A bit water in oil DP-E drive

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aerobat

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Hallo friends !

Last year i had water in the oil at my stb drive and since i,ve spent the season in a "foreign" port without many tools i hired a mechanic who diagnosed and changed the shift gear seal before 2025 season.

I spent the season without issues and now shortly before launching i wanted to change oil in both drives drives to find out the stb drive a touch milky again .

The shift assembly with the seal looks bone dry , the shaft looks bone dry , its looks like just a bit of water and the mechanic says it will be last traces of water from the 2025 year water ingress , i should change oil and go boating . The oil level is correct , not low or high .

Is he telling me BS or does it sound realistic it can be bits of water from last year when the repair was done ?
 
That sounds like he could be telling the truth. I would change the gear oil, use the boat and have a look at it again in a few months when you can gain access. If it is a very small amount of water the gear oil will still be doing its job. If it gets more milky you might still have water getting in. Fishing line around the shaft can be an issue and the fine stuff is very difficult to see

Just my 10 cents worth.
 
I believe he is being honest. If you had water ingress and the oil was changed once, there is a strong possibility that a little bit of water/contaminated oil remained inside. Change the oil again and you should be good. A lot of people take for granted the lower unit oil change believing that the oil does not get hot or did not get as many hours on the previous season. Mistake. Check it every season, change it at least every two. Personally, when I had outdrives I changed all fluids yearly, not only to ensure longevity but to catch minor issues early before they could become real ones. Now I have outboards and they get the same treatment yearly. It is not worth risking thousands worth of machinery for the sake of saving a few bucks.
 
Would humbly suggest that the chances of sufficent water being left in the gear box to visibly contaminate the replacement oil is vanishingly small.
Surely any half decent mechanic would ensure all contaminated oil was removed from the chamber, be it by flushing or extended time period to ensure all old oil drained.
Would love to hear from either Spannerman or Volvo Paul regards this phenomenon. ?
 
Seals are better at keeping oil in vs keeping water out.
No visible leaks doesn't tell you much.
A pressure test would tell you more.
 
SC35 said:
Seals are better at keeping oil in vs keeping water out.
No visible leaks doesn't tell you much.
A pressure test would tell you more.
Click to expand...

Thats the plan ! I have a vaacum pump which is very nice and plan to vaacum test the drive . If it passes the test the mechanic was right , if not i have a problem .

I paid last year +500 eur for a gear shift replacement to find this out now ...

Does anbody know zhe thread size of the dipstick ? Its a pita my boat is three hours away and i cannot just go and look quickly
 
Ok ... i was at the boat and performed a pressure as well vaacum test . The drive holds both , even when spinning the prop .

It seems to be indeed water from the last year ingress amd the mechanic was right . Filled up new oil and do not care anymore
 
Change the oil including new Nitrile O rings on the drain and dipstick and go boating.
 
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