Oil Water Separators with Active Oil Removal®
For more than 60 years, Oil Skimmers, Inc. has specialized in designing and manufacturing equipment that removes oil from water. Our oil skimmers and oil removal systems can be found in over 38,000 applications, in all industries around the world.
We’ve put our decades of application knowledge into the design and development of a line of oil water separators that address the specific inefficiencies found in traditional separators and built them to excel where other separators can fall short. In any application, small or large, The Oil Removal Solution Experts® at Oil Skimmers, Inc. can provide the right solution to efficiently and effectively separate and remove oil from water.
Improve Your Wastewater Treatment Process With Our Innovative Oil Water Separator Design
In today’s environmentally conscious world, responsible businesses are looking for the best solutions to separate oil from water in their everyday processes. For oily water application large and small, we’ve got all your oil removal needs covered. For example, our CoolSkim™ Coolant Skimmer removes tramp oil from coolant in metal machining applications and the SAS® Tank Oil Water Separator with Active Oil Removal™ separates and actively removes oil from industrial process water and wastewater.
Small Oil Water Separators Designed for Low-Flow Industrial Applications
CoolSkim® compact oil water separator tanks provide a smaller, space-saving solution engineered to separate oil from water in industrial coolant systems, wash water, compressor condensate, and low-flow process streams.
The CoolSkim from Oil Skimmers, Inc. provides controlled separation, managed oil removal, and durable stainless-steel construction — all within a compact footprint.
When properly applied, a CoolSkim operates as a complete, standalone oil removal solution.
1. When Is a Compact Tank Required for Oil Water Separation?
In many applications, a tube-type oil skimmer is the simplest and most effective solution — particularly when oil is freely floating and adequate surface area is available.
A compact oil water separator becomes appropriate when :
- Oil is mechanically emulsified and not readily floating
- Internal turbulence prevents natural separation
- Flow velocity limits retention time
- Sump geometry restricts tube travel
- Surface area is limited or obstructed
- Oil must be transferred to a controlled separation chamber
2. How the CoolSkim® Oil Water Separator Works
Controlled Transfer
Oily water enters via pump or gravity feed. Optional 3-Ball Floating Weir intake allows preferential surface draw when appropriate.
Engineered Separation Chamber
Inside the stainless-steel tank, flow is directed through engineered geometry and coalescing media appropriately sized and selected for your application conditions.
The media promotes droplet coalescence, allowing oil droplets to combine and rise under controlled flow conditions.
Managed Oil Removal
Separated oil is removed using Spin Down Weir® (CS 500–2000) or optional tube-type skimmer integration on CS 4000 incorporating Active Oil Removal®.
Active Oil Removal®
continuously removes oil from the surface of the separation chamber, helping prevent oil buildup and supporting consistent performance.
3. The CoolSkim® Small Oil Water Separator Tank Product Line
These smaller industrial skimmers come in a wide variety of compact sizes specifically designed to fit tight sump spaces, CNC tanks, and hard-to-reach equipment. Contact us today and our experts will help you decide what’s the best fit for your application:
- CS 500 – ½ cubic foot coalescing media
- CS 1000 – 1 cubic foot coalescing media
- CS 2000 – 3 cubic feet coalescing media
- CS 4000 – 4 cubic feet coalescing media with optional tube-type skimmer integration, featuring our patented Active Oil Removal®.
Model selection is based on oil behavior, temperature, viscosity, specific gravity, degree of mechanical emulsification, and available footprint. Proper sizing is determined through application review rather than simplified flow charts.
4. Small Oil Water Separator Engineered for Durability and Reduced Maintenance
- Stainless-steel construction
- Controlled oil removal
- Accessible clean-out design
- Configurable intake and return options
- Designed to minimize unnecessary maintenance
If direct skimming can solve the problem, we recommend it. If separation is required, we design the system to operate reliably and predictably.
5. Small Oil Water Separator Available Options
- Pump packages
- 3-Ball Floating Weir intake
- Fixed support stands
- Portable (caster-mounted) stands
- Return pump packages
- Oil collection reservoirs
- Electrical control integration
- Custom mounting configurations
- Heating Packages
6. Small Oil Water Separator Typical Applications
- CNC machining centers
- Oil separator for coolant sumps
- Compressor Condensate
- Parts washers
- Maintenance wash tanks
- Small process wash systems
- Pretreatment cells
- Food processing wash water (low-flow)
- Compact stormwater collection points
7. Small Oil Water Separator Engineering Review Recommended
Oil separation performance is influenced by temperature, viscosity, specific gravity, droplet size, and flow dynamics.
For that reason, CoolSkim oil water separators are sized through application review rather than generic performance tables.
Frequently Asked Questions About Oil Water Separators
Oil water separators can achieve efficient separation of oil and water in many industrial applications. The right oil water separator can remedy many issues associated with oily wastewater may even help unlock new revenue streams. But what exactly does an oil water separator do?
Why Separate Oil and Water?
Many industrial processes generate wastewater that is a mixture of oil and water, and potentially many other impurities, chemicals, and solids. Oil is a contaminant that can wreak havoc on water treatment and filtration equipment – and if discharged with wastewater, can be an environmental concern. Facilities with oily wastewater must remove the oil before re-using or discharging the water. Local water authorities may perform inspections and charge fines when companies exceed the permitted wastewater contaminant levels. When oil is recovered efficiently, there is opportunity to generate revenue. Reclaimed oil can be a valuable resource for recyclers and can be sold for re-use in markets like biofuel. The right oil water separator can help you save — and make money!
What is an Oil Water Separator and How Does It Work?
An oil water separator, in its most basic form, is a tank that provides the space and time needed for the oil and water separation process to occur. Oil is less dense than water and the two liquids are immiscible. This difference in specific gravity causes oil to rise to the surface of the water, forming two distinct layers. Separators are made in many different sizes and include various feature-sets to accommodate certain flow rates – and designed to increase overall efficiency, and facilitate and expedite separation. In a coalescing oil water separator, for example, a series of media packs force oil droplets to collide and create larger droplets. The larger the droplets become, the more buoyant they become and rise more quickly. Once the oil is floating on the surface, it can be skimmed off for proper disposal or reuse.
What Industries Use Oil Water Separators?
Many different types of industries rely on oily water separators to remove fat, oil and grease in their everyday operations. Fot those in the food processing industry, there is a market for waste vegetable oil and animal fats, and when efficiently separated from wastewater, oil can be sold to recyclers for a profit. Metal machine shops, tank truck washes, steel mills, packaging plants, injection molding plants, and many more facilities that generate oily wastewater commonly install oil water separators to separate waste oil from water.
Read more : SAS® Tank Oil Water Separator
