Engine Oil Change

[Momac]

It costs bugger all and I do the jobs in a relaxing way over the course of a day.

That's the advantage of doing it yourself . No rush , not everything has to be done at the same time and save a pile of money paying someone to watch oil being pumped out.

 

[John100156]

No argument from me regarding the above, just need to insert 'good' before oil....

Ironically, I await delivery of 50L Exol Marine 123 to take out to the boat (hopefully) in a few weeks - will I change the oil and filters on both engines, well its on the list but you know what its like, you have a list of 17 items and after working on the boat for a week or two you end up with 20....

I am now starting to worry about the moisture in the air above the oil level in the oil drum (just kidding...).

How about a compromise, if low hours this season, leave the oil in the engine until the Spring, just run it up to temp. If high hours, change at the end of this season!

Now just to be contentious: changing all belts every year - naaaah, unless very high hours, its just a waste of money, if you wish to do it, again why not!

 

[alt]

Now just to be contentious: changing all belts every year - naaaah, unless very high hours, its just a waste of money, if you wish to do it, again why not!

Don't doubt that at all, maybe a fool and his money.....

BTW, I now only use genuine Volvo belts for the circulation / supercharger (power steering / alternator, Gates). I got the Gates belts for the supercharger / circulation and they started to squeak after just a few hours. Maybe I had bad luck, but it was damn annoying. Volvo, no such issues.

 

[Scubadoo]

My engine gets serviced in spring and has been for many years, never experienced any problems. This year it was late, did it in July so it won't be until June/July next year for a service/oil change. Only replace belts if looking worn, seems daft to change them every year just because Volvo say so in the schedule. Always keep a spare set onboard anyway.

 

[John100156]

No never foolish, a waste perhaps, but not foolish!

Now using OEM parts is also contentious, many filters/belts are just re-badged and made by the same people, but I always buy OEM parts, I did with my Volvo's and do so with my Cat's..... another debate to be had!

 

[Momac]

Now using OEM parts is also contentious, many filters/belts are just re-badged and made by the same people, but I always buy OEM parts

But not oil?
I have used various alternative engine oils and have in mind the Exol brand mentioned , among others for the next oil change - at about half the Volvo Penta branded cost.

I have been testing non manufactures branded oil of the correct grade and vds3 in my case and also alternative filters for half a dozen years (changed annually after average 100hrs per year ) so its early days , but no issues so far.

.

 

[Paulg25]

Test it...

... sample is screened for water using the crackle test. This test involves putting a drop of oil onto a steel surface which is maintained between the boiling points of water and oil(around 160 degC). If the oil drop contains water, it spits and crackles, hence its name. The crackle test can detect water contamination of less than 0.1%. If a sample fails the crackle test, the actual water content is measured.

 

[John100156]

Crackle test is interesting thanks:

OK So lets try to assess the moisture in air (which of course should remain suspended and would only condense on surfaces below dew-point) in an engine, here goes:

Estimated volume of air in an engine sump and block shall we say: 0.25m3 or 250L
Ambient conditions lets say: 21C 50RH
Moisture content at ambient say: 7.29 g/kg dry air
Specific volume of air at ambient say: 0.84 m3/kg (so reciprocal would give density at 1.19 kg/m3)
So we have 0.25m3 x 0.84 m3/kg of air in the engine = 0.21kg
Total moisture content in the air then = 0.21 x 7.29 = 1.53 g

Now take the oil capacity of an engine at say 25L, shall we say density ~888kg/m3 that's 888kg/1000L, or 0.888kg/L so 0.888kg x 25L=22.2kg or 22200g

So if 100% of the moisture could possibly condense out and enter the oil, the total amount of moisture to oil would be 1.53g of water to 22200g of oil = 0.00689 of 1%, massively below the crackle test at 0.1 of 1% I assume used to determine if any water from the cooling system may have entered the oil....

Rushed through the logic/math, so happy to be checked/corrected.

 

[John100156]

But not oil?
I have used various alternative engine oils and have in mind the Exol brand mentioned , among others for the next oil change - at about half the Volvo Penta branded cost.

I have been testing non manufactures branded oil of the correct grade and vds3 in my case and also alternative filters for half a dozen years (changed annually after average 100hrs per year ) so its early days , but no issues so far.

No not oil - always researched the type of oil to use - in my previous TAMD63's I used Shell Rimula R3X (now R4X I think) which really was excellent.

I now use Exol Marine 123 in my Cat's, once again following some research and discussions with other 'Forumites' I have more confidence selecting different oils than I do selecting non-OEM filters for some inexplicable reason but very happy indeed to know who makes them for Cat and if the same quality filters can be obtained cheaper. No doubt they just re-badge for the Cat engines in trucks and the like, but unless I can be sure I would stick to OEM.

That's my thinking anyway, always open to suggestions.....

 

[penberth3]

Crackle test is interesting thanks:

OK So lets try to assess the moisture in air (which of course should remain suspended and would only condense on surfaces below dew-point) in an engine, here goes:...…..

Before anyone spends the weekend doing maths - have you ever seen rust on a dip stick? I mean the bit that lives inside the engine.

 

[John100156]

Don't bother with the maths, the principle stands.

Never seen rust on my dip-sticks, have you checked the seal at the top? Which of course is oxidisation, not good to have rust particles entering the oil......!

 

[Momac]

It's useful to see what brands of engine oil people have used and found no issues .

I did use shell Rimula RT4X in the past .
Recent years used Smith and Allen and considering Exol and Mannoll brands.

 

[John100156]

Whoops - Just checked my own calcs and a very slight correction needed, I should have multiplied volume (m3) by density (kg/m3) and not specific volume, to get kg of air in the engine....so:

We have 0.25 m3 x 1.19 kg/m3 of air in the engine = 0.298kg
Total moisture content then is not 1.53g , but 0.298 x 7.29 = 2.17g an extra half a gram makes no significant difference of course.....

 

[John100156]

.....I did use shell Rimula RT4X in the past....

Recent years used Smith and Allen and considering Exol and Mannoll brands.

I'm curious, what made you decide to change from RT4X?

Was it simply value for money?

 

[Momac]

I'm curious, what made you decide to change from RT4X?

Was it simply value for money?

Not money really as RT4X was reasonably priced .
It became no longer available - Shell rationalised their oil range . I couldn't see with certainty if the nearest Shell oil was mineral oil based so I searched for others .
The alternative I went to was a little less money but not much in the scheme of things .
It does seem worth being open to alternative brands that simply offer value for money while seeming adequate quality /trustworthy .
.

 

[John100156]

Yes I totally agree.

 

[TNLI]

I only started my engines when needed, and over winter there could be a 6 month gap. Regular unnecessary cold starts do more harm than good.

If you read what the engine manufacturers say, they nearly all recommend running the engine every month, preferably long enough for it to reach normal operating temperatures. There are a number of reasons why the engine should be run, but the most important relate to the prevention of corrosion, and that means allowing the oil to circulate and coat allof the bearings and cylinders etc. The other relates to the injector tips corroding due to lack of fuel flow.
The alternative approach is to inhibit the engine by following the users manual instructions.

 

[oldgit]

Use the boat.
75 hours so far this year and still some light and warmth left in the day.

 

[rafiki_]

If you read what the engine manufacturers say, they nearly all recommend running the engine every month, preferably long enough for it to reach normal operating temperatures. There are a number of reasons why the engine should be run, but the most important relate to the prevention of corrosion, and that means allowing the oil to circulate and coat allof the bearings and cylinders etc. The other relates to the injector tips corroding due to lack of fuel flow.
The alternative approach is to inhibit the engine by following the users manual instructions.

I had the boat for 7 years. No corrosion or damage evident. Cold starts with thick engine oil are not good.

 

[Momac]

. Cold starts with thick engine oil are not good.

I agree
It used to be said most engine wear occurs at cold-start and during the first few minutes of operation.