Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

[martygry7162]

OK...... here goes this is the step by step process for changing the lower unit gear oil......first things first........the 1st time i drained the lower unit it was all milky no metel chunks just milky so i drained it filled it then did nothing........next i started the hole process over again by loosening the level screw to release presure then i removed the fill screw and sense i didn't turn the engine over the oil came out nice and dark (just like it should) then i backed out the level screw all the way so the oil flowed out nice then i checked the nylon washers in the 2 screws and there were none (nice way to screw things up wouldn't you say) so i replaced them both next i filled the unit up from the bottom????until the oil flowed from the level screw then i replaced the level screw remover the fill hose and quickly replaced the fill screw.............................................done right????????????????? is there anything i didn't do that should have been done???????????? of so please feel free to edit this post with any corrections

 

[bubbakat]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

Sounds about right to me.

 

[nightstalker]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

That's the way I do it.<br />Stalker

 

[rickdb1boat]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

The only thing that concerns me is the milky looking fluid. Try running it again on the water when you get a chance and drain it again and see what it looks like. Probably was the lack of seals on the screws that let some water in, but it sounds like you did real good!

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

do i have to run it in water or will the muffs work?

 

[rickdb1boat]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

You will need to run it in the water or in a barrel of water to see if it's leaking, but I think you got it with the seals on the screws. That's in the top ten list for leaks...

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

i do have a 55 gal barrel but if i tell my wife that i have to take in the water to really test it she may go for that

 

[rodbolt]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

hello<br /> about the only steps I see missing are the dropped the screw in the sand and spilled my cool refresing beverage ones.<br /> good luck but do keep an eye on the color of the fluid. remember it takes a teaspoon full of discolored oil to discolor all the new oil. so keep that in mind at the next service.<br /> good luck and keep posting

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

rick, what would be the steps needed if it still leaks?

 

[rickdb1boat]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

The first thing I would suspect is the propshaft seal. Sometimes you get fishing line behind the prop and it eats up the seal. But lets not jump ahead of ourselves just yet. Try it out and see what happens. Those seals on the screws are definetly suspect. If worse came to worse and it did look milky after you run it again, you could apply a small amount of pressure to the lower unit through the vent hole and submerge it in a tank of water and look for bubbles.

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

well i took her out for a spin what a great little ride this boat is(1989 bass tracker pro17 w/ 40hp evinrude o/b) BUT and i hate to throw the BUT out there BUT i need to because there's still water getting into the lower unit. still no metal chunks so thats a good thing BUT now i need some help on where to go from here. the oil comes out looking like melted coffee ice cream A.K.A. milky. how much damage does this water in the unit cause? and what would your next step be in addressing this problem???????????????<br />thanks for what ever you can give me.<br />marty

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

i'd like to thank all who help me on this and to now again ask for help as i said the test returned with water in the lower unit again so i drained it and filled it with new oil... now it's recomended that i do a presure test to it. this i will do once i get some info and tips from you guys and gals. like what kind and were do i get a gaude for this and what is recomended for applying said presure i get the gist of the test i drain the oil put the level screw back attach gauge to fill and inflate checking presure at set intervails ....so i ask????how do i presurize it and how much presure do i apply and then check to see that said presure is maintained

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

i did the pressure test and it didn't hold so i sprayed soapy water on the fill/drain screws with no apparent leaks from there i sprayed the seals behind the anode on the prop shaft and saw nothing bubbling there either i then sprayed above the fill screw along the cavitation plate did i miss something because i see nothing bubbling and don't know what to do next but i'm sure someone else knows.<br />thanks

 

[Ben Konopacky]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

hi martygray; there are a couple more seals to be checked,but the l/u has to be dropped to check the drive & shift shaft seals. submerge the whole L/u in the drum and check for bubbles. Drain as much oil as you can from the l/u. good luck<br /><br /> Ben

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

what do you mean? (DROPPED). do you mean removing the l/u or just dropping it into a barral of water

 

[Bass Runner]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

he's talking about taking the lower unit off the motor and checking the drive shaft and shifter rod seal, when you take the l/u off you will see them then do the test again.

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

so i need to remove the l/u (what a wonder toy this turned out to be)

 

[martygry7162]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

do i need to remove the shift pin from under the powerhead before dropping the L/U????????

 

[shade788]

Re: Did i miss any steps changing the lower unit oil?

Just my 2 cents, but:<br /><br />When I change my lower unit oil I buy a whole quart. I have a fitting that goes into the fill hole (lower hole.)<br /><br />I hang the quart bottle with a piece of hose way above the engine and let gravity put the oil into the LU. I wait until the oil comes out of the vent hole (upper hole.) Then I let it keep coming out and keep an eye on the quart bottle. I let clean oil come out of the vent hole until the quart is almost empty. Then I put the vent screw in and then the drain screw. That usually gets all the old dark oil out.<br /><br />I don't think I am hurting anything by doing this and it cleans out all of the old oil.<br /><br />Just my 2 cents. If what I am doing is a bad thing please let me know. I just figured for the $3 the quart costs why not run it all through.<br /><br />