Air filter falling apart

[015point9]

Couple days ago i removed the "air inlet tube", the big hose from air filter box to the turbo.  The hose has particles I've never seen before.  Wix filter only has about 2800 miles on it.  Many miles from the maintenance schedule "light duty "B" of "inspect/replace every 15,000 miles".  Folding air filter in half, I can see semi loose strands  bewteen the pleats waiting to be sucked in.  About same size of 3 days of no shaving.  

Never noticed it before...

Is this normal?  

 

 

[JAG1]

Wow, thank you for sharing this with everyone. I also use the factory box type filters, but have buying a different brand from a big rig supply house since a lot of the truckers  that come in drive ram trucks also. If I can remember right I once saw a Made in some third world country on a Wix fuel filter so I quit buying them at that point.

 

I will report back after having a look at mine.

[dripley]

I think I would going back to where I bought it and asking what that filter put in my engine. Take the tube too. Though the stuff in tube looks fine dust of some sort. 

[015point9]

25 minutes ago, JAG1 said:

 If I can remember right I once saw a Made in some third world country on a Wix fuel filter so I quit buying them at that point.

 

I will report back after having a look at mine.

 

In 3rd pic, Hard to see in real small letters "made in USA"  

 

Looking forward to your report back as I think we have about same weather?  Your west of cascades? Lots of humidity and rain?

17 minutes ago, dripley said:

I think I would going back to where I bought it and asking what that filter put in my engine. Take the tube too. Though the stuff in tube looks fine dust of some sort. 

Wish I could take it back.  Bought in Yuma, AZ 3 years ago.

 

Edited June 8, 2019 by 015point9
Correction

[98whitelightnin]

I use the Napa gold 6272 but Its never let any dust though, and I check every couple thousand miles. It probably has 8k miles on it.

[015point9]

4 minutes ago, 98whitelightnin said:

I use the Napa gold 6272 but Its never let any dust though, and I check every couple thousand miles. It probably has 8k miles on it.

I'm not sure if filter is letting stuff through or element paper is falling apart and getting suck in.  Wish I could think of a way to determine if dust or paper element.  I scraped some off trying to put a match to it, to see if dust or paper product.  Not enough to catch fire.  But the color closely matches filter paper color.  Dust would be more brownish I would think.  

[98whitelightnin]

Either way, I wouldnt drive it any more until that filter was replaced.

[015point9]

24 minutes ago, 98whitelightnin said:

Either way, I wouldnt drive it any more until that filter was replaced.

 

 For sure going to change filter.  But not sure to what yet.  

 

 

 

Anybody care to chime in as to how I could test air box to see if it was leaking?

 

I cant visually see any dirt track or dirt stream

[JAG1]

It looks like blue dust from disintegrating plastic binder on the filter. Like an inferior type of plastic breaking down. Anyway I cannot understand why your dust looks blue like plastic substance. Could be the way the light plays on the dust.

 

My filters are made by Donaldson and the thing I noticed right away is that my filter media looks much tighter where yours looks like it it has lost some integrity and see fibers hanging off yours for some reason. I can see a grain or texture to yours where my Donaldson is more consistent or uniform. I know too that I'm paying about 2/3rds the price the auto parts store hammer you for and buy a years supply of all filters there.

....

 Air Flow Systems in Tukwila, about 11 miles from Seattle 206 431-0670. They are wholesale so you have to own a Business or just walk in and be polite , buy in quantity if you can. They take a check, Cash is best. They are good good people in there. An 85 dollar filter for my 1st gen was half that at Air Flow.

Edited June 9, 2019 by JAG1

[beren]

Know anyone with a microscope? Maybe a kid? You can look at it and possibly tell what it is.

[015point9]

3 hours ago, JAG1 said:

An 85 dollar filter for my 1st gen was half that at Air Flow.

 

That's  my problem in life,  not spending enough money

what I have is off the shelf from auto part store...may $15.00

 

is that a custom fancy thing or  ???

31 minutes ago, beren said:

Know anyone with a microscope? Maybe a kid? You can look at it and possibly tell what it is.

All gone now, soap and water, cleaned up pretty good.

[IBMobile]

Now is the time for a BHAF.

 

[015point9]

3 minutes ago, IBMobile said:

Now is the time for a BHAF.

 

 

Been thing about same thing. 

1  I'll check out what jag1 said  

 

2. Questions about bhaf... do I need a heat shield for stock power or just nice to have?

The very few I've seen do not look good to me.  Sort of like a guy around town that put an exhaust tip on,  that is about 10 inches in diameter.  Looks goofy to me.  But maybe I'll have to go with bhaf.  

 

[dripley]

I have been running the bhaf for several years with no shield. There seems to be no ill affect for me.

[hdpwipmonkey]

No heat shield on mine either.  No issues with it.

[015point9]

 

After reading above write up. Baldwin has wire on inside where others might not.  

If you guys using without internal wire...

Ever hear of one collapsing?

[JAG1]

If you use the factory box you need to make sure the rubber seal is fitting tight to both the lid and lower portion. I took a block plane and shaved my box lip so it squeezed down tighter, but you need to be careful which lip you shave because one acts like a stop when tightening. So you shave the stop shorter and gets it tighter, the other is just a lip so look carefully. You can also make the hinge tabs hold tighter by adding heavy gauge sheet metal folded over and onto each tab.

Edited June 9, 2019 by JAG1

[Mopar1973Man]

The stock air filter box is rather got issues after many years that the lid can't press down enough to seal the gasket of the panel filter. 

 

As for the fibers strands I'm not worried to bad on that dirty side. It the clean side when you find things like that now I worry. So if you flip it over and look past the steel mesh that side is the one to really look at close. This is what has or will escape the filter. 

 

BHAF is the end game that will fix this problem and keep the dirt out. Yes it will flow enough air for most general daily driver usage.

[015point9]

2 hours ago, Mopar1973Man said:

The stock air filter box is rather got issues after many years that the lid can't press down enough to seal the gasket of the panel filter. 

 

As for the fibers strands I'm not worried to bad on that dirty side. It the clean side when you find things like that now I worry. So if you flip it over and look past the steel mesh that side is the one to really look at close. This is what has or will escape the filter. 

 

BHAF is the end game that will fix this problem and keep the dirt out. Yes it will flow enough air for most general daily driver usage.

Thanks...yes up steel mesh side toward turbo is alot cleaner.  

[98whitelightnin]

Mine has fibers on the dirty side too but not on the clean side. My air box is spotless