Wrenchin’ Wednesday: No-drip funnel storage

Spill containment is one of the trickiest things with working on project cars, but while the big messes can be unexpected, the little ones can be prepared for. Probably one of the more common, “What do I do with this?” moments comes from handling funnels, as there’s always bound to be some left-over fluids if working quickly. Usually, people grab towels and plug the bottom, hang them from the spouts of empty jugs, any number of impromptu solutions, but today’s Wrenchin’ Wednesday comes from the quick-lube world.

A couple of these 45-degree plumbing Y-branch fittings (often referred to as a “wye”) can be stacked to create a draining tree. These 2-inch-diameter wyes were reduced down to a 1-inch fitting that meets an old oil jug. If there was one improvement I’d make for a final version, it would be to adapt down to a common rubber hose size, so that the hose can directly drain fluids into the jug while still being flexible enough to easily remove the jug for draining. You should be able to service tons of vehicles before the jug ever gets close to full and the accumulated clean oil can be used for light lubrication duties around the shop even if you wind up mixing viscosities, but if it gets contaminated with shop grime it can simply be recycled with the used oil at the next oil change.