Water in oil pan

[Fish Wistler]

Inboard/outboard 5.7L OMC 1990
Started the boat at the dock last week and she purred like a kitten. No problems.

So with this atmospheric river and my auto bilge failing, water level rose to the floor of the boat so starter and pan were submerged.Water has made it's way into the oil pan somehow. I noticed this because the dipstick level was much too high.
I sucked out the water and the remaining oil looks good as new. I have not started the engine since water entered the pan. The oil level look good so I believe I've sucked out 90% or more of the water. My plan is to suck all the oil out and replace with new oil and change filter as well. I plan on doing this until oil is clean. I also plan to take the spark plugs out just to make sure no water is in the top end.

Question 1...
After I sucked out the water I did try to hit the starter and it only clicked. My batteries had enough juice to start my kicker and pump out the bilge, so has the water in the starter caused a short and that is why it didn't turn the engine over? Is there any chance water has made it's way to the top end and it is hydrolicing?

Question 2
Where exactly does the water come in from to make it's way into the pan? Through the starter and pasted the crank seal? Through the pan gasket?
Note that I never have any engine oil leaks into the bilge and it seems the bottom end sealed tight?

Any help appreciated

 

[ab1752]

Hard to say without pics. But use ****** oil when you change it and change it a few times. I'd pull some plugs to see if there's any water down those holes too.

 

[northwest wind]

Usually water can get in through the dipstick tube. Turn engine over by hand use a socket and ratchet on front of crank. If it turns over by hand your starter might have been under water and not working. If engine doesn’t turn over by hand pull spark plugs out and turn over and get water out of the cylinders. Get water out of pan and start up with old oil as it will get milky anyway. Change oil until clean and get engine up to temperature and steam any remaining water out.

 

[Fish Wistler]

Usually water can get in through the dipstick tube. Turn engine over by hand use a socket and ratchet on front of crank. If it turns over by hand your starter might have been under water and not working. If engine doesn’t turn over by hand pull spark plugs out and turn over and get water out of the cylinders. Get water out of pan and start up with old oil as it will get milky anyway. Change oil until clean and get engine up to temperature and steam any remaining water out.

When you say dipstick tube, do you mean water would run down from the top of the dipstick tube?

 

[northwest wind]

When you say dipstick tube, do you mean water would run down from the top of the dipstick tube?

Yes if it is low enough how high did the water get? Was the boat in the water or on a trailer? If it was in the water then water could have gotten into the cylinders through the exhaust

 

[salmonkiller01]

Almost wondering if the water came thru risers maybe? Do the boat sit low in the water?
Pull plugs and roll engine over a few times to ensure no water in your pistons.
I would try and get it started asap. Longer it sits the more it will rust internally

 

[Fish Wistler]

Boat is in the water. The water was nowhere near high enough to submerge the dipstick. The water lever raised to just below the front crank pulley, above the oil pan gasket level.

 

[Fish Wistler]

I do not believe the water came in through risers. Boat sits fairly high out of the water. I will definitely attend to this asap. My gut is telling me water seeped in from around the pan gasket. I pumped out approximately 3 liters of water.

 

[Fish Wistler]

Dipstick tube is higher than my intake manifold and water level only rose to just above the oil pan. Probably 20 inches between the water level and the top of the dipstick tube

 

[northwest wind]

I’m betting boat lowered in the water and the water came into engine through the exhaust. So you will have to pull spark plugs roll engine over by hand first to get water out then use starter to turn it over with plugs out to get even more water out

 

[Fish Wistler]

Boat didn't lower into the water any more than it has in the past. She sits quite high. My gut is water weeped in another way but will still follow those steps to be safe.

 

[northwest wind]

Just roll it over with a socket and a ratchet that will tell you the story maybe if you’re lucky it’s just the starter that needs replaced and a couple of oil changes

 

[Fish Wistler]

Just roll it over with a socket and a ratchet that will tell you the story maybe if you’re lucky it’s just the starter that needs replaced and a couple of oil changes

Will do, I will report my findings.

 

[jim morrow]

The water might have come in thru the crankshaft seals at the front or rear of the crankshaft. That starter will have to be taken apart and cleaned.

 

[ab1752]

Use cheap oil...but do not bump the key until you know there's not water in the cylinders. Pull the plugs and have a look first.

 

[sly_karma]

I assume you have charged the battery since yesterday? If the newly charged battery won't turn the engine, use a set of booster cables to bypass the solenoid, see if you can spin the starter that way. Identifies which component is the problem. Take a can of Boeshield with you, or WD40 in a pinch. Moisture in the solenoid is probably the culprit. Use some fine emery paper to clean up corroded terminals, spray some boeshield on before reconnecting.

 

[Max123]

Here's my bet: Its the dipstick tube. Not flowing in from the top, but getting in at the bottom of the tube. On a lot of engines, the dipstick tube isn't threaded - its just pressed in (maybe an o-ring). If the tube didn't have a good seal (maybe got knocked in the past, or no seal at all), that's the only way I could see 3L of water getting into the oil pan (no way that weeped in past a seal, especially since you say the engine didn't leak oil). If that doesn't check out, look for old breather tubes that are part of the PCV system that may have cracked (maybe the oil pan is vented?). I don't recall seeing anything this low, but who knows.

Regardless, sounds like you have the right plan: pump out oil, run, dump again till clean.

I suspect your starter just got wet, and the contacts aren't working. Compressed air / hair dryer will help. Alternatively, could just be a low battery - I'd try with a jump pack as well.

At least rainwater isn't salt water - hope it didn't come in through the risers, but seems unlikely.

 

[noluck]

first pull the spark plugs first before adding jump packs, or more battery power. chances are with water in the pan it is in the cylinders as well

 

[Doug]

I had a similar problem. Went out fishing everything ran well. Then the next day went to start up and click click click and the engine wouldn't turn over, so I pulled a plug and nothing came out, went to the other bank and pulled a plug and water came out so i knew I had a cracked riser on one side and sure enough it was cracked.

I don't think the water is coming in from any of the engine gaskets or seal. The internal pressure of the engine is way higher than any external water pressure. Just look at you oil pressure gauge and see the oil pressure. If a gasket or any seal was leaking you would be puking oil out into the bilge.

If water is coming out from the spark plug hole, water is sitting on the top of the cylinder and I think the water is getting in though the exhaust port. How old are the risers and maybe you have a cracked riser flooding back into the exhaust ports and into the pistons and then running past the pistons into the oil pan.

Take out the plugs and disconnect the spark and then crank it over and see if water comes out, just like fish whistler said. Once cranked over a few times, spray wd40 in each plug hole. Then drain the oil and re fill. You want to make sure no rust forms on the cylinder walls that is why a good shot of wd40 will help, and you don't want to slip a piston ring due to a blob of rust forming on the cast engine block cylinder wall.

Another place water can possible leak in is where the oil dip stick tube enters the the engine block. the tube might not be hammered in tight enough.

Watch out trying to turn over the engine with out removing the plugs. The starter clicking could mean the cylinder is water loaded and if your starter is strong enough you could bend a piston rod.

good luck.

 

[terrin]

Dipstick tube is higher than my intake manifold and water level only rose to just above the oil pan. Probably 20 inches between the water level and the top of the dipstick tube

Previous Poster did not mean the top of the dip stick tube but rather the bottom where it enters the block.