Oil Change - How often?

[ConPexEr]

For a typical ski boat is do you change the oil every 40 hrs?

[Ilivetoski]

50 hours

[j2nh]

40-50 hours. What the manual for PCM calls for. Sometimes a little early if I know I am going to be using the boat a lot in the coming days. Rather change early that wait.

[oldjeep]

50 and end of season

[Alberto Soares]

Once a year

[blakeyates]

Stay with 50. I have done a few oil analysis and there is good reason to stay with that change interval for oil and filter.

[Jmoski]

Every 50 or yearly (which ever comes first) for those who run year round.

 

For northerners where the season unfortunately has to end - every 50 and end of season, you don't want it sitting for months with dirty oil over the winter.

 

I only log about 35-45 hours a year so I get away with one change in November.

[DynaSkiPete]

So you change the oil at the end of the season only?

[DavidN]

Same here - about every 50/60 hours, usually in the fall, no off-season here in FL. ;)

[skihacker]

I never go past 50 hrs in a season up here in the north so a synthetic oil change right before it goes in the barn.

[ScottScott]

We just bought the boat in October and are getting close to a 2nd oil change. A change oil warning comes up every 50 hours.

[Jmoski]

@DynaSkiPete - in my case yes, I winterize the boat every November which includes new oil & filter (I pour about 3/4 qt of new oil directly into the new filter before screwing it on) and then it sits in my garage until April.

 

Starting in April I only log 40 hours by November because I have two friends with boats - hence we rotate.

 

Then I change and leave ready for the spring.

 

One year I logged 70, so I changed in August at 50 and then again 20 hours later at winterization time. Some might call that a waste, but I didn’t want to leave dirty oil in the block over the winter.

[DynaSkiPete]

Thanks. Now I'm curious what the procedure is for wintering an inboard? I just push a button and my Evinrude winterizes itself. Only have to make sure the water all drains out of the motor. Very simple. Come spring, top off the battery and turn the key. Sometimes I disconnect the battery for the winter.

[BraceMaker]

@DynaSkiPete

 

Boat hot, drain oil change filter, new filter new oil.

 

Block drains x2 manifold drains x2 open hoses, drain trans cooler. Replace hoses replace plugs. Add pink antifreeze if ya want to.

 

Fog if you want to.

 

Harder than outboard? Yes.... hard? No.

[DynaSkiPete]

What does a dealer charge? The dealers I know have insurance in case of a damaged motor come spring. What do you owners think?

[Ilivetoski]

Personally I don’t think I know anyone with a ski boat who takes a boat to a dealer for an oil change... it’s too simple to pay a dealer to do it

[Horton]

In Bakersfield we winterize our boats by putting the cover on

[Chef23]

I do pretty much what @Jmoski does. I generally put no more than 50 hours on my boat during the season.

[brettmainer]

I’m curious as to common club / ski school boat oil change intervals. This time of year, 50hrs is every week. I’ll change the oil every two weeks and not worry if has been 80hrs. This year we are rotating 3 boats so it is easy to keep up with the 50hr interval, but even so, I don’t stress on the 50.00hrs part when I know that it has only been a couple of weeks. I do know that I’ve never let one of my boats go over 80hrs.

 

Also, I do find it better to change the oil after skiing, in the shade, and while drinking beer.

 

I assume others also let the 50hrs slide a little under similar circumstances, but I’m curious.

[DynaSkiPete]

I used to change my own vehicle oil. The Ford Quick Lanes do it so cheap and they check a whole bunch of things and top off other fluids along with a tire rotate. SO I quit messing with saving very little money and having to dispose of the old oil and filters. I suppose this is somewhat of a do it yourself group? So do you that have to all winterize your boats too? Ever had a block crack?

[BraceMaker]

@DynaSkiPete that's sort of a tolerance for upsells. Quick lubes are fine but they make money on all the other stuff they sell. Less at marinas.

 

Most are either DIY or pay the same marina to winterize that stores it.

[eleeski]

@DynaSkiPete Yes. I think the UCLA kids forgot to drain my block before a rare hard freeze. Possibly a cooling problem though (the mice ate a heater hose). Or something else. They put a piston through the block in the spring somehow. It's possible they hadn't checked the oil - ever. The oil in the bilge was pretty clean.

 

@Horton They had put the cover on though. In my desert, we just need to put gas in - for the next ride.

 

Wish there was a button to push to winterize.

 

Fortunately they didn't waste the oil by changing it when it didn't need it. 50 hours? Wait until it's dirty. Maintenance on condition is always best for your budget, the environment and your equipment (savvyaviation.com).

 

I've NEVER had dirty oil damage any engine on anything.

 

Eric

[MISkier]

@DynaSkiPete, my dealer charges $300 for a winterization, which includes oil/filter change, transmission fluid change, fuel filter change, and antifreeze in the block.

[DW]

Just for some fun numbers, 50 hours in your tow vehicle pulling you at 36 mph would equate to 1,800 miles or if you double that due to boat engine speed, heck even triple it for the newer boats, that would be 5,400 miles. In other words, that 50 hour change interval is pretty conservative particularly with how good modern oils have become. I am not suggesting anybody change their patterns, just putting some numbers to the question.

 

@DynaSkiPete : No, as noted above, pop off the 2 block plugs, a few hoses and let the water drain, do that while the oil is draining out of the engine in a pan under the boat, very simple. Blowing out the heater core is done at the same time. Same time as taking out the stuff I don't want in the boat all winter & checking over any issues from the summer running. I also pull the impeller and keep in a plastic bag during the off season, and that process is very easy on my boat, don't have to separate the upper & lower units.

[BraceMaker]

@DW splitting lower units ugh. I remember back when we had an OMC outdrive and that sucker would eat gimble bearings like its job. Got easier just to plan on pulling the outdrive every other year and replacing it to avoid having it go out on the lift and need to get the trailer back out. Then bellows and lower unit lube.

 

Before that we had an outboard and a lift cable snapped while we were away, stern swamped and of course the power head got underwater for several days. $$$$

[Jmoski]

Performing my own maintenance and winterization is all about having the piece of mind of knowing it was done correctly.

 

I also happen to be mechanically inclined so it fun for me and I like knowing exactly how everything works.

 

Some people meditate or do yoga, I maintain my equipment to perfection when I have downtime - beats mowing the lawn :-)

[swc5150]

In our swamp boat ('91 Prostar), I'd run the engine up to temp on a fake-a-lake, then use a small hose to suck up 10 gallons of antifreeze through the engine. Never had an issue up here in cold WI.

[tjs1295]

I fully winterize my boat, and even pour antifreeze in. I always wondered if I really have to since my boat is stored in the heated garage at my house, and never sees less than 50 degrees. It sees colder temps during the summer on the lift. I'd still do the oil and tranny fluid, but what do some of you guys do who don't use your boat for a while, and don't winterize? Is it still a good idea to avoid rust/corrosion?

[bbruzzese]

I hate to ask oil questions but... A while back there was a post around the fact that Rotella 15W40 no longer carried the endorsement for gas engines. I know there were/are a bunch of Rotella users here...anyone still using it anyway?

[Zman]

Switched to Chevron Delo 400 SDE, 15W-40 and no regrets.

[skiinxs]

Yep, Chevron Delo still has it, checked a couple days ago after finding that Royal Purple synthetic lost it and is another that only carries diesel certifications. Is it only a matter of time before they all lose the SM or SN certification in a 15W40?

[RAWSki]

I find it interesting that companies like PCM and Illmor haven't taken advantage of the OLM's. (Oil Life Monitors) that are standard on basically all vehicles-- and included them on the boat engines, maybe they are there on the ECMs and just require a computer or tablet to access? It would be interesting to see what the OLM report as far as oil change recommendations since it takes run time, RPMs, accelerations, and heat into consideration

[dvskier]

That should add on another $10k or so. Seriously if you change your oil every 50 hours you won't have a problem.

 

[Jmoski]

In regards to the loss of SN rating on many 15w-40 oils, there is a good post on bobtheoilguy on this topic.

 

In a nutshell, one characteristic of the 15w-40 oils is a phosphorus count that’s too high for the gas engine specs for SM/SN - BUT they use to grant an exemption for this in the past. That exemption has been removed by SAE given all car specs are now 20 or 30 weight oils.

[eleeski]

It isn't $10k to change your oil prematurely. Assume 100 hours per year and an oil change once a year at winterize time. 1000 hours or ten years and you have to get that new boat. Someone said $300 for an oil change. That turns into $3000 over the life of the boat for reasonable oil changes. Go to 50 hours and you have only $6k in oil, not $10k. And the extra is only $3k. (That's not far from the cost of a new long block.)

 

I don't spend $300 on my oil changes. But the time and hassle probably makes it worth that. Add the liability from the potential damage from a loose oil filter, stuck gasket, forgotten drain plug, spill on the carpet or other mechanic's error that can damage something. The $300 guy will take care of that. I will have to eat it when I screw up.

 

@dvskier Unneeded maintenance is a problem. Financially, environmentally and for the mechanical health of the engine. Maintain as needed.

 

Eric

[MISkier]

@eleeski, the $300 quote was for a winterization that included an oil change, transmission fluid change, fuel filter change, and antifreeze in the block. It was in response to a question on the price of winterization that was asked in this thread.

 

The Evelyn Wood course also focused on comprehension. :)

[eleeski]

@MISkier Except when I pay for an oil change, it does cost $300. And I do it at 50 hours because the oil is getting dirty - in my airplane. The safety wire, required silicone lube of the gasket and careful protocol illustrates what can go wrong with a "simple" oil change.

 

My lake is so remote that I will pay $300 for an oil change if someone comes out to do it. Maybe it's $300 for travel and the oil change is free.

 

Big picture, Evelyn Wood!

 

Eric

[dvskier]

I change my own oil and it runs about $30. Let it drain overnight, change filter and refill.

[DW]

Mobil 1 from Walmart w/ the rebate = $10, good Wix filter from Rock Auto = $4.

Waxing & the beverage waiting for the oil to drain may run more than that...

[BrennanKMN]

Taking the boat somewhere to get the oil changed is more work than just changing it myself.