Recommend an oil change pan

Honestly, I normally don't change my own oil, but...

Things have converged and I currently have 4 vehicles due for oil changes. The weather is pleasant. I have the time and oil change prices have increased. 

F250

Grand Caravan 

Prius

Miata

What I don't have is a fancy drain pan. Does anyone have a nice drain pan they recommend? 

These will be changes done in the driveway with a floor jack and jack stands. 

What I have is generally this which I then carefully funnel back into jugs. 

That's the same one I use 

If I'm doing it on the ground, I have one like this:

For returning the oil to the store, I have some old 5 gallon cooking oil jugs that work well.

I'd also like to see if anyone has a better solution to what I'm using. This one is from Walmart, but the same pan seems to be sold everywhere...

Hypertough oil drain pan

I love the shape and design. Hate that they made it so cheaply out of the bare minimum materials. The plastic is so thin and soft it deforms under it's own weight. No real effort was made in sealing the openings. Which is a shame, because the shape and size is great for storage, and two stack nicely on my oil change cart. I'd gladly pay much more for a similar one that is more robust and seals. 

I like the flat jug types. I have this 12.5 QT. The whole pan doesn't have to be wiped down with the giant funnel.

It's flat enough to slide under my FB RX-7 and LS400 without using jack stands. My drain plugs were replaced with valves so I just run a hose from them to the pan.

wae said:

If I'm doing it on the ground, I have one like this:

For returning the oil to the store, I have some old 5 gallon cooking oil jugs that work well.

This one for all use.  Draining, carrying to the store, all of em.

Smaller one for smaller jobs, bigger one for bigger jobs, same brand and type.  I absolutely love them.

My concern on these square units is that the drain area looks so shallow.  Am I correct in thinking these style have a splash problem?  Also then, I have to wipe that entire large surface for transport in the car.  I imagine that y'all put the jug in a kitchen plastic garbage bag before transport to disposal?  

I have one like this:

I dump it into the drain that I use under the lift and then when that's full I use an electric pump to transfer the oil to a 5 gallon jug.  Or sometimes I take the neck off the drain and just take the whole thing over.

When I need to transfer the on-the-ground pan, I put it in a box or a plastic bin.  The seals, as mentioned, aren't very good.  As long as you don't forget to open the vent, it'll move the oil pretty fast.  I haven't had much of a splashing problt.  Once I'm finished, I'll wipe it down with a was of paper towels and then just give it a quick hit with brake cleaner for storage.

In reply to John Welsh :

I haven't noticed a huge splash problem I don't think.  Been a while since I did an oil change though. 

Don't have to wipe the surface though cause the large lid next to the handle seals it enough I've never had a spill.

I had splash problems with my diesel f250's with the jug type.  I have 2 v8's these days and honestly I am starting to get annoyed at prices and trusting folks.  I would like a better system as well. 

Noddaz said:

I have one like this:

Same. Works great for me.

I had splash problems changing the oil in my trucks with the jug type, so now I use one of these:

and then transfer it into one of these to transport the oil

For the cars, the jug alone is fine though. 

I use one like this (but not this exact one):

Its deep so no splash issues.  It can handle a large oil change easily.  Also large enough in diameter to handle draining the pan and taking off the filter at the same time (on the cars I have had anyway).

I funnel it back into the 5qt containers for recycling.  I actually store it vertically against the wall with the spout in a filler and a 5 gal container below so its draining the whole time I am not using it.    I wait until I have about 5 or 10 containers to recycle and do them all at once.  I just set them in a cardboard box before putting in the back of my car.  They are pretty clean.

Had to buy a drip pan before an event and I've been using it for oil changes ever since.  Keeps the garage floor much cleaner since I can't seem to get the oil out of the engine without somehow dumping some outside the oil change pan.  24" x 36"

John Welsh said:

My concern on these square units is that the drain area looks so shallow.  Am I correct in thinking these style have a splash problem?  Also then, I have to wipe that entire large surface for transport in the car.  I imagine that y'all put the jug in a kitchen plastic garbage bag before transport to disposal?  

 

I have the same one pictured above. It'll hold 4 qts before running over because you forgot to open the vent. Splashing as long as you don't let the oil hit the edge of the in pan rails, I rarely see any. After I'm done, I pour into a rural king 5 gal u jug and when full I return to store to recycle. O'Reilly's will even take your filters too.

Noddaz said:

I have one like this:

Mine is similar. I have also accumulated three or four of the cheap pans that look like a dishpan, I hang this pan on the wall with the others nesting inside. 

obsolete said:

Noddaz said:

I have one like this:

Same. Works great for me.

This is what I use. Old oil gets dumped back in the jugs it came with or an old 5-gal gas can. 

I have this one.  (The funnel snaps out and then threads in.)

Do NOT get a harbor freight one of my only recommendation. I have used mine twice and it doesn't bleed air at all, so each time I've had to mop up quarts of oil while whatever is in drain area splashes with each burp. First time I chalked it up to user error, but at this point I can definitely blame the pan.

I like this look from Amazon but $32 seems steep.  It would also be better if it had a better pouring spot or the nozzle sort of thing like others above.  

For many years I used that cheap pan shown first.  It results in oil spilled if wind is bad.    Then a neighbor gifted me one like Noddaz has and I'll never go back.  The cheap one is now just a place to store funnels and grease gun.  

Noddaz said:

I have one like this:

I have two of these except they are open on top. A black one for oil and a green one for coolant. 
 

The close top type pans never seem to flow fast enough and they spill over the side and make a mess. They probibly work for cars that take 4quarts or less.  One of my cars takes 10 quarts that flows out fast to a bigger open pan is better. 
 

This is what I have

Holds 5 gal.  Just looked it up and they are $12 at Autozone.  

In reply to Noddaz :

I have this one too.  No overflow as long as I remeber to open the vent before pulling the drain plug. 

The fill hole cap/screw plug in the center broke early on, leaving just enough to screw it on. Would not trust it now if the oil level was higher than it when pouring it out. 

I use a clear plastic under the bed storage container.  I marked it a 1qt intervals so I can see how much comes out, and it helps me identify if there is anything bad in the oil more easily than a black pan.  I also leave a fairly strong magnet in there to help look for issues.