all my intake tubing is 6" and anything larger takes 7" but I may have to go that way as it would give 1650 cfm @ 8" of water.

OLYLEN · 02-12-2012, 10:21 AM

I'm running the AFE, clean once a year so you pay for it in one year. Most of the performance builders or installers use it or a similar. And after the Top of the World hyway(can you say dust) I feel it's worth the change.

LEN

OLYLEN · 02-12-2012, 10:27 AM

Mr_D Are those factory figures on the Banks kit or Dyno? Call Jon at Brazels in Grand Mound he is a wealth of info on performance.

LEN

buck62 · 02-12-2012, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tha_Rooster

Does anyone change their air filter even though the gauge says it's not dirty enough. Just because of time of use.

My service requirements is change air filter every 3 years and I was seeing people reporting that the internal media was falling apart and causing engine damage after a several years of service. So I called Spartan Chassis and was told that 3 years was the recommeded change interval unless the filter minder indicated the filter needed to be changed sooner. The service technician also told me that he personnally had never heard of an instance of the filter media falling apart and causing engine damage. He informed me that basically it really depends on the area you are driving in, dusty conditions change more frequently. Normal highway driving change at recommended frequency. So after talking to the Spartan factory, I ordered a new air and air dryer filter and changed them both. I plan on following the manufacturers recommended change frequencies.

Mr_D · 02-15-2012, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OLYLEN

Mr_D Are those factory figures on the Banks kit or Dyno? Call Jon at Brazels in Grand Mound he is a wealth of info on performance.

LEN

Those are Banks figures from their dyno testing and the magazine reports say their figures are usually low and you can expect better.
Actually Brazels address is in Centralia and we were there about a month ago for a front end alignment. They carry the AFE, and I've looked at the new no oil heavy duty truck no oil washable ones from K&N, but neither company can give me a CFM rating so I have no way to know if they're better or not. Plus I'm leary of the higher flow filters as usually they don't filter as well. K&N rates theirs and 92 to 99% effective. But, what does that mean compared to the small Ecolite we now have? It's rated at 1200 cfm @ 8" of water column. K&N says they test theirs at 1.5" of water but still didn't give a cfm rating.
Brazels could not get any rating out of AFE other than "it flows too much for use to test". So contract with a testing outfit that can do the test and advertise the flow rating and % of dust trapped!
We did borrow their loaner car and go into town for lunch and we'll be back there in May for the NW Meet and Greet. Jon also offered to do a dyno "run off" to see who's rig at the Meet and Greet put out the most. So far I don't think anyone has taken them up on it
I don't really need to know as the increase is impressive. One hill on I-5 that I used to start up at 60 in 6th and be down to 50 in 4th at WOT I now hit at 60 in 6th, and end at 60, still in 6th and on cruise control with the econo mode on. Much the same results as our '98 Santara with 460 too.

cmpncrsaider · 02-25-2012, 05:50 PM

Sorry for my ignorance guys, but I too do not know what an air dryer filter is, I'll have to read up on it but can anyone give me a breif description and where it is on my 350 ISC? Thanks in advance for any info! I changed the air filter because there was a brand new one in the basement of my rig when I bought it, so I didn't know if the previous owner was getting ready to change or if he just kept one on hand.