Oil Change question

[Mcdonas]

I had about 25 hrs remaining until oil change was due on my Moomba Mojo at the end of the season. Do i need to go ahead and have it changed before I bring it out this spring? Or will it be ok until 25 more hrs?

[sivs1]

I always change my oil at the beginning of the season, don't really pay attention to hours.

[wolfeman131]

I always change my oil at the end of the season when winterizing the boat. That way it's not sitting for months at time with dirty oil.

[brain_rinse]

I always change my oil at the end of the season when winterizing the boat. That was it's not sitting with for months at time with dirty oil.
This is the best practice.

[sivs1]

I always change my oil at the end of the season when winterizing the boat. That way it's not sitting for months at time with dirty oil.

you have a good point there, might need to change my practices.

[wolfeman131]

probably should.

the brain said it's the best practice.

[gregski]

Like the others, I change in the fall. But if I were you and missed the fall change, I would do it now regardless of the hours. Engine oil has a couple of mechanisms that cause it to break down mostly due to acids that develop as a result of combustion. It can "absorb" a certain amount of this (think miles or hours) but also a small amount of acid left sitting for a long time (like the off-season) can cause the break down.

[mcdye]

I change it at the end of the season, then run it just long enough to circulate the new oil.

[Mcdonas]

Thanks. Next year I will change it when I get it winterized. So I will start with a fresh change this year.

[brain_rinse]

probably should.

the brain said it's the best practice.
And I stated it very authoritatively too, so it has to be true.

[mmandley]

This is always a debate.

Oil life says X months or miles. Or hours in a boats case.

Exp my new diesel, owners manual says 6 months or 15k miles. Truck was built in 6/14
So its already due for an oil change.
Guess what. Ram is changing it for free and using synthetic because thats what it came with.

I see the point of changing it at the end of the season. I however dont want my oil sitting for 5-6 months then rely on it for maximun protection.

I personally change it a month before EOS then it only has a few hours on it.

Change it again at the start of my season.

[wolfeman131]

I see the point of changing it at the end of the season. I however dont want my oil sitting for 5-6 months then rely on it for maximun protection.

How do you know how long it has been sitting in a warehouse or on the shelf?
Does oil have a "born on" date printed on it like beer?

[mmandley]

How do you know how long it has been sitting in a warehouse or on the shelf?
Does oil have a "born on" date printed on it like beer?

No it doesn't and no I don't know.

Why do dealers, factories, and manufacturers put a life span in terms of months and mileage on oil then?

What is the inherent risk or benifit with leaving so called fresh oil vs slightly used or even used oil in your engine?

[mmandley]

Not trying to start debate or argue a point here, just stating how I prefer to do it.

Technically oil does not have a shelf life, but I prefer to start my season with new oil. No I dont know technically how long that oil is on a shelf but it makes me feel better knowing I just poured it in fresh. That its not been sitting in my engine for 5 months.

[DOCDRS]

Why do dealers, factories, and manufacturers put a life span in terms of months and mileage on oil then?

What is the inherent risk or benifit with leaving so called fresh oil vs slightly used or even used oil in your engine?



The life span is based on the oil being used. Not sitting unused

The risk is having those acids sitting on your bearings, rings and journals for the cold offseason causing corrosion and pitting.

The benefit of fresh oil is that everything stated above will be coated with fresh unabated motor oil.


So I will ask..... why wouldn't you change your oil at the end of the season and be all set to go in the spring when your itching to go?

[gregski]

The absolute age of the oil isn't the problem. It's the quantity of acids and the time they are present in the oil. New oil that hasn't been used in a motor doesn't expire. Take it to the extremes: If you put new oil in the motor and only run it briefly then there would only a little bit of acid by-products, so this oil could sit for a very long time without trouble (much longer than 6 months). To the other extreme, if you have run the motor to the point that the oil is almost "used up", you really wouldn't be able to let it sit for even 3 months and then get that last bit of use out of it. And like Doc stated, you don't want those acids sitting on your engine parts for too long.

The problem is that there aren't easy ways to know how much life used oil has left in it so the consumer is left with very general averages like "3000 miles or 3 months" or "100 hours or 6 months". The manufactures have to come up with some way of telling you what to do. There are just too many variables. Lots of recent automobiles include computers that try to estimate change intervals based on engine time, RPM, and overall calendar time. Some new automobiles are starting to include oil quality measurements which gets even closer. There are actually labs which will analyze a sample of your used oil and tell you the remaining service life.

Conspiracy theory: 3000 miles or 3 months was always overkill but promoted by mechanics, quick-lubes and parts stores to sell more. For sure, the newer oil additives are better than they were 10 years ago so even the most unscrupulous quick-lube places are starting to shift to 4000 or 4 months.

[mmandley]

The life span is based on the oil being used. Not sitting unused

The risk is having those acids sitting on your bearings, rings and journals for the cold offseason causing corrosion and pitting.

The benefit of fresh oil is that everything stated above will be coated with fresh unabated motor oil.


So I will ask..... why wouldn't you change your oil at the end of the season and be all set to go in the spring when your itching to go?

Makes since, I guess I do it my way because I have no exact date to end my season. I generally know Oct is end of season but I don't know the last time I go out until the weather turns.

I always change my oil late Sept because I do it right after I leave the lake so the oil is hot, and easy to extract. Then I end up going out a couple more times.

This way my oil is mostly fresh but its not new.

I then take the boat out the first time in the season, change it at the end of that first day when its hot and easy to extract again.

[gregski]

I then take the boat out the first time in the season, change it at the end of that first day when its hot and easy to extract again.
This would be overkill in my opinion. Even using it a few times in the fall won't cause much trouble. But feel free to baby your boat :)

[uniwarking]

I change my oil at the end of each season, and I plan to do additional changes at 25hr intervals (for me, this will likely lead to a mid and end season change).

As many have stated, it's best to change the oil before any extended period of storage. This is true with about any combustion engine equipment and is usually stated in OM's. This gets contamination out of the engine... debris, unwanted chemicals and moisture which can lead to damage.

It's the additive package that we should be concerned about, not the base oil. The additive package in the oil shouldn't degrade noticeably by sitting over the winter in the engine instead of in a container. Additives in oil: detergents, rust and corrosion inhibitors, anti-oxidants, anti-foam agents, dispersants, viscosity and lubricity modifiers. You want all this stuff to be in tip top shape when the engine is most at risk... during long term storage. The pros certainly outweigh the cons here.

Oil is pretty cheap. I run synthetic Mobil 1 15W50, which was suggested directly by Indmar when I contacted them. It runs ~$25 for 5 qts. at Walmart.

On a side note, I also change v-drive and trans fluids at the end of each season for the same reason.

[smorris7]

I change my oil at the end of each season, and I plan to do additional changes at 25hr intervals (for me, this will likely lead to a mid and end season change).

As many have stated, it's best to change the oil before any extended period of storage. This is true with about any combustion engine equipment and is usually stated in OM's. This gets contamination out of the engine... debris, unwanted chemicals and moisture which can lead to damage.

It's the additive package that we should be concerned about, not the base oil. The additive package in the oil shouldn't degrade noticeably by sitting over the winter in the engine instead of in a container. Additives in oil: detergents, rust and corrosion inhibitors, anti-oxidants, anti-foam agents, dispersants, viscosity and lubricity modifiers. You want all this stuff to be in tip top shape when the engine is most at risk... during long term storage. The pros certainly outweigh the cons here.

Oil is pretty cheap. I run synthetic Mobil 1 15W50, which was suggested directly by Indmar when I contacted them. It runs ~$25 for 5 qts. at Walmart.

On a side note, I also change v-drive and trans fluids at the end of each season for the same reason.

If this was the case I would need to change my oil every 2 weeks!😜


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[uniwarking]

I meant ~50 hours... as I usually put on about 125hrs a season... so about 2 oil changes...

Indmar does actually recommend 25hrs changes for severe duty or 50hrs & annually.