How and Where to Buy Used Oil (25 Best Tips & Sources)

If you want to know the best ways and sources for buying used oil, this is the perfect article for you.

It reveals a lot of sources and tips for getting a great deal buying used oil.

 

Importance

4.4 pounds on average per American every day.

No, we’re not talking about weight gain, or the daily consumption of food eaten.

According to Citibin this poundage reflects trash that is produced by an average person per day.

Additionally, only 1.51 pounds of that 4.4 pounds is recycled.

Recycling or reusing an item or product is a critical process.

There are a number of reasons for this.

The primary reason is that it helps to conserve the limited resources that the earth provides.

By recycling such products as glass, aluminum, computers, clothing and so much more, we are able to process these items and reuse them over and over again.

Another critical precious resource that the earth provides is crude oil.

By managing this commodity and recycling this resource, everyone benefits as it relates to preserving Earth’s limited resources as well as offering a quality lifestyle as it relates to the environment.

Let us dig deeper into the recycling of oil and how and where to buy used oil.

 

25 Best Tips & Sources to Help You Buy Used Oil

 

1. Know all about Used Oil

Used or waste oil is defined as a petroleum-based or synthetic oil that is no longer a refined oil and is free of any contaminants.

Waste oil drained from vehicles during routine maintenance is a major part of the waste oil industry with this waste oil containing dirt, various impurities, and other toxins.

 

2. Proper Disposal

Waste oil needs to be properly captured and recycled and various government agencies and laws are in place to protect the environment.

Within each community or certainly within the region of a state there are recycling centers that will take used oil and properly dispose of it.

Also, there are certain retailers within the community that will accept waste oil that needs to be recycled.

 

3. Is Waste Oil in High Demand?

The demand for waste oil and this precious commodity being recycled is increasing in importance.

The reason for its high demand is the various uses of waste oil as well as efforts to refine or recycle the used oil to once again be an effective high-grade oil.

 

4. What About the Environment?

The importance of recycling waste oil will reduce the impact of the oil industry on the environment.

The increase in the automotive industry and the use of recycled waste oil will minimize additional carbon emissions.

 

5. Refined Into New Oil

Refining waste oil has been a considerable focus of companies and countries around the world.

Waste oil can be divided into three concentrated areas of refining efforts or use.

Those specific areas include:

• Waste oil boilers,
• Biodiesel
• Re-refiners

Re-refiners are the largest market for waste oil as processes are being developed to remove the impurities of waste oil and restore the oil to a high grade for effective use.

 

6. Legalities

As it relates to waste oil, it is important to understand the seriousness and gravity of laws that have been enacted to protect the environment.

The use of waste oil has strong legal implications if the processes are not followed or are compromised.

 

7. Oil Drum

As part of the process of how to get oil, an individual would need to develop a method of collecting the oil and transferring the oil to the needed destination.

In a particular YouTube video, an individual had gone to an automobile dealership and on the back of his truck, he had mounted a large barrel in which the dealership would transport the oil to his container.

 

8. Transportation

That same individual would then transport the used oil to his home where he had developed another oil removing process to continue the transfer of the used oil to his holding tank.

 

9. Transfer

The holding tank would hold the used oil where a system was also set up in which there was the flow of fuel to his heat-burning stove or furnace in which he would burn the used oil for heating.

It is important that a secure and foolproof process is in place so as to make sure there are no oil spills and avoid any violation of the law as it relates to spillage.

 

 

Sources to Buy Used Oil

 

10. Car Dealership 

There are a number of service companies that remove oil that has served its purpose and new oil is provided.

One of those retail service outlets is car dealerships where they conduct numerous oil changes through the course of the month.

You may live in an area where you can get this used oil inexpensively or at no charge.

 

11. Service Stations

Service stations would be another prime retailer in which you could obtain used oil at a going rate or perhaps even less expensively.

You could check with the service stations in your area to find out how they recycle their used oil collected and whether this is something that you could be involved with as a customer.

 

12. Oil Change Companies

Another possibility may be the various service car retailers that focus strictly on oil changes and do various checkups according to the manufacturer’s recommendations for the vehicles.

Valvoline, Jiffy Lube, Quick Lube, etc may be able to provide you with used oil if their policies allow for that to occur.

 

13. Auto Parts Stores

A local retailer with a national presence is through car parts stores.

These stores include places such as Autozone, Pep Boys, O’Reilly’s, etc.

These local businesses will take accept used oil and process it according to their company’s policies and procedures.

There may be an opportunity for you to be a part of that used oil business and either be given a quantity or be sold a quantity of used oil.

Related: How to Make Extra Money Getting Paid for Used Oil.

 

14. Recycling Companies

In your city or within your geographical area there is most likely a recycling center.

These recycling centers recycle a variety of items which could include aluminum, plastic, glass, and so forth.

Quite possibly, the recyclers may pay you by the pound or whatever unit they choose for the items that you bring in for recycling.

Also, they may pay you for any old engine oil that you bring in to recycle.

 

15. Crystal Clean

Crystal Clean is an oil collection center that is a major business that collects used motor oil.

In addition to being a significant company as it relates to the collection of used motor oil, they are also involved in the refining process of used or contaminated oil.

According to their business statistics, this oil refinery has the capability of refining up to $75 million gallons of used oil per year.

 

16. Wal-Mart

If Walmart in your area operates a service station for vehicles, they might also provide oil change.

The oil that they collect may possibly be given to you and therefore an arrangement can be made.

 

Uses of Used Oil

 

17. Waste Oil Burner

Some of the uses of contaminated oil are that it can be part of the energy process as it is burned and transformed into energy at various power plants.

The oil is not burned on a consistent basis but is generally utilized as a fuel when there is significantly higher demand for energy.

According to an article published in 2011 at RecyclingProductNews.com, a demonstration was conducted that showed the potential use of used motor oil as a fuel and especially burned in an environmentally friendly system that produced no negative emissions.

 

18. Lubricant

Used motor oil, once it has gone through a refining process, can be used as a lubricant.

Specifically, lubricants are used to reduce friction such as being placed on bicycle chains and in the use of hydraulics.

Also See: How to Make Money Selling Hand Pictures.

 

19. Better than Disposal

The best use of utilizing used oil is when it is recycled and therefore prevents less impact on the environment and prevents the soil and water from being contaminated.

 

20. Additive

Used motor oil is also utilized as an additive in oil treatment products.

The marketing claim of these engine oil additives is that they enhance the motor’s performance and help to preserve the life of the motor as well as increase performance.

 

21. Bitumen

Another significant use of used engine oil is as an agent that adds new life or rejuvenates aged asphalt.

The motor oil will, when mixed at a certain percentage, restore the asphalt and therefore help to extend the life of the asphalt as well as reduce costs and additional environmental issues as it relates to having to lay more asphalt.

 

22. Oil Filters

The extent of the seriousness of utilizing used motor oil is indicated even in the recycling of the oil filters.

In the oil filters there is remaining oil and once that oil has been captured then the steel casing or metal casing of the oil filter is also broken down and recycled as scrap metal.

 

23. Stain

Another productive use of used motor oil is rather than using a stain for your wood fence use motor oil.

Using motor oil gives the wooden fence a unique look and maybe a better alternative than using stains that are formulated from a variety of chemicals.

The one drawback in using used oil for your wooden fence is that it would need to be sealed every 6 months.

 

24. Doesn’t Deteriorate

In addition, the characteristic of motor oil is that it never wears out.

It just gets dirty and therefore recycling and removing some of the impurities makes it an option for significant reuse.

 

25. Less Energy

The value of providing a limited process and refining used motor oil is that it takes less energy to work through this process than it would be in refining crude or raw oil in the same quantity.

 

Personal Story

Back in the 1960s, my dad had taken a job that required us to move to the mid-part of Wisconsin.

My parents had left us in Chicago to travel to this part of the state to check out the various choices of the city that were made available to him.

While they were there, they focused on one city and proceeded to secure a rental home where our family of seven could reside.

As you can appreciate, the winters of Wisconsin are bitterly cold and for heating, this older rental house had an oil-burning furnace.

I always knew that winter was fast approaching when the oil delivery truck would come up our driveway and hook the oil delivery apparatus up to the capped oil pipe that was protruding from the east side of the house.

Oil has a strong unmistakable smell and to this day when I’m around oil products, the smell triggers strong and fond memories of being spent together as a family in this state.

 

Buying Used Oil FAQs

 

How Big is the Used Oil Business?

The waste oil industry is valued at $64.44 billion.

 

How Many Times Can Motor Oil Be Recycled?

It is important to know that two and a half quarts of clean user-ready motor oil require the use of 42 gallons of crude oil to produce.

Amazingly, that same amount of clean oil can be recycled from just a gallon of previously used motor oil.

The answer to the question is that motor oil can be recycled almost indefinitely.

 

You Can Do It

Knowledge is important and helps us and you to make informed decisions.

Therefore, knowing about used motor oil and its ability to be recycled is a powerful lesson to learn as it relates to decreasing the impact on the environment if used motor oil is recycled appropriately.

You have the opportunity to not only be part of the recycling process but have that motor oil reused in a variety of different ways.

 

Conclusion

Earth’s precious resources are like all other things in life in that there are limitations.

There is no unlimited supply of anything.

The importance of recycling is a dynamic with which responsible individuals should be engaged.

One of those commodities that need to be continually recycled is motor oil so that this precious resource can be utilized over and over again.

Although used motor oil is most likely limited as to its availability, functionality, and continual use as a commodity it almost seems endless as to its recycled life.