Thick layer of oil in bilge

[citygent111]

Hi all

We left the boat uncovered at the marina last time we visited and returned to find about a month's worth of rain had gathered in the bilge. Took a lot of pumping out, but then I actually paid attention to the bilge floor around and under the engine and saw about 1cm deep of oily sludge.

We're going back over to the marina in the next few weeks to bring the boat home for a few upgrades, and I figured if I was going to add a product to break down the sludge, that's the perfect time as it will get 2 hours of swilling around in there!

Question is - what to use? I wondered about some neat degreaser, Screwfix No Nonsense works great on oil stains on the drive, or maybe Gunk?

I have some oil pads ready to soak it up and dispose of properly, but wondered if you guys had any great suggestions or homemade recipes that might work on that drive home?

Thanks!

 

[philipdawsonladds]

Try BILGEX - really breaks the sludge down - then soak it up with mats or if you feel OK about buying them (!) some incontinence pads - they work a treat and are pretty cheap too

 

[citygent111]

Try BILGEX - really breaks the sludge down - then soak it up with mats or if you feel OK about buying them (!) some incontinence pads - they work a treat and are pretty cheap too

Excellent, thank you I'll give it a go!

 

[Bouba]

You can use natural products like strong vinegar and lemon......also you can pump the sludge out using a cheap 12v sump pump

 

[citygent111]

It's more than sludge really, it's thick - more like a dirty oily toothpaste!

 

[oldgit]

Would be more interested in tracking down the source of the gunge.
It could merely be the accumulation of many years of neglect of whats been going on under the floor being dislodged by the recent addition of water..... or something more recent, that needs sorting pronto.


Years ago purchased a Princess 35. Inspection to clean out the bilges indicated the previous owner(s) had used the bilges to store anything and everything that had either leaked/dripped or dropped onto the floor over the previous 40 years.
Old bits of wire, insulatiion tape, cable ties, nuts,bolts, self tappers, all marinating in a soup of goo laying on top a solid bed of muck.
A small JCB would have made the job a lot quicker as opposed to a degreaser and a bucket.
Personally think this sort of owner should be ..................

 

[citygent111]

Would be more interested in tracking down the source of the gunge.
It could merely be the accumulation of many years of neglect of whats been going on under the floor being dislodged by the recent addition of water..... or something more recent, that needs sorting pronto.


Years ago purchased a Princess 35. Inspection to clean out the bilges indicated the previous owner(s) had used the bilges to store anything and everything that had either leaked/dripped or dropped onto the floor over the previous 40 years.
Old bits of wire, insulatiion tape, cable ties, nuts,bolts, self tappers, all marinating in a soup of goo laying on top a solid bed of muck.
A small JCB would have made the job a lot quicker as opposed to a degreaser and a bucket.
Personally think this sort of owner should be ..................

Yes that's at the back of my mind too. My thought was to bring the boat home, get it spotless in the bilge, then when we're back on the water in Spring, I can keep a close eye on it. If I make sure the other engine & gear oil are topped up properly, then if any gunk reappears I can react better than trying to 2nd guess where it's coming from.its a petrol engine so less likely (as far as I know) to be a fuel leak, which leaves the various oils.

We had a couple of occasions last year where the engine was revving very high (heavy boat + large swell, against the incoming tide) and I wondered if that had caused it.

First time owning an inboard engine - which makes me appreciate outboards even more!

 

[Momac]

Sounds like you may need a plastic scraper for the initial sludge removal.
Followed by a degreaser .

I have used Elbow grease but really any detergent including laundry liquid with water is worth a go. I am using some snow foam liquid at the moment which isn't very good a snow foam but okay as a general degreaser .

The sloshing around while on the journey home sounds like it might spread/splash the oily gunge around and make more work.

For soaking up oil/liquids in small quantities I have recently started using puppy training pads.

 

[citygent111]

Sounds like you may need a plastic scraper for the initial sludge removal.
Followed by a degreaser .

I have used Elbow grease but really any detergent including laundry liquid with water is worth a go. I am using some snow foam liquid at the moment which isn't very good a snow foam but okay as a general degreaser .

The sloshing around while on the journey home sounds like it might spread/splash the oily gunge around and make more work.

For soaking up oil/liquids in small quantities I have recently started using puppy training pads.
View attachment 186783

Thats a good point about the journey home making more of a mess.... Only issue with a scraper is the position of the engine over the bilge "tray". There's no access under the engine - well, certainly not for my hand/arm, but possibly for a scraper on a long angled stick of some sort!

 

[Daydream believer]

I find disposable nappies good for soaking up fluids. I trim the elastic off with a pair of scissors so they lay flat.
I think that I would want to know where the oil came from before moving the boat though

 

[Bouba]

If the oil is in a solidified sludge...there probably isn’t an on going leak....unless the engine hasn’t been used for a long time.

 

[Momac]

I find disposable nappies good for soaking up fluids. I trim the elastic off with a pair of scissors so they lay flat.
I think that I would want to know where the oil came from before moving the boat though

If I understand correctly the boat is being moved by road on a trailer. Cleaning the engine bay may help identify any future oil leak .

 

[benjenbav]

I should say I haven’t tried this but wondered whether, after scraping out the solids and applying degreaser, it would be easier to use a wet vacuum cleaner (I have a Vax but no doubt other makes are available) to remove the liquified remains rather than trying to soak them up.

 

[Momac]

I wouldn't use a wet vac for liquid that is very oily. But I might use an engine oil extractor pump.

 

[Clash]

I would try scraping up as much as possible first (ice scraper with a long handle or similar) and then apply your degreaser of choice (not too liberally) and use a stiff bristle brush to work it into the remaining gunge. Leave that to fester on the journey home, no risk of splashing it about if you've just a relatively small amount in there.

Then when you get home, you can go to town with the degreaser on the remaining stuff which should have loosened up considerably.

 

[Seastoke]

I would try scraping up as much as possible first (ice scraper with a long handle or similar) and then apply your degreaser of choice (not too liberally) and use a stiff bristle brush to work it into the remaining gunge. Leave that to fester on the journey home, no risk of splashing it about if you've just a relatively small amount in there.

Then when you get home, you can go to town with the degreaser on the remaining stuff which should have loosened up considerably.

Clash what boat do you have.

 

[Clash]

Clash what boat do you have.

How did you get so old being so nosey?

 

[Seastoke]

How did you get so old being so nosey?

It is you then , hey I am younger than Bouba ok that’s old.

 

[Bouba]

It is you then , hey I am younger than Bouba ok that’s old.

But you have to admit that you were surprised when we met and you realized that I look younger

 

[Clash]

It is you then , hey I am younger than Bouba ok that’s old.

Of course it's me. Who else could it be?