Frequently Asked Questions

Within the tight clearances of lubricated mechanical components, normal wear generates tiny steel particles that are carried away in your oil. These particles are so small they pass right through any standard oil filter. When the oil circulates back into the system these same particles are carried into every lubricated space. This particle-laden oil will continue to lubricate but it will also cause an exponential increase in wear while it circulates. The longer you use the oil, the greater the wear. FilterMag extracts normal, wear-causing steel particles from your oil with its powerful, focused, magnetic field technology.

These particles are trapped on the inside wall of the filter or canister and are thrown or wiped away when you change the filter. Simply slide the FilterMag off the old filter; snap it onto a new one and it goes right back to work protecting your engine.

Maximum Protection is a pair of FilterMags. Two FilterMags will expose more of your engine oil flowing through the filter to FilterMag’s powerful focused magnetic field. This provides twice the opportunity for the FilterMags to capture wear-causing particles in your oil.

A single FilterMag gives your engine Powerful Protection to remove wear-causing particles at a lower cost.

1. Measure the diameter of your filter, or
2. Search for your filter’s diameter at the filter manufacturer’s website.

FilterMag SS models come in three sizes ranges (Small, Medium, and Large).
Chrome (MC) or Black (MB) models are available only in Medium.

The TM-360 (Maximum Protection) has double the magnetic surface area as the TM-180 (Powerful Protection). Both are designed for installing externally on the outside of automatic transmission fluid pans.

1. Remove steel cover and clean the inside. Install the GP101 low on the inside of a gearbox or differential housing cover on a flat area. Check for gear interference.

2. Hold the GP101 by its edges during installation. The FilterMag will SNAP into place as the magnetic field engages.

3. Reinstall cover per manufacturer’s instructions.

The vast majority of normal engine wear comes from particles of 2-20 microns in size. Steel particles do the most damage when they get trapped between two moving parts. Most of the clearances in a modern engine are between 2 and 20 microns. Most oil filters are only rated to capture particles down to about 20 microns. (A very sharp eye can at best see 40 micron particles.)

If your FilterMag doesn’t fit, or there are other issues with your order, contact us. We’ll make it right.

No. FilterMag’s external snap-on design is completely non-invasive. It has no effect on the flow of oil to lubricated parts.

That’s great! FilterMag can only help to keep that streak continue.

While FilterMag is a simple-to-use solution, it is derived from complex science and advanced engineering. Placing magnets on the outside (or inside) of your filter won’t have nearly the same effect. Every FilterMag is a three component system of which magnets are a key component. The size, shape and surfaces of our magnets are computer designed to focus a magnetic field at the proper depth inside your filter. Our patented FluxCon shielding further focuses the magnetic flux into the filter while shielding the engine compartment from ANY magnetism to protect your vehicle electronics. To see more about the anatomy of a FilterMag, click HERE.

No. We use expensive, temperature compensated magnets rated to 300ºF – well within any normal operating temperature of any engine or drivetrain component. Most ordinary magnets however do start losing magnetism around 178ºF.

FilterMags stay in place by their own magnetic strength. Since 1999 we have not had one reported incident of a properly installed FilterMag falling off an oil filter.

For example, we have significant experience with off road racing. Specifically, racing such as the Baja 1000 race. Many of these racers run FilterMags as they fly through the air and come crashing down from the jumps for more than 1,000 KM. We have never had a report of a lost FilterMag. Shown below is one of the top off road racers in North America, John Holmes, who runs FilterMags for every race.

If you believe your conditions might be more extreme, there is an additional method that can be used to further secure them. We use this method on aircraft. A vibration resistant stainless steel band clamp can be placed around the FilterMags. Safety wire is used to ensure the filter cannot come loose. The band clamp may also be safety wired for triple protection.

Once again, we have never seen an oil filter come loose while FilterMags were installed. We have never had a report of oil loss caused by FilterMag. Because of this, we have not done any calculations or simulations. Obviously, the moment arm is short and the masses involved are small. When a pair of FilterMags is installed, the additional mass is fairly evenly distributed, so it seems unlikely that high enough rotational forces could be created to loosen the filter.

Next to vibration, the force created by accelerating the mass of the oil contained in the filter is probably the greatest influence on the compression sealing gasket. Of course, adding a small additional mass to the filter will have some effect, but once again, it seems unlikely to be enough to cause any problems. If this is a serious concern in an extreme environment, an oil filter can be safety wired after installation to prevent it from loosening under any circumstances.

The best premium filter is limited to filtering particles larger than 20-25 microns in size. For an oil filter element to capture smaller particles would require a huge increase in overall size to accommodate the restriction to oil flow that would otherwise occur. Normal wear in your engine and drivetrain is driven by particles that are smaller than 20 microns. Eliminate those particles; wear drops dramatically and reliability goes up. FilterMag significantly limits NORMAL wear and tear on your engine and any other protected lubrication systems.

The percentage of particles that are ferrous varies widely by type of equipment, operating conditions, maintenance state and age, but generally speaking the majority of particles found in engine oil are steel. When FilterMags are installed and used oil analysis is performed by independent laboratories, particle counts routinely drop by 50-82%. Studies show that this equates to a 30-60% increase in lubricated component life.

Contemporary data supporting longer lubricated component life by better filtration starts with the landmark study by Sayles and Macpherson in 1982. Their research focused on rolling element bearings, but is applicable to other lubricated components. They showed that wear is directly related to the efficiency of oil filtration. Their idea was that wear is affected by the size of hard particles in the oil. Particles too large to fit between lubricated surfaces would have little effect on wear because they cannot get between two lubricated surfaces. Particles smaller than the minimum thickness of the oil film will also have little effect on wear because they do not come into contact with both surfaces. In their study the particles causing the most wear were in the 3-20 micron size. Their findings showed that removing particles in the oil, down to 3 microns, increased lubricated component life by 600% in rolling element bearings. The now famous “Macpherson Curve” shows this in an excellent graphic format.

Over the following decades many studies demonstrated similar results in multiple lubrication environments. Machinery Lubrication magazine published the results of a meta analysis conducted by Jim Fitch on more than 100 of those studies. The results are now well known in tribology circles as the “Noria Life Extension Tables.” In a nutshell, running cleaner oil does extend the life of equipment. There are four different categories of equipment in these tables. Each category of equipment shows different life extensions depending on improvement in oil cleanliness. Oil cleanliness is defined by ISO 4406 particle counts specifically looking at particles in the 6+ and 14+ micron categories. Generally speaking, life extensions range from a modest 10% for minimally cleaner oil in gearboxes to more than a 60% improvement for a modest cleanup of oil in diesel engines and hydraulics. Experts may sometimes dispute the exact numbers in these charts, but the tribology community fully accepts the concept that removing small hard particles from lubricating oil will extend lubricated component life.

Historically, most engines have run filters in the 25-40 micron range. The rationale is that filtration is needed to remove large particles that could cause significant problems. The limitation is that filtration must allow sufficient oil flow to keep the engine lubricated even after the filter is partially plugged by capturing a large quantity of particles. The smaller the pore size of a filter, the larger the surface area required to provide the necessary oil flow. In recent years, filter element technology has allowed for high efficiency engine oil filters that can filter down to about 15 microns. Currently, to provide full flow filtration below that level would require an enormous filter surface area that is simply not practical for physical and economic reasons. Engines manufacturers accept these filtration limitations and simply consider the wear caused by small particles as “Normal Wear.”

To further examine “Normal Wear,” consider how the Dynamic Clearances of lubricated components in an engine change as they move. When the clearance is open to its maximum, oil flows between the components. The particles that are small enough to be carried into the oil film space between components cause the most wear. When the clearance decreases, the particles are trapped between the moving parts. This process will also create more small steel particles, thus propagating the wear cycle.

FilterMag removes the most common small particles that oil filters cannot: those made of steel. Removing these small steel particles breaks the wear cycle and extends the life of lubricated components.

Yes, absolutely! Please CLICK HERE for more information.

Once again it is all about efficiency. A magnetic drain plug uses a small magnet producing a tiny, weak, localized, magnetic field. It is designed to be used as a visual indicator to determine if there is a mechanical problem with lubricated parts. If that problem is producing particles large enough to be seen with the human eye (typically 40-80 microns) it gives warning of a problem when examined during an oil change. A standard drain plug is not generally considered to be any type of filtration.

The OEM magnet within the transmission pan is very much like the magnet on the drain plug: small and weak. FilterMag’s transmission line (TM180, TM360, GP101) can provide the magnetic strength that no internal stock magnet can offer.

No. The bypass spring is located in the non-threaded (round) end of the filter away from any magnetic field. FilterMag’s patented design directs magnetic energy only into the oil flowing along the sides of the filter.

We warrant FilterMag consumer products to be free from manufacturing defects for a period of one year from the date of purchase. If you need to return a FilterMag for any reason please contact us in advance for a Return Authorization number. We want you to be happy with your purchase. If you have any problems just let us know so we can help. To see our full warranty please click HERE.