I only went to prepare the boat for the storms!

[Searush]

Your nearest Jeanneau or Beneteau dealer?

Why, do their engines last over 40 years? Or are you just being a prat?


OP, the rusty sump sounds a strong possibility, but you should be able to get a used one quite cheaply off a scrap engine - even if you have to buy the whole engine & weigh the rest of in as scrap.

BTW, my Mondeo dumped a load of oil on the driveway when the oilf filter rusted thro from the outside. It was a low mileage car & the filter may have been on it for some years before I bought it.

 

[pvb]

Why, do their engines last over 40 years? Or are you just being a prat?

I see the pre-Christmas sense of humour failure syndrome is setting in....

 

[James W]

Why, do their engines last over 40 years? Or are you just being a prat?


OP, the rusty sump sounds a strong possibility, but you should be able to get a used one quite cheaply off a scrap engine - even if you have to buy the whole engine & weigh the rest of in as scrap.

BTW, my Mondeo dumped a load of oil on the driveway when the oilf filter rusted thro from the outside. It was a low mileage car & the filter may have been on it for some years before I bought it.

Thanks Searush, I won't write the old beast off yet, after all, it's no fun unless it's a little bit of work!

And Maby, i'd live to give the aforementioned dealers a call but SWMBO has got her eye on some other white goods for the kitchen this Christmas!

 

[clyst]

If it is a rusty sump maybe a patch could be welded on.

 

[Stork_III]

Originally Posted by Searush
Why, do their engines last over 40 years? Or are you just being a prat?

Your ascerbic comment is unnecessary, not everyone has your omnipotency.

 

[PetiteFleur]

Ive seen this before on a VP petrol engine, the sump rusts away, pin holes that get bigger, Bilgex to clean after you use a turkey baster to get most of it out.
Stu

We had it happen on a diesel Corsa a few years back - sump rusted through, apparently it was quite common on that model. Only noticed it because I spotted oil on the driveway and looking underneath the car the summp had rusted under the paint film. The local Vauxhall agent had replaced about half a dozen that year.

 

[maby]

Why, do their engines last over 40 years? Or are you just being a prat?


....

Yet another humour deficit - why are they so common round here?

 

[aquaplane]

I left a load of water with 3 or 4 Persil Bio bladders (other biological laundry products are available) sloshing around in my bilges for a week thinking that the Bio stuff would munch any oily deposits. The treatment certainly shifted the brown crust off the GRP when I pumped it out and sponged out the dregs, the water was manky. It improved the smell too.

 

[rafiki_]

I'm not sure if the leak happened while she's been idle or whilst running. I ran the engine today for a while before I looked at the bilges and we have sailed/motored in the last few weeks so it could have been from then.

There is some water below the oil, but the oil is a fair amount.

I suppose a good clear up and then some time watching for leaks is in order. Is the oil likely to damage the bilges at all? Can anyone recommend a good cleaning product?!

Thanks again chaps...there's always something to worry about!

You can use cheapo nappies from a supermarket to soak up most of the oil, then clean the bilge with a kitchen cleaner and rag. In my experience this is easier than trying to clean with detergent, and you don't need to spill any over the side.

Once clean, see where the oil is dripping onto, then try to follow the evidence trail from there.

Worked for me. The dipstick tube is mounted to the sump, and there was a copper washer missing. Incredible how much mess this made, oil on water in the bilge. Never had to top up the oil level despite what seemed like litres having leaked.

 

[McGoo]

Might be able to help with spares

Hi Andrew,
I'll probably be removing my Volvo MB10A engine from my boat in February, to replace it with a diesel. It starts and runs well, but constantly gets water in the oil, probably due to pinhole corrosion of the water jacket.

I'll be offering it for sale "for spares", hopefully to someone like yourself who's keeping one of these old beasts running. I'd hate to throw it away, I know how expensive new parts are.

I'm in Ireland, so transport costs could be an issue. Let me know if you're interested.

 

[Stemar]

Cleaning up afterwards

I had problems with diesel leaks that stank the boat out to the point that SWMBO wouldn't come down and wouldn't come near me when I came back from the boat 'cos of my fleur de gazole perfume.

After I finally managed to fix the leak, a litre of Bio Clean dumped in the bilges under the engine reduced the smell to almost nothing by the next time and after a few months, a smell that had impregnated everything is gone completely.

It's entirely biodegradable, so no worries about harming our dear little friends the barnacles - just pump out when the bacteria it's full of have done their work.

No connection - just a happy customer who was recommended it by another forumite

 

[James W]

Hi Andrew,
I'll probably be removing my Volvo MB10A engine from my boat in February, to replace it with a diesel. It starts and runs well, but constantly gets water in the oil, probably due to pinhole corrosion of the water jacket.

I'll be offering it for sale "for spares", hopefully to someone like yourself who's keeping one of these old beasts running. I'd hate to throw it away, I know how expensive new parts are.

I'm in Ireland, so transport costs could be an issue. Let me know if you're interested.

Ho Mcgoo, PM sent....

 

[stav]

When tackling similiar probs from a split hose I used a drill(cordless) pump and pumped the water/oil in to clear containers. Left them upside down for a couple of weeks then drained the water off and deposited the oil in to an oil bund at the recycling centre.

Good luck with it.

 

[VO5]

Another method of soaking up a lot of dirty oil from bilges is to use a netting bag stuffed with wood shavings (not sawdust), or straw. Fish it out when impregnated and put into a black bag for disposal ashore.

 

[dsw]

i use that stuff they use in garages that looks like cat litter and what i do is put it in a pair of tights or stockings !!

 

[Bosun Higgs]

, it's a 1974 Volvo Penta MB10a Petrol !

Skip?

 

[RichardTaylor]

Look on eBay for VIROSOL, use it 1 part Virosol to 4 parts water to clean up the mess, then any which is left use at 1 part Virosol to 9 parts water in a spray bottle as a general cleaner (kitchen, bathroom, degreasant, alloy wheel cleaner etc etc..... Virosol is brilliant stuff!

No connection just happy user of the stuff.

 

[James W]

An update......

Just a update on the situation, an early start this morning saw the bilge mopped up and cleaned and i've had a good look around the engine for possible leaks. I couldn't run the engine today as it was low tide, but everything's in place to check when the tide allows.

The sump looks the most likely area (photos attached) and I am worried that to fix this the engine's going to have to come out. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I know it sounds impossible but could you remove the sump somehow without removing the engine? If I have to go as far as engine removal to fix this, would it then be best just to get a new engine? Cost is, as always an issue, but i'm grappling with whether i'd rather spend the money and have some piece of mind, rather than mess around constantly with an aged engine?

Over to you gentlemen and thanks for your advice!

James

 

[VicS]

If you have enough clearance under the engine sump removal might be possible.

There is a gauze strainer in there with a pipe leading up to the oil pump. The difficulty might be locating the pipe in the strainer as you refit it if access is limited.

If it turns out that its the joint leaking nip all six bolts up a little ... and hope.

Its not a thin steel pressing so its not likely that the sump plate is corroded through


Was the engine exterior oily any higher if so be expecting a leak higher up when its running

 

[scottie]

The right hand photo looks as if it has a hole in the block if so **** I would say