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Hi,

I unfortunately managed to run out of oil (shame on me). having replaced the oil filter and refilled the engine with oil i checked the dip stick and it is showing no oil i have so far put 9L in engine is a Kubota 3 cylinder and should take around 7 L.

 

i can not see any leaks does anyone have any idea where the oil could be going??

Thanks in advance.

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Hi,

I unfortunately managed to run out of oil (shame on me). having replaced the oil filter and refilled the engine with oil i checked the dip stick and it is showing no oil i have so far put 9L in engine is a Kubota 3 cylinder and should take around 7 L.

 

i can not see any leaks does anyone have any idea where the oil could be going??

Thanks in advance.

 

New clean oil can be very hard to see on a dipstick. Try laying the end of the stick on some kitchen towel and look at the stain.

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yes there is oil under the engine but unfortunately, i left some old oil in the well (got bored getting rid of it) am about to remove it all.

i did have someone watching and there was no visible of the oil moving was a still as a mill pool.

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Hi,

I unfortunately managed to run out of oil (shame on me). having replaced the oil filter and refilled the engine with oil i checked the dip stick and it is showing no oil i have so far put 9L in engine is a Kubota 3 cylinder and should take around 7 L.

 

i can not see any leaks does anyone have any idea where the oil could be going??

Thanks in advance.

That's a lot of oil. Is the engine the BD1005, because if it is then with the standard sump it should take 6 litres and the shallow sump 5 litres.

Could it be that there is sooo much oil in there that the oil level is way above the full mark, where I assume you are looking?

 

Rob....

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where did the oil go, and how did it get out when it ran out of oil initially? Or did it burn it?

I don't know this engine, but assume it has a sump? If oil is being poured in and it isn't showing on the dipstick, there is either insufficient oil in the sump, or it is passing through somewhere. As has been suggested it can be difficult to see clean oil on a dipstick; my gearbox is thus.


That's a lot of oil. Is the engine the BD1005, because if it is then with the standard sump it should take 6 litres and the shallow sump 5 litres.

Could it be that there is sooo much oil in there that the oil level is way above the full mark, where I assume you are looking?

 

Rob....

that's a thought. Perhaps try cleaning the dipstick and only insert half way?

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just removed more oil from below the engine i now believe that there is more there then when i last left it, i also pour additional oil into the waste under the engine and there was hardly a ripple.

 

conclusion oil is escaping from the sump, as if it was a seal then there would still be oil in the sump until the engine was run. also must be below the gasket level for the same reason. would that make sense or have i missed something?

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Don't run it if its way overfull, drain some out. You say you ran out of oil, did a buzzer sound? did it stop? did a pressure gauge read zero? If the engine has a sump pump can you pump oil out? if it has a drain plug on the sump bottom is it still there? you should be up to your ankles in oil by now and its either in the engine and about to come out of the top or its under the engine somewhere.

Edited by Bee
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Do you have an oil drain pump that is connected to the sump plug hole by a flexible hose? Has that failed?

 

................Dave

Or has the sump plug just fallen out? Look under the engine when you get the old oil out.

 

A few rolls of industrial blue hand wipe paper will be your friend when removing the spilt oil.

 

Tony

 

Edited for autoincorrect

Edited by WotEver
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I wondered about disposable nappies? Great for water in bilges, but never tried them with oil spills.

I wondered exactly the same thing but like you I wasn't sure.

 

A mate of mine works for Severn Trent and gave me a bunch of pads that they use for chemical spills. It took a while (days) for them to soak up all the oil but they did a great job. Or you can buy them. But paper towel is cheaper (and messier).

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I wondered exactly the same thing but like you I wasn't sure.

 

A mate of mine works for Severn Trent and gave me a bunch of pads that they use for chemical spills. It took a while (days) for them to soak up all the oil but they did a great job. Or you can buy them. But paper towel is cheaper (and messier).

Some experiment under laboratory conditions is called for smile.png

I'll pick some up on my next visit to Asda wink.png

 

ps cat litter definitely works but again slowly.

Edited by Guest
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I used very cheap nappies once. They soaked up everything. I thought I'll just leave them there for another 24 hrs to make sure. When I came back they had completely disintegrated and I had more mess than I started with.

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I think I'd try a funnel into empty 5l oil bottle, and sacrifice a cup to try get most of the oil out. Once you're so far, you could try tilting the boat as much as possible to get it to one or another side. Then, loads of blue roll or cheap kitchen roll, get as much as possible each wipe and put into plastic bags (double bag if you want - 10p then though...) It doesn't need to be so clean you could eat your dinner off, but it needs to be clean enough to see drips of more oil coming out when you add some more.

 

I suspect its not the sump gasket which would be above the level of the oil (I think??) but the sump drain plug. A dentist's mirror might be needed to do a reasonable inspection.


I'd wear disposable rubber gloves too, because that amount of oil is going to play havoc with your hand moisturising routine.

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Thank you for your time and replies.

i have brought 2 large bags of cat litter which i hope will absorb the last of the oil in the well and then i will dispose of it, i shall also check the sump bolt as suggested, for the sump to be completely empty would indicate that the oil must be leaving at the lowest point or being blocked before reaching the sump is that possible?

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The dipstick will not reach the bottom of the sump. Equally, I can't see how the oil can fail to reach the sump.

 

I agree that I would aim to scoop most of it out and into an empty 5l container for recycling before going for an absorption route.

 

Daniel

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ISTR a virtually identical thread a couple of years ago. OP had bunged 15 litres (or something mad) in and it didn't register on the dipstick.

 

Turned out the flexible tube to the lift pump had split IIRC, and it was all in the engine bilge...

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check the seals on the oil filter. It is good practice to remove the filter housing from the engine to ensure the seals are seated well, then refit the housing, very easy to loose all the engine, oil which can be expencive.

Doesn't the Beta (Kubota) have a spin on filter, so the seal is on the filter. The oil wouldn't come out of a badly fitted filter until the engine was started so would be obvious when you do post oil change checks.

I think the op should check the sump pump pipe for splits. That's where I would be looking first.

Edited by Flyboy
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If you have a flexible hose 'or any type of pipe if it comes to that' I'd fit a shut off tap onto the sump first and then the hose-pipe and pump after that. This way after using the pump you can isolate the whole pump and pipes when you've finished pumping the oil out.

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ISTR a virtually identical thread a couple of years ago. OP had bunged 15 litres (or something mad) in and it didn't register on the dipstick.

 

Turned out the flexible tube to the lift pump had split IIRC, and it was all in the engine bilge...

 

I have used cat litter to clear the residue from under the engine a real pain but done.

 

tbh have no idea what a lift pump is or a iirc so will look both up.

I have mananged to get a spanner no the sump bolt seems over tight also have a bolt on the side of the sump that also is tight however i guess that the seals could have perished.

have recently changed the filter so will recheck the seals, however i would have thought some oil would be in the sump as is lower then the filter or am i missing something?

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I have used cat litter to clear the residue from under the engine a real pain but done.

 

tbh have no idea what a lift pump is or a iirc so will look both up.

I have mananged to get a spanner no the sump bolt seems over tight also have a bolt on the side of the sump that also is tight however i guess that the seals could have perished.

have recently changed the filter so will recheck the seals, however i would have thought some oil would be in the sump as is lower then the filter or am i missing something?

I think MTB meant the oil change hand lift pump. If you have a leak at the oil filter seal or anywhere the engines internal oil pressure pump will pump all or most of the oil out.

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I think MTB meant the oil change hand lift pump. If you have a leak at the oil filter seal or anywhere the engines internal oil pressure pump will pump all or most of the oil out.

Of course the classic mistake is not noticing that the old seal ring stayed on the fitting, so now there are two seals = no seal at all. I always have a good look at the housing before putting the new filter on, even if the old seal came off with the old filter. (Sorry, I know for some on here this is teaching my mother's mother how to perform ovum contents extraction by applied vacuum, but there some newbies reading this too, I hope.)

 

However, if I've understood the OP aright, he's not tried to start the engine, just poured a lot of oil into hopefully the right filler and it's all mysteriously disappeared.

 

Can't wait for the next instalment...

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