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Oil change for winter


PeterCr

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My engine is currently due for it's oil change etc. Well it's overdue really.

 

I'll be back at my marina to lay the boat up for the winter in about 40 or 50 hours.

 

I know I should change my oil before the winter, however I'm wondering if I should still be changing the oil for winter if it's only 40 or 50 hours old as I've already changed it now.

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2 hours ago, PeterCr said:

My engine is currently due for it's oil change etc. Well it's overdue really.

 

I'll be back at my marina to lay the boat up for the winter in about 40 or 50 hours.

 

I know I should change my oil before the winter, however I'm wondering if I should still be changing the oil for winter if it's only 40 or 50 hours old as I've already changed it now.

 

How overdue is the enginefor it's oil change and what is the normal oil change frequency?

 

As a rough rule of thumb, 10% over won't matter if it isn't done too frequently.

 

However it sounds like your engine will exceed the 10% easily by doing another 40 or 50 hours, let alone how many hours overdue it already is.

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I have never understood this changing oil for winter, the engine has no idea what season it is.

Is the "acid" content of used oil really so detrimental sat in the sump over winter when its cold and therefore less "active"? 

I've had engines that have been left with filthy oil in for decades unused, they have always been fine, no holes burnt through tin sumps, no rust inside.

 

Am I wrong? Please explain it to me why folk waste oil by changing it because of a date rather than time used.

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It’s all about risk, so if the engine spec is for an oil change at 200 hours the engine doesn’t significantly increase wear from 201 hours.  A lot depends on oil quality, as well as how you use the engine and the engine condition.  A lot of short runs so the engine never really gets hot means water in the oil never gets ‘boiled’ off, which is bad for oil.  Likewise a worn engine can get more exhaust muck into the oil which can also make the oil a bit acidic which is bad, but a good condition engine, running for a couple (or more) hours every time it is started using a decent oil will - my opinion only - have an oil life a fair bit longer.  So in my case I wouldn’t worry about another 50 hours.

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2 minutes ago, Boater Sam said:

I have never understood this changing oil for winter, the engine has no idea what season it is.

Is the "acid" content of used oil really so detrimental sat in the sump over winter when its cold and therefore less "active"? 

I've had engines that have been left with filthy oil in for decades unused, they have always been fine, no holes burnt through tin sumps, no rust inside.

 

Am I wrong? Please explain it to me why folk waste oil by changing it because of a date rather than time used.

 

I don't think so, especially as we are now running on low sulphur fuel so far less sulphuric acid produced during combustion. However I would attempt to organise my oil changes so I got fresh oil in for periods where the engine would only run now and again.

 

As long as the OP has been using a detergent oil and has been doing regular oil and filter changes I doubt running for another 50 hours now and again will make any measurable difference to the engine's longevity or war rate.

 

 

 

 

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If the service interval is (for example) 100 hours use/1 year time, then it would make sense to schedule the oil change to be done in reasonable weather, rather than deep winter, simply to make it more comfortable to do. Similarly, if you know its due but doing it early on a nice day rather than waiting until mid-winter, fair enough.

 

Apart from that though, just do it according to the scheduled intervals.

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Peter like us doesnt use the engine for a prolonged period in winter. In our case in the past it has been up to 9 months. We therefore change the oil on our boat before we head back overseas. We do the same with the car here.

it means there is thin clean oil rather than dusty acidic oil round the bearings and rings for the period.

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58 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Peter like us doesnt use the engine for a prolonged period in winter. In our case in the past it has been up to 9 months. We therefore change the oil on our boat before we head back overseas. We do the same with the car here.

it means there is thin clean oil rather than dusty acidic oil round the bearings and rings for the period.

You have antigravity oil that stays suspended in the engine internals all winter?

Dusty oil? What brand is that? Just how can oil contain enough acid to attack steel when it is coated in oil?

Never seen an oil sump, or filter can or rocker box rusty inside. Please someone show me one quick, winter is coming.

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54 minutes ago, Boater Sam said:

You have antigravity oil that stays suspended in the engine internals all winter?

Dusty oil? What brand is that? Just how can oil contain enough acid to attack steel when it is coated in oil?

Never seen an oil sump, or filter can or rocker box rusty inside. Please someone show me one quick, winter is coming.

  I should stop buying fresh oil and instead take the part worn oil off others who are chucking it away. It’d do for my car. 

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2 minutes ago, Goliath said:

  I should stop buying fresh oil and instead take the part worn oil off others who are chucking it away. It’d do for my car. 

Yes!

Not seriously but I had a mini many many years ago that burnt oil like a supertanker and we ran it on sump oil from the garage for 3 years, engine oil gear oil, brake fluid etc. all in there.

Never changed the filter, sold it to a mate who did the same for another year or more. It never got any worse, never broke down, didn't rattle, ran just fine.

 

Ah, those were the days when oil was real oil.

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10 minutes ago, Boater Sam said:

Yes!

Not seriously but I had a mini many many years ago that burnt oil like a supertanker and we ran it on sump oil from the garage for 3 years, engine oil gear oil, brake fluid etc. all in there.

Never changed the filter, sold it to a mate who did the same for another year or more. It never got any worse, never broke down, didn't rattle, ran just fine.

 

Ah, those were the days when oil was real oil.

Likewise.

 

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32 minutes ago, catweasel said:

Classic car buffs that I have spoken to claim that mucky oil attacks white bearings, and they put clean oil in for winter layup.  Don't shoot the messenger.

So it would make sense to schedule a yearly service for around autumn time (so that its fresh for winter). 

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52 minutes ago, catweasel said:

Classic car buffs that I have spoken to claim that mucky oil attacks white bearings, and they put clean oil in for winter layup.  Don't shoot the messenger.

Yes and I have a 1960s engine.

Besides have you looked at cc grade oil after 6 months of use, and compared it with fresh ? It also means you get on boat crank to get pressure and start, with nice clean oil,  round the rings and bearings. I also do the rockers with an oil can. 

if god forbid someone moves the boat for you at least its all nice and clean and not sludged up.

No faffing about jetlagged changing oil. Most times Im boating within 20 hrs of getting here and sometimes the same day.

i accept with modern synthetic oil you are ok to leave it, but even so after advice from our car mechanic I shifted the service to suit our lifestyle.

 

must be doing something right my first lister did 23 years   never overhauled not using oil, and it was weary after years of bwb service before us, and we hammered around towing the butty , dragging dead hire boats and the odd load.it was 10 years before the next owner rebuilt it.

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28 minutes ago, Paul C said:

So it would make sense to schedule a yearly service for around autumn time (so that its fresh for winter). 

I always used to do before we lived aboard. At worst, it can't do any harm. I would fire it up a couple of times over winter to chuck some oil around. A few k for an engine compared to 30 quid or so for an oil and filter.

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I'm not sure if you fully understood my suggestion. I never suggested skipping or stretching out service intervals. My suggestion was that if your usage meant that your own oil changes happened to fall yearly, it would make sense to make the time of year (probably by pulling it slightly forwards) to a time other than winter time, simply for comfort/convenience of doing the job. And if you were able to choose spring-summer-autumn, then autumn might make the best sense to protect better over the winter.

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5 minutes ago, Paul C said:

I'm not sure if you fully understood my suggestion. I never suggested skipping or stretching out service intervals. My suggestion was that if your usage meant that your own oil changes happened to fall yearly, it would make sense to make the time of year (probably by pulling it slightly forwards) to a time other than winter time, simply for comfort/convenience of doing the job. And if you were able to choose spring-summer-autumn, then autumn might make the best sense to protect better over the winter.

Sorry didn't mean to imply that you were suggesting such, and if it came across as such, please accept my apologies.
Yes that is what I would generally do, perhaps bring a service forward instead of leaving it until spring.

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So the interval is 200 hours and I'm currently to about 235, hence the question. I'd prefer not to leave it to do an oil change nearer layup time but change oil now, though the engine does get 3 to 6 hours use each day, not short runs. I use the oil recommended by the engine company.

 

Like Roland I don't use the boat over winter and it sits for 7 months. So perhaps I should be doing one oil change now and one for winter. 

 

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2 minutes ago, Paul C said:

We don't know enough details to say - we don't know how many hours you'll have done before "winter", in your eyes, starts. When does your 7 month long winter occur?

 

7 hours ago, PeterCr said:

I'll be back at my marina to lay the boat up for the winter in about 40 or 50 hours.

 

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