Burning Oil | SailNet Community
I was told there is an expected amount of oil to be burnt at a specific rate depending the engine. Does anyone know where to find this type of info I'm wondering how much oil my Westerbeke 30 should be burning up?
It shouldn't be burning oil that is noticeable between oil changes. Ie if you are having to add oil every other time you use it, it isn't acceptable. If you are burning oil it means your rings are shot or they weren't seated right in the first place.
+1 on BoatyardBoy's post. It could be the valve guides/seats too.
Older diesels engines leak and burn oil. If it functions, you could just add additional oil when needed and change the oil regularly. Examine and smell the diesel oil on the dipstick: is it milky with water or have an odor other than the normal sulfur odor? What color is the smoke from the exhaust? If it really bothers you, replace or rebuild the engine.
I posted a thread some time ago, about a diesel airplane engine mechanic who stated that you knew the engines were working when they leaked oil.
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+1 on the " It's OK to burn some oil" That way you know the rings are getting lubricated. The official word from Jaguar on the old straight 6 was if it did not burn oil it would have a VERY short life.
As smothers have stated it shouldn't be burning a noticeable amount of oil personally I would recommend to my customers to do an oil analysis looking for all the usual stuff and specificly the amount of fuel/oil degredation that you have. Then you can discuss with your local shop what the options are for you.
a LOT of engines burn oil normally EVEN when in perfect running conditions...
this doesnt mean that you should be happy if you are burning a quart every other trip out the marina...
but a good way to see how your egine stands up against others ir to first check out westerbeke 3o owners...compare yours THEN compare to other manufacturers of the same era, size etc...
I would have no problem running an engine that burned a quart every oil change...
2 or more or a galon and basically you just add oil and the oil changes itself! jajaja
honestly dont get stressed, check out forums and westerbeke owners then take a decision
a rebuild, partial is cheap insurance in the long run
As stated above I would talk with owners of similar engines before getting too worried. Before doing that I was really worried about my Perkins 4.108. While it doesn't burn oil it sure does leak it into the sump. After talking with a few owners I found that mine leaks less than theirs so they offered to drill some holes to even us out. Old diesels eat oil. Just a function of the design limitations when they were built.
Now if I was blowing black smoke out the back I would be worried.
billowy smoke on startup is another classic diesel attribute, however it must go away...
if your belching smoke every throttle input you should at least do a partial rebuild, could also be injectors and or fuel delivery systems etc...
Our Westy has approx 3300 hours and burns no oil between changes but every engine is a tad different. She has only ever used Rotella 15W-40 changed earlier than factory intervals...
Engines = expensive / oil = cheap......
One thing I also believe in is to never short run our engine. Once she starts up she is run to full operating temp to burn off start up condensation before being shut down..
Even if an engine is burning some oil they can continue to run this way for many hundreds if not thousands of hours. I have a customer who uses .75 - 1 quart between changes and it has been doing this since the late 80s'.... Engine does just fine...
there you have it! awesome info maine
btw my favourite oil is delo400 15-40 dino diesel oil similar to your rotella, rotella down here is called rimula(shell) but its twice as expensive as delo400 at pricemart
used it for my racing enduro bike, my old montero truck or anything old and stout...jaja
change often is all I ever advocate on old engines, or any engine for that matter...never let it get CRITICALLY low this is what damages the most not what oil you use
+++ to delo400 15-40
Actually while any oil is better than nothing diesel engines need oils that are formulated for their needs. You need oils that meet specs for diesel engines due to higher heat of diesels among other things. I would recommend the delo 100 for marine uses
that can be said for any engine...but without getting into oil wars(they are popular) never get any OIL critically low to damage journals, beraings and the sort and dont overfill drastically either
any diesel oil is good for inboards on our boats...but there are ones with better detergents, anti foaming qualities, higher levels of minerals and the like like zddp or zinc if you will that help...
other chevron or fleet truck oils work too(these are all diesel oils)
I love 15-40 grade for most climates
I had a Detroit diesel that the original owner used to take to the Galapagos area for albacore for many years. He had it built in 1949 and we bought it in 1964, had no hour meter in it, but as he was a full time commercial fisherman all those years I can only assume it had a LOT of hours on it. He said "it runs fine" and had not been re-built. It burned no measurable amount of oil between changes. Same situation for 2 VW diesels I worked on, one of which was turbo charged, and run HARD, by my daughter, that is.
However I had a piece of junk Ford F-250 truck that burned one quart every 500 miles after all of 60,000 miles. It actually ran all right, just burned a lot of oil.
Come on, no one has said it yet?......
CR... "Diesels love oil like a sailor loves rum"
Dad.. "Why is that Captain Ron?"
CR.... "Nobody knows"
It shouldn't have burned that much but not uncommon for the old 6.9 idi they didn't have valve guide seals in those engines
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Ours was a 1975 390 Cubic inch gas V8. As there was not excessive blow by that I could detect valve guides were probably a major part of the problem.
60,000 miles? Dealer said "They all do that". I couldn't believe he actually said that , but he did.
Yep in the mid 70's they used inferior materials in the guide seals. I assumed you were referring to the old diesel truck engines.
Ours was a brand new 1975 F-250 Super Cab pickup, equipped with the "Heave Duty Towing package", from the factory, 390 cubic inch gas V8. At about 60,000 miles it started burning about a quart every 500 miles, kind of like a 2 stroke.
The only thing good on that truck was the brakes, stopped straight as an arrow, even with a 5,500 pound boat/trailer boat behind it.