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water in engine oil:

S

sweatdaddy

New member
About 3 weeks ago I went to my boat checked the oil in both engines. Oil was clean, started port engine sounded like it was hitting on 4 cylinders instead of eight. Shut engine down checked oil again and it had a milky look. Got my oil pump and pumped out oil on further inspection I found no trace of antifreeze in the oil. Could river water have gotten into my oil if an exhaust manifold had a water jacket failure? I have 1990 Crusader 454 cu. in. 350 hp engines. No mechanical history but I know the exhaust manifolds, risers, and elbows are all original and just from looking I don't believe the have ever been pulled. Thanks for any input.
 
Absolutely. On my boat, wind and waves hitting the stern just right (wrong, actually) will sometimes push water up the exhaust into my starboard (never port) engine. I added flappers to the exhaust pipes to prevent this, but once or twice a year it still happens.

Jeff

Note: Years ago I got into the habit of turning the motors over very carefully at startup in case water got in there. After running the blowers for 4 minutes (thanks to the poster who pointed this out!) I bump the starters and listen intently to what I hear: RRRRRRRR is good; RRR--hesitate--RRRRR--hesitate is NOT! When I hear that, I pull the rear plug(s) and find out why. Forcing it to start with water in a cylinder can blow a head gasket.
 
My exhaust outlets are located on the port and starboard sides of the boat, and not in the stern. They also are well above the water line. Bill
 
If I had a head gasket blown or even an intake manifold gasket go bad, would I only see engine coolant in the oil and not raw water? Just a thought. Bill
 
You might have to have the oil tested to truly determine if that's water or coolant in the oil. I suspect it's coolant.

Jeff
 
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