Color of oil leaking from L.U.

[Captn' Tony]

Hey Folks, I have a 50 HP merc 500 and when I drained the oil from the bottom of the lower unit it was mostly white in color. I'm also getting some water draining out too. What does the oil color indicate and how is the water getting into the lower unit? Is there a cure? I'm confident that I need to replace the seal as I am gettting oil leaking out through the center of the prop. Thaks! Captn' Tony!

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

You have water in the oil.<br />But how it got there could be from loose fill/drain screw, missing or worn plastic fill/drain washers..or any one of the inner or outer seals .<br />You gotta ask yourself.. Do I feel Lucky <br />Seriously.. the second best(and cheapest)way to find out is to flush it and re-fill with clean oil ,insert new rubber washers and take it for a spin. The best is to get it pressure tested.Make dead sure it's the seals before going there, as it's a job for the skilled and needs a few special tools.<br />BTW If the oil from the prop is after sitting for a while, it could be just unburned 2 stroke.<br />If it smells pertolly That's what it is.

 

[Captn' Tony]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

Thanks 205!, But just to clarify for me, I should make sure it is the seals before getting it pressure tested? If so, what's the connection? A pressure test will show me if the seals are bad right?

 

[OBJ]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

"Do I feel Lucky?" GAWD DB that's good LOL <br /><br />Lemme drop $.02 worth here.<br /><br />Capt...if you can rig a bicycle pump to the lower unit and put in a few pounds (10psi should do it) of air in the lower unit, and dunk the whole gizmo in a garbage can full of water, that should tell ya' where the water is gettin in. If ya' got more than one leak, reseal the whole lower unit. Like DB posted, merc lower units take a couple special tools that everyone just don't carry in a tool box. But a good manual will show ya' how it's done.<br /><br />Good Luck and don't hesitate to post any questions.

 

[Captn' Tony]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

Thank's Guys I'll give the pressure test a try and see what happens. I'll let ya know! Thanks for the input.

 

[andrewkafp]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

"Tackle shop Admiral" ??? <br />How'd you git that... You've either been very helpful or very disruptive... <br /><br />Jim .. summed it up nicely. Also, do a search on Pressure test on the iboats search feature.<br />There are some similar aprroaches.

 

[OBJ]

Re: Color of oil leaking from L.U.

Me disruptive????? Naw. Not me! Jist axe Rick