Yanmar 3GM30 has oil flowing out of Dipstick

[Pete Hegs]

I heard the oil alarm and turned off the motor. The warning light was on: "Lube oil press" I'm assuming it's saying the engine oil pressure is a problem.

Can anyone help me please.
Thanks,
Pete

 

[coopec]

Just joined today? Welcome.

Where is the warning light located? On the dash or elsewhere. Is your dash similar to this? What is the motor installed in (If it is a powerboat then you should directed the appropriate forum)

Doesn't sound like good news.
You haven't over-filled it have you?

What causes oil to blow by the dipstick?

 

[wiggy]

I had similar many years ago on a 1GM10. Entirely my fault, I had checked the oil and missed the tube when replacing the stick! Is there an O ring missing on the dip stick?

 

[vyv_cox]

The alarm sounds when there is no pressure in the lub oil circuit. Continuing with no oil pressure will wreck the engine in a very short time. Possible causes:
No oil in the engine.
Failed pump, loose filter, bearing collapse or other engine problem
Faulty pressure switch.

On combination with oil coming from the dipstick it may be that you have a major problem. Proceed with caution and do not run it until you know what is wrong.

 

[Graham376]

Oil flowing (rather than splashing)out of dipstick hole usually down to crankcase compression which could be stuck piston rings, which we had happen some years ago. How much oil has the engine blown out, is there any left in it?

 

[Fr J Hackett]

I don't think he has mentioned anything about oil loss from the dip stick, if he has then what has been said is valid. However if it's just the warning light then he should check the oil level by using the dip stick and take it from there, first by topping up the oil level if it's low if not check the oil pressure sender and connections then start to look for obvious oil leaks, the rear crankshaft oil seal is a common enough failure cheap to replace but can be a bugger to access. Is there oil in the drip tray or bilge?

 

[Graham376]

I don't think he has mentioned anything about oil loss from the dip stick, if he has then what has been said is valid.

Have you noticed the thread title?

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Have you noticed the thread title?

Ooops?

 

[Neeves]

Ooops?

Don't worry - at least we know you are not a robot.



Jonathan

 

[Pete Hegs]

Thanks guys. I was out on the water and being a Sunday, no-one was around to help me. I was able to text my marine mechanic and he started the trouble shooting process with the oil filter. I was able to take it off but didn't have a replacement on the boat. I cleaned it out with fuel for around an hour. I then flushed it out with new oil and re-installed it. I then topped up the oil in the engine (a litre at a time) until the oil level was just under the maximum on the dip stick. I hesitantly started the motor and the "Lube pressure" alarm no longer came on. After a couple of minutes the oil started to leak out of the dip stick again so I stopped the motor. Thankfully the wind came up and I was able to sail away from the mooring and sailed back to our marina. My mechanic is looking at it today. I'll keep you all in the loop once he has had a look. Thanks for your input. Pete

 

[Boater Sam]

Has to be crankcase compression. Is there a crankcase breather that is blocked? How many hours on the engine? I fail to see what the oil filter has to do with this, even a totally blocked one would not cause this problem.
I don't think much of your marine mechanic.

 

[Pete Hegs]

I wasn't able to meet him today. Work issues. The motor has done 1508 Hours. I'll definitely raise the issue of Crankcase compression and if a crankcase breather could be blocked. Thanks for the heads up. Pete

 

[Moodysailor]

As above, if it is pushing oil out of the dipstick then the issue is an over-pressure in the crankcase. Usually this is a blocked breather so hopefully relatively simple to sort. Worst case (but rare) would be blow-by from piston rings.
If it is 'making oil' - i.e the oil is flowing out of the dipstick because there is too much in the sump, this isusually a sign of a diesel leak into the crankcase.

 

[Malish]

Is the oil the correct colour (or a blacker version of it)

 

[vyv_cox]

How much oil did you add? The sump capacity of these engines is very small, only about 2.5 litres on my 3GM30F. If you added 'a litre at a time' it seems it was close to empty

 

[Pete Hegs]

As above, if it is pushing oil out of the dipstick then the issue is an over-pressure in the crankcase. Usually this is a blocked breather so hopefully relatively simple to sort. Worst case (but rare) would be blow-by from piston rings.
If it is 'making oil' - i.e the oil is flowing out of the dipstick because there is too much in the sump, this isusually a sign of a diesel leak into the crankcase.

Thanks mate. I'll also raise these possible issues to check once I can get back to the boat. Work issues are unfortunately keeping me away. Thanks for your pointers. Pete

 

[Pete Hegs]

Is the oil the correct colour (or a blacker version of it)

It mixed in with the black oil already in the sump.

 

[Pete Hegs]

How much oil did you add? The sump capacity of these engines is very small, only about 2.5 litres on my 3GM30F. If you added 'a litre at a time' it seems it was close to empty

I did add 2 litres of new oil so it was very low.