Engine Oil Chip Detector

I plan to install an engine oil chip detector (which incorporates an oil drain valve) http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/eppages/chipdetect.php in place of the sump plug in my 0-320 at my next oil change. The operating instructions with the detector are very basic and more or less just say if the light comes on inspect the chip detector for contamination but there are no guidelines for what is excessive contamination. I would be interested to hear the experiences of anyone who has used one of these detectors. The gap between the contacts is only about 1/16” so would it possible that “normal” wear over say 50 hrs could bridge the gap with fine iron particles and give a warning light? I suppose what I am asking is, can the detector give false warnings or if the light comes on will this always mean there is a serious problem? I can imagine a scenario where I might get a false warning and spend a number of sleepless nights with a grounded aircraft, contemplating pulling a perfectly good engine apart

Fin
9A

Oil filter analysis enough?

The first thought which comes to mind, is that this problem is solved by looking over the oilfilter-element during oilchanges.

Ofcourse, wear could start right away after and oilchange, thus the wear will be undetected for the next 50 hrs, but I guess that's unlikely??

I'm certainly no engine expert, so it's going to be interesting to hear what others say about this? Maybe it's a good idea after all?

I imagine

it will let you know if your tappets or cam are comming apart before it is catastrofic. Normal ferrous fuzz wear is not likely to make the light come on.
Any warning in flight is better than nothing. I recommend landing asap with an indication.

AWM
A&P IA

chip detector

Keep in mind, the chips that hang in the contacts of the CD will be larger than the mesh of the oil pickup tube screen. The device is used to detect big chunks of broken parts, and designed to give some advanced warning of catastrophic failure. IE; gear teeth, piston skirt chunks, etc.
Microscopic levels of contamination should not be an issue. It takes a chemist to detect those.....
Ask any military helicopter pilot what he would do if the transmission CD alarm were to illuminate in flight!!
Regards,
Chris

Our PT-6 turbines...

....all have chip detectors and we just discussed this subject in Reno at our National Ag av convention.

The general consensus is that you keep flying and land as soon as is practical. You then check the oil screen and chip detector and see what the metal is made of with either a magnet, to determine ferrous content, or a jewelers' loupe (10 X). An oil analysis may well be prudent but the airplane is AOG, (aircraft-on-ground) not usable during this time.

Either way, that knot in your gut gets kinda tight

Best,

Not needed

I don't believe you need to put a chip detector on your engine. If there was a real concern, then Lycoming, Continental and the many after market manufacturers and rebuilders would install them on all engines

As noted, the filter inspection and oil analysis will provide you with trends of wear and potential problems. If you get enough metal to set off a chip detector on a piston engine, it probably won't matter. An example, without warning, a friend had a rod snap with catastrophic failure. Safe landing at an airport.

With turbine engines, operating at extreme RPM's and temperatures, chip detectors are vital. They can and do provide immediate trends because of how rapid something can come apart and to let you know of abnormal wear and that something is failing. On the helicopter I fly, there are 4 chip detectors, 3 engine/transmission and 1 tail rotor. On the tail rotor there is no filter system so the chip detector is critical.

Thanks for the replies. I will report back with my impressions at my next oil change in about 4 months. I have just installed the detector and its quite a neat little device. For those that don't know how it installed, the outer part is permanently screwed into the sump drain hole and the magnetic probe is then inserted and locked into place with about a 1/4 turn. Removal of the probe involves a simple push up then a 1/4 turn and the remaining outer part then automatically seals itself to stop oil leaking from the sump. The sump can be drained with no mess by inserting the included sump drain fitting in place of the magnetic probe.

Fin
9A

insurance

I used to have one of these in my old Cherokee. Knowing that any short-term destructive process (shorter than oil-change interval) would show up as a light on the dash, was a peace-of-mind thing for me.