winterization and oil change

[bpmcl00]

hello all,

i have a 4.3 mercruiser im about to store for the winter. i have drained the block fogged the motor but i did not change the oil. a couple of people said that is will be okay just as long as i change it first thing in the spring. I would like to get a professional oppinion..

 

[ziggy]

Re: winterization and oil change

i don't have a 4.3. but the 1st item under winter storage in my mercruiser service manual covering my 1656hp L6 is to warm up and drain all the crankcase oil, remove and replace the filter. item 2 is replace with new oil.

the used oil has impurity's in it after being used over the summer. ya should replace it prior to layup.....

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: winterization and oil change

Howdy,

Oil in a marine engine (or any engine) progressively becomes contaminated with combustion products (from blowby) and water vapor. The water vapor is usually removed by running the engine and isn't much of a problem if the engine is run regularly.

When you lay up the engine for long periods of time the water vapor left in the engine will combine with the some combustion products in the oil to produce weak acids. Those acids if left for months at a time can cause corrosion on the exposed metal parts or parts that are in contact with the oil.

When you change the oil just before winter (or other) layup, you remove most or all of those combustion products with the old oil. The new oil hasn't been run in the engine long enough to collect those combustion products etc so you reduce or eliminate that problem.


It's always better to put it to bed with fresh oil instead of leaving old contaminated oil to sit and "work" in the engine for months on end...

In addition, changing the drive oil allows you to discover any water that might have leaked in. If there's water in the drive oil you can remove it before it is allowed to freeze and break or seriously corrode your lower unit.


The choice is of course, yours.


Regards,


Rick

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

Howdy,

Oil in a marine engine (or any engine) progressively becomes contaminated with combustion products (from blowby) and water vapor. The water vapor is usually removed by running the engine and isn't much of a problem if the engine it run regularly.

When you lay up the engine for long periods of time the water vapor left in the engine will combine with the some combustion products in the oil to produce weak acids. Those acids if left for months at a time can cause corrosion on the exposed metal parts or parts that are in contact with the oil.

When you change the oil just before winter (or other) layup, you remove most or all of those combustion products with the old oil. The new oil hasn't been run in the engine long enough to collect those combustion products etc so you reduce or eliminate that problem.


It's always better to put it to bed with fresh oil instead of leaving old contaminated oil to sit and "work" in the engine for months on end...

In addition, changing the drive oil allows you to discover any water that might have leaked in. If there's water in the drive oil you can remove it before it is allowed to freeze and break or seriously corrode your lower unit.


The choice is of course, yours.


Regards,


Rick

shoot, the thing is that i had payed someone to drain the motor and fog the engine. i figured i would do an oil change after, but then i remember that i have removed the drain plugs and the motor is fogged... so now i was thinking about putting some crankcase stabilizer from starbrite into my oil and changing it asap in spring. OR... ill have to plug the block back up, which im not sure where all the plug holes are. then crank it up to warm oil and drain, then fill. then drain block and fog again.

or

drain the oil cold. and fill back up. and dont start till spring 09

or

dont change oil. add crankcase stabilizer, and change oil asap in spring.


Please help me guys

 

[cmyers_uk]

Re: winterization and oil change

the guy above explained it really well. Bite the bullet and start her up put new oil in then fog and drain the water out. It can be done everso quickly, is very easy even I can do it! In the long run imho it will cost you more time and money if you don't do the proper job. But again your decision.

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

the guy above explained it really well. Bite the bullet and start her up put new oil in then fog and drain the water out. It can be done everso quickly, is very easy even I can do it! In the long run imho it will cost you more time and money if you don't do the proper job. But again your decision.

very true. i think i will just put the plugs back in and do that. do any of you guys know where the other 2 drain plugs on a 4.3 mercruiser go. other then the two on the exhaust manifolds.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: winterization and oil change

shoot, the thing is that i had payed someone to drain the motor and fog the engine. i figured i would do an oil change after, but then i remember that i have removed the drain plugs and the motor is fogged... so now i was thinking about putting some crankcase stabilizer from starbrite into my oil and changing it asap in spring. OR... ill have to plug the block back up, which im not sure where all the plug holes are. then crank it up to warm oil and drain, then fill. then drain block and fog again.

or

drain the oil cold. and fill back up. and dont start till spring 09

or

dont change oil. add crankcase stabilizer, and change oil asap in spring.


Please help me guys

Draining the crankcase and refilling it doesn't really help much since the idea is to replace all the oil especially the oil that is in the oil galleries and the oil that is up against the bearing surfaces, rockers, cyl walls below the rings etc. That would require you to run the engine to warm it up, replace the oil and then run it long enough to fill the oil filter and circulate clean fresh oil thru the engine.

Not changing it before winter is not going to destroy your engine engine either. It's just that the whole idea is to change it before letting it sit year after year. Leaving last years oil in the engine is not going to hurt the engine once or twice over the life of the engine.

It's just to get the maximum benefit out of a "lay-up" oil change you should do it before you "lay-up" the engine.

It's sort of like "what oil should you use"? Most of the people here who do this stuff for a living have not seen an oil related failure in a marine engine. (unless someone didn't put oil in at all) It just doesn't happen. I really doesn't matter what oil you use as long as you change it regularly. (please don't turn this into an oil thread!!

EDIT: I was going to add the Mercruiser oil recommendation but Don did it for you!

I'll bet there's never been a failure due to not changing oil at the end of season either. It's just that for longevity, the oil and filter should be changed prior to draining, fogging, and other winter layup items. IMHO, you can just do it next year and you'll be fine.



Cheers,


Rick

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

thanks rick. im really stuck here. the mechanic who partially winterized it, said that the oil looked good as far as not having water in it. he also said that it shouldnt be a big deal if i didnt change it. he recommended that i i change the impeller, oil, and tune up before i head out in spring. which i planned on doin. i figured i would add some crankcase stabilizer from starbrite, then pray that everything goes smooth.

and lol yes i did make an oil thread... newbie here

 

[cmyers_uk]

Re: winterization and oil change

as rick said it probably will be ok, but there is a genuine reason for doing it and one thing you can guArentee it won't do any good. Couple of points do you have the drain plugs loose? If so I would put them back in for two reasons 1 the threads can rust over winter , this happened to me so learnt the hard way. 2nd obviously harder to lose.

Good luck, you'll sleep better doing it!

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

no the mechanic left the plugs out. i didnt ask many questions, and at first i was gonna ask him where they were and he said pay me 50 bucks and ill drain and fog it, then afterwards ill tell u where the holes are so in the spring you can out them back in. the oil change thought wasnt in my head at the time.

 

[bluto3166]

Re: winterization and oil change

I have a 1990 OMC 4.3L. Two years ago I had a heart attack in late Sept. and was unable to do a "real" winterization. All I did was flush anti-freeze thru the cooling system and put her to bed. In spring I changed oil, fuel water sep. and did the outdrive maint. Not the best situation, but it was what I could do at the time. My boat ran fine last year and this year(I put her up yesterday). I woudn't worry about it. Change oil come spring and enjoy life ...

 

[ziggy]

Re: winterization and oil change

the mechanic who partially winterized it

what kinda mechanic is that, that don't let you in on what needs to be done to winterize. a oil change is one of the things to do.

he recommended that i i change the impeller, oil, and tune up before i head out in spring.

the gear lub and impeller ya do at end of season. part of winterizing. what if your drive has water in it and it freezes? the tune up ya do do at begining of year service.... did you see this thread. http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=178695 it's real helpfull. do ya have a service manual for your 4.3? it will tell you exactly what ya need to do to winterize. where the drains are at, everything.... then you'll know...

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: winterization and oil change

no the mechanic left the plugs out. i didnt ask many questions, and at first i was gonna ask him where they were and he said pay me 50 bucks and ill drain and fog it, then afterwards ill tell u where the holes are so in the spring you can out them back in. the oil change thought wasnt in my head at the time.

At this point the best thing you could probably do for peace of mind would be to take a piece of bailing wire and poke it into all the holes where the plugs were left out just to ensure that all the rust flakes and other debris is clear.

That way you make sure all the water is drained.

Your mechanic should have done that (and probably did). But it wouldn't hurt to check.

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

At this point the best thing you could probably do for peace of mind would be to take a piece of bailing wire and poke it into all the holes where the plugs were left out just to ensure that all the rust flakes and other debris is clear.

That way you make sure all the water is drained.

Your mechanic should have done that (and probably did). But it wouldn't hurt to check.

what about the oil change tho. should i go ahead and put the plugs back in and do it then fog and drain block again. or just wait till spring.

 

[Don S]

Re: winterization and oil change

what about the oil change tho. should i go ahead and put the plugs back in and do it then fog and drain block again. or just wait till spring.

Sometimes, you just have to make the big decisions on your own. Read the information and thoughts given to you and make a decision.

 

[bpmcl00]

Re: winterization and oil change

so i have come to the conclusion that when i get the boat back monday, i will look at all the drain holes, and if i feel comfortable pluging them back up and changing the oil then draining them again then i will go ahead and do it.

 

[Don S]

Re: winterization and oil change

so i have come to the conclusion that when i get the boat back monday, i will look at all the drain holes, and if i feel comfortable pluging them back up and changing the oil then draining them again then i will go ahead and do it.

Great!!! Just remember, when you put the plugs back in and start the engine, immediatly go back an look for leaks, as in a missed plug. Also remember that it takes more than just pulling a few plugs on some engines to get every thing drained properly. Be sure you know what needs drained.