How many hours are you getting out of your engine oil? I've been changing the oil in my mini every 100 hrs. However, the last 20 hrs leading up to the 100 hour mark, the oil seems to be thinner. On cold starts, the oil pressure doesn't come up fast enough to keep the oil pressure switch from shutting down the machine- second crank the oil pressure comes up and the machine runs fine. (This may be also be due to an adjustment needed to the OPS.) What is your oil change interval?
How does your 100 hour change compare with what the manufacturer recommends..? What brand and weight of oil are you using..? What does the manual recommend..?
I'm using 15w40 which is what is indicated on the engine sticker. Last oil change I bought Shell semi-synthetic. I haven't been consistently using the same brand, but I don't recall having bought straight mineral oil for any of the changes. There's not always a big selection in the 15w40 weight and I've been buying what's available with the hopes that what's inside the jug matches the description on the outside. I don't have the owners' manual. However, I was told every 100 hrs for the engine oil. If someone knows differently, I'd be glad to listen.
You didn't mention what machine make & model of it is. Also working without some sort of manufacturer's recommendation is always likely to be a bit hit & miss. No offence intended but "I was told" doesn't cut it in my department.
Our JD 27 says 250 hours with an extended up to 500 hour. What do you mean with hopes of the oil inside matches up with the outside. Why would it not?? We use the CI-4 15w40 oils in our machines. We change engine oil every 250 hours or 3 months (which ever comes first) and pull a oil sample to send out to the lab. We sample all other compartments at 1000 hours and We change our other compartment oils every 2000 hours with sampling each compartment. What gets me with excavators is that people will change thier engine oil & filter on a consistant basis, but not their hydraulic filters and oils. The hydraulic system on a excavator is the heart of the machine. Scatter a pump and the machine could very well be done. Blow an engine and you can swing a new engine easy enough. It is so hard to clean out the hydraulic system when a pump scatters. Just 2-5 micron piece can cause damage and complaints in the hydraulics.
volvo ec15b. "no offence"??? lol... this isn't a girl scout forum- say what you have to say and don't be sorry about it.
When 2 brands of oil have identical spec's listed on the jug, but one is 40% more expensive than the other, it begs the question: "Is the cheaper stuff just as good as the expensive stuff?". Either I'm optimistic about bad oil or pessimistic about good oil. I'm not sure which one, yet.
I did that once today in another thread and got my *** handed to me.....some people are so into scoring points instead of addressing the OP's problem it's unreal ........... I'll have a look at some of the info you're posted and get back to you.
I hope it wasnt on my post with the bearings adjustment. I got THICK skin.........Differences of opinions is what makes a good forum..........
Are you comparing the product data sheets? There is some valuable info in the PDS and without testing the only way you can compare 2 oils. You mentioned you used a semi synthetic oil....synthetic is purely a marketing term, according to the law any oil thats been hydrocracked, hydrotreated, dewaxed can be considered a synthetic oil. Synthetic means it has been chemically changed from its original form, All oils go through these treatment processes. Any oil that is a PAO (type 4 oil man made from ethane gas) will say synthetic PAO. There can be a big difference. There are both good and bad engine oils that are mineral oil you just need to look at the details. Also for longer oil life you need to look for the TBN (true base number) this is the oils ability to counteract acids, the higher the TBN the longer lasting the oil. One other big factor can be the cleanliness of the oil. Most major oils come with quit a bit of dirt in the barrel. Thats why CAT came out with there cleanliness specs for warranty.
Blitz, thanks for your input. No, I haven't compared the data sheets. From what you said in your post, I have some homework to do. Thanks again.
Years ago we always figured 100 hours on farm equipment running in dusty conditions for an oil change. Gas burner cars & trucks 3000 miles and heavy diesel trucks 10,000 miles.Thats a good idea watching the oil pressure gauge on cold starts to get an indication if the oil is thinning as I do the same thing with my Detroit diesel engines . My dad still changes oil in the farm tractors at 100 hours and I will let the dirt moving equipment go 200 plus today as costs go up on oil.Like I said the oil pressure gauge is a great tool to help monitor oil condition and when checking oil I wipe the end of the dipstick between the fingers and if it feels a little "gritty" I change it.I never did buy in to the idea that oil was only good for a certain amout of time while setting still. I only figure off of running hours .Good luck with it joispoi.
Engine oil thickens as it gets older (impacted). Also, if you are feeling grit as a indicatior to change your oil you are way too late in changing your oil.
Im trying not to be a jerk but I disagree strongly with everything you posted. Judging an oils viscosity, base number (ability to counteract acids), intact additive package, cleanliness is impossible using an oil pressure gauge. All these things can destroy oil. Oil just like anything is susceptible to oxidation, which will change the oil at a molecular level. Like FMD said when oil sheers it can gain viscosity. If its cold it will be more viscous, hot will lessen the viscosity. Feeling grit in your oil would tell me that your engine has already seen 10x the dirt/soot that it should and you are taking years off your engines life. Any time you are going to look at extending oil changes you absolutely need to employ oil analysis.
Yes FMD and blitz138,I understand what your saying but what you are missing is small amounts of fuel entering the crankcase over time thins the engine oil. So buy keeping an eye on oil pressure you can judge the viscosity off the new oil change & keep an eye on it as the machine builds hours to the next oil change. As joispoi mentiond in his first post he thinks the oil is thinning. As for checking oil in my equipment its pretty simple. 1 pull dipstick 2 wipe dipstick with thumb & index finger then feel the oil between fingers. 3 smell the oil, traces of fuel maybe? 4 If loosing coolant look if the oil is milky or even taste it .Will have somewhat of a sweet flavor if coolant in oil. 5 If all checks out slam the hood & go Thats a field oil analysis....... Heck I thought everybody done this? If you feel ya also need a lab analysis then can also go that route.
My "Field Analysis Procedure" almost exactly mirrors TD's (except for the tasting, never thought of that one). I think TD and I come from a slightly different world than some. Notice in his post he isn't going for extended drain intervals as you think of them, since he is changing oil at around 200 hrs. We are people who own, operate, and repair older equipment, with maybe a few helpers and a few more hinderers. If you feel the oil is thin, or gritty, you don't wait for the 200 hrs, you change it now, and find the problem.
Yair . . . A bit O/T but I knew a bloke who tried not own any diesel engine that had the injectors under the tappet cover. He reckoned that reduced oil thinning problems and, if possible, he used air cooled as he reckoned a problem that was just an oil leak on a Hatz, or Deutz, or Lister, or Lister was a bigger problem on liquid cooled. Each to his own I guess. Cheers.
Our oil change interval is 250-300 hours on our skid steers and 244j . We use rimula 15w40. The machines have between 6000 - 9000 hrs and never had a problem
Nige your handier than a shirt on a pocket and have gotten me outta a pinch several times.....just sayin Pj
I switched parts counters and what a difference that makes. I brought in a "will fit" filter to a new parts store and the guy behind the counter quickly explained to me that he wouldn't sell me a filter without knowing which filter was supposed to be on the machine. The last filter I had been sold had the same dimensions, but the relief valve pressure is a mystery to me. He also sold me a 20 L bucket of machine grade 15w-40. Not at all the same thing as automotive grade. Call this part of continuing education.
I try to get my equipment at the 250 hour mark. Most companies equipment we are running say 250 but there are a few that say 500. Most of our road tractors get a change about every 8 months and they are typically in the 5-6000 mile range. We have a few pieces of equipment that get a yearly change even if they do not get hours put on them , I have seen two pieces that had less than 5 hours in a years time and other ones get changed in less than a month. While you should go by your manufacturers recommendation your company may have a different service schedule depending on the type of oil your running and your situation. We have 2 Kawasaki Mules we use for flagger vehicles on overlays, Kawasaki recommends oil change intervals at 25 hours, at that rate I would be changing the oil every 2-3 days. One other thing you may consider is a filter cutter so you can open your oil filter up and see if there are any particles in there, and you can understand the construction of various manufacturers products.
I change my engine oil and(cat brand) filters every 250hrs, I only use chevron delo 400 15-40. I am currently at around 23.300hrs. And have never been into the engine (Cat 3306). And it still uses no oil between changes.
A resounding confirmation that when it comes to lubricants and filters - you get what you pay for. I'm not saying Brand X is better than Brand Y, simply don't go buying 5 gallon jugs of oil and filters from your local "Joe Blow's Gas & Groceries" - you will regret it.
I use oil sampling to determine drain intervals, they give recommendations for either shortening or extending intervals. No matter what they say, I won't go over 250 hours on engine oil, even if the samples are good enough to be extended more, all other oils we'll extend as recommended though, but pull samples between drains to see how things are going or if we are having problems or water contamination. It was also not stated how many hours per season or year the machine gets run, that plays into drain intervals too, how much time is spent sitting doing nothing or in storage.
I put 400 hours on the machine this year (that leaves 8,360 hours of sitting and doing nothing per year ). I have the answer to my question, but this thread doesn't have to be specific to my machine.
Exactly what I do, that's some serious hours digger.
Me too. I am religious when it comes to the yellow iron getting oil changes at 250 hrs. Use Cat filters and cat dealer oil, which is formulated to Cat specs. I have found I can buy the dealer brand oil very competitive with other brands. Skids and mini gets oil changed at 100-150 hrs and I use Bobcat filters and the cat dealer oil.
Why so soon on the Bobcat oil?
Smaller harder working engine with a smaller oil capacity. How often do you change a small air cooled engine? 10-20 hours at most.
Delmer said it. The Bobcat engine is smaller, packed inside the machine and runs WOT pretty much all the time.
Yair . . . Delmer In my experience over here twenty hour oil changes would be unnecessary and just don't happen. Apart from the whipper-snipper (line trimmer) engines that run five to seven thousand revs and get changed each working day I have always tried to oil change at around a hundred hours. We have Kohler, Kawasaki and Honda air-cooled engines in mowers at around seven thousand hours and have done over two thousand on the little Honda line trimmers and I am constantly amazed. On various forums I see mention of the poor engine life and reliability of air-cooled generator engines in the US. I assume the basic gen-set uses a two pole alternator which would run at three thousand six hundred revs to get your sixty cycles versus the same engine here doing three thousand to get our fifty cycles, would this be a factor do you think? Cheers.
The manual for the air cooled Onan engine on my miller welder states first oil change (break in) at 25 hours. After that they suggest changing oil & filter at 50 to 100 hours depending on conditions. I use the "In field oil analysis" to decide after 50 hours. At least I dont have to check for antifreeze in the oil .LOL
Eh dar Scrub Maybe comparing the oil change interval on a modern car vs an old Ford tractor would be more appropriate. Modern engines are much better tuned so they stay cleaner. Small diesels tend to be "less refined" than the same age of larger diesel. Over here Kohler and Honda are premium engines, not sure on Kawasaki? But even then, I'd never intentionally let a GX160-390 go 100 hours, it just seems like they are so exposed to dirt and abuse, plus there's no oil filter??? Go down to the low end engines that lack oil filters plus bearings, cylinder liners, overhead valves... First oil change looks like quicksilver. We even have an EPA sticker right on the engine that basically tells you this engine won't last till it's first oil change. Your assumption is correct on RPM, that can't help generators, but the engines are cheap, cheap, cheap.
I go by the manual which is 250hrs. Mine holds around 3 or 4 gallons. I hardly ever run it wide open. Small engines? 50-100hrs depending on what.
40% of engine oil is changed to early. Another 40% is changed too late. 20% of oil is changed on time. Those 20% are doing oil samples. Everyone runs their equipment differently and in different environments. You won't know what your oil is doing and can do for you until you monitor it with samples.