water in my oil

[Hydro-Thunder]

Ok heres one for you guys. Today I was going to install my new MSD distributor and when I pulled out the stocker I saw white on the distributor gear? So I check a little further and sure enough there is a slight milk shake in my oil pan? so then I get a pressure gauge on the system (closed with antifreeze) and it doesnot leak?? where did the water come from? The oil was not changed in the spring could sitting in a partually heated garage cause the moisture in the engine?
Thanks Jesse
[This message has been edited by Hydro-Thunder (edited June 07, 2002).]

[triple x tx]

my motor will build up a lot of condensation under the valve covers and eventually milk the oil after about 5 trips to the lake bye then its time to do oil change anyway.......i would change the oil and take it to the lake and run it for about ten minutes and check the oil,if its not milked its probably just condensation if it is milked you could have a bad intake gasket...

[LeadFootTheRabbit]

It doesn't take much water to make the oil milky. It could also be a head gasket leaking between a water jacket and oil return cavity or water jacket and valley.

[Hydro-Thunder]

Would'nt that show when doing a pressure test?

[GasTurbine]

Originally posted by Hydro-Thunder:
Would'nt that show when doing a pressure test?
No...not always...do a compression check.
Do you have a closed breather (PCV) system? If no...was it a humid day? Also, check your thermostat...oil will accume a little water all the time, but if the engine temp is low (thus, oil temp low too), it wont evaperate off.
Good luck.

[BOFH]

Sorry to hear it... In mine, I run no-tox antifreeze. That way, I can taste the oil. Sweet, it is gaskets, and salty is risers. Exhaust risers going bad will let a little bit of water back up into the piston, and drain down the cylinders...
As to the pressure test; did you do it both cold and hot? Heat can warp things.
As to the thermostat... If you do not get the oil temp over 190, you will NEVER boil of the moisture in the oil. If you have a closed cooling system, a 170 thermostat will do a lot for maintanence.

[Hydro-Thunder]

Thanks for the help guys I can not do a leak down test or compression test becaust I can not get to the plug holes that easy (I know it really pisses me off). I have tasted the oil and it is not sweet. The thermostat is a 180* and have never had any problems before. The engine did run for about 5 minuts with the water pump belt off because I heard a really terrable noise that sounded like a plug hitting a piston or a squeeling belt I was not sure so I took off the belt and forgot it as I idled back to shore the engine was hot but I have no way to know how hot it really got? What is the most common thing to happen to a hot engine? remember it did have antifreeze in it just not moving much http://free.***boat.net/ubb/frown.gif
Jesse

[Hydro-Thunder]

Ok I did a compression test and all the cylindersare at 115 (my gauge is off but all the same) exept for #2 it read 130. Would a blowen head gaqsket shou with this test? if not what other test can I do?
Thanks
Jesse

[Tahiti Day Cruiser]

Hi Jessie,
You know something very similar happened to me recently. My engine has no radiator because it is cooled completely by sea-water. My water pump went out causing the engine to over heat. It got pretty hot but I was lucky enough not to crack the block however there was some damage done. The gasket was blown on both of the heads but I had the heads magnafluxed and luckily they did not crack under the heat. The exhaust manifolds were also blown out on both side. The combination of all this happening caused a large amount of water to flow back into the engine. The only major internal damage was 1 valve had gotten really hot and part of it broke. All in all it could have been worse. I would start by pulling the head on the side with the lowest compression and chances are if you'r engine did not get hot enough to do any major internal damage you may get away with just resurfacing the heads and replacing the gaskets. While your in there might as well make sure everything else is o.k. and check for any signs of cracks or metal flaking in the cylinder. If after this you still get water in the cylinder then I would check the exhaust manifold. Even a tiny crack inside the manifold could cause water to leak back into the cylinder. Chances are if your engine got really hot enough to do major internal damage then you would probably see signs on the outside like melted wires or partly melted or burnt hoses.
Hopefully it will be something minor that can be fixed quickly.
Good luck http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif

[lghtnin33]

my very first marine problem ever was a pin hole in the exhaust riser. with the hatch covered and going to top end it would pressure up and spray water mist directly into the intake causing poor performance,at times, other times at idle it was ok and ran great. but when the hole became bigger there was no doubt about the problem,the oil was milky then.

[Hydro-Thunder]

I just wanted to thank everyone for the help I finally figured out what the hell happened! I was at the lake and the waves were pounding the back of the boat. That is how the water must have got in. I did a compression test and leak down test on the cylinders and cooling system and all were ok. So I changed the oil (many times) to get all teh water out and ran it! All is OK now.
Thanks again
Jesse