Sucking out cold oil?

[prv]

I have a 2GM20, whose oil can only be extracted via the dipstick hole, generally using my Pela sucker-outer. In the past I've always arranged to do this while the engine was hot, but on lift-out last week I couldn't because the valve had disappeared from the Pela (later found in the car, annoyingly; I assumed it was back home in the shed).

Now the boat's in the yard I can't easily run up the engine, because there's no hose nearby and it will probably go through even my 6-gallon running-up bucket before getting properly warm.

Will a Pela eventually manage to empty a sump of cold oil?

Pete

 

[colhel]

Last year I just ran my engine dry, just enough to warm the oil a little. It didn't need that much heat to pump out easily.

 

[davidwf]

I once pumped out dead cold oil with a Pella it does do it but it takes ages. If you have a small tube heater stick it under the sump for an hour or so to get the oil warm.

 

[Dave100456]

You won't have much success at the current ambient temp. Fan heater on the sump whilst in attendance, take care with combustables near by.

 

[prv]

Last year I just ran my engine dry, just enough to warm the oil a little. It didn't need that much heat to pump out easily.

I'm not worried about overheating the block, but I would be concerned at blowing hot exhaust gas into a rubber and plastic exhaust system without mixing in some water first.

Pete

 

[prv]

You won't have much success at the current ambient temp. Fan heater on the sump whilst in attendance, take care with combustables near by.

Hmm, that's worth a try, I guess. Time to drag out the generator again.

Actually, on second thoughts I don't have a fan heater any more (not sure where it went). I guess a hot-air gun will do the same job, with a bit more care to avoid local overheating of nearby wood and plastic.

Pete

 

[Bodach na mara]

If you have a steam cleaner, you could play the steam jet on the sump for a while. The latent heat released from the condensing steam will heat the oil quite quickly. Safer than using a heat gun but it does fill the bilge and maybe the boat with fog!

 

[prv]

If you have a steam cleaner, you could play the steam jet on the sump for a while.

Interesting idea, might usefully be combined with giving the bilge a clean out, but no, I don't have one.

Part of the problem will be that the sump of the engine is in a cavity below the level of the glassed-in ballast that forms the cabin sole. You can't see the sump, and it will be quite hard to point any kind of heating appliance at it.

Might just manage to get the heat gun into the engine bilge, pointing upwards.

Pete

 

[Cap'n Creosote]

Can you not rig up a recirculating system?

I use a standard builders 2 gallon bucket and a bit of hose. I tie the bucket to a cleat and adjust the height to aproximately the waterline.

My system is complicated by the water intake having a strainer on the out side of the hull. So I use a modified sink plunger with hose attached and press it over the whole thing. It works quite well.

If you've got a plain hole for an intake just stuff the hose in it, you could wrap a bit of self amalgamating rubber tape around it to make it up to a good fit.

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

Surely on most boats there is a strainer inside the boat where the inlet seacock is?

I am sure I saw our engineer just take the top off the strainer and shove the hose in there. Much easier than trying to attach something outside.

 

[prv]

Can you not rig up a recirculating system?.

Hmm, that's an interesting point. When I've run it ashore before, the exhaust water has been thrown all over the place, no chance of catching most of it in a bucket. But I could probably rig up some kind of deflector to trap the majority of the water.

Pete

 

[toad]

Instead of messing about warming the engine just stick the pipe in, pump up the vac and go down the pub for a hour or two.

 

[Cap'n Creosote]

Well I like to get mine warm to ensure any thicker sludge comes out too.

I'm sure a bit of plastic or even roofing felt wrapped vertically in the bucket, around say 300degrees of the circumference, would do the trick.

You can see on my picture a small yellow pipe coming out of the transom. I was even catching the telltale and directing it to the bucket.

 

[Vara]

I did a cold pump out a couple of years ago, took a long time, but not a great problem. In fact when changing the oil filters it was a benefit as any spillage was easier to contain.

 

[prv]

Instead of messing about warming the engine just stick the pipe in, pump up the vac and go down the pub for a hour or two.

Well, hence my question. If that will work it's what I'll do; I can leave it for six hours if necessary. But if it won't go (and it is a very thin pipe) then I'd have been wasting my time.

Pete

 

[Pasarell]

On my last boat I sucked the oil out cold with a Pela once. As someone has already said, it can be done, but takes ages and a lot of pumping. In my case about 2 hours IIRC, for a small engine

 

[SamSalter]

Leave it 'til the spring and do an oil change when you splash!
Sure it's not ideal, but it ain't going to hurt!!!
I'm sure your maintenance list has othe more pressing stuff?
sam

 

[whipper_snapper]

Thin it with kerosene ? I believe that is all that 'flushing oil is'.


But I would certainly want to run it for some time, even if it never came up to temperature it would stir up the sludge that you want to get rid of.

 

[the_branflake]

I got mine out of a cold engine in late Nov this year. It did take about 45mins - hour and was hard work. I was using one of those standard brass oil pumps.

 

[Sans Bateau]

You won't have much success at the current ambient temp. Fan heater on the sump whilst in attendance, take care with combustables near by.

Pumped my sump oil out last weekend, cold, and it was cold. No need to heat the sump etc, it does take a while though.