Oh *&$%!!!

[mikeedmo]

Any advice would be great on: we were changing the oil in our Westerbeke 46 by placing the usual clear drain tube down the dip stick throat. Got too much tubing into the sump and it doubled/knotted over on itself and when we went to extract it, the tubing broke in half. So, we have probably 1 - 2 feet of tubing (I was explaining to the first mate that too much tubing was going in and...) in our oil sump. We're going to try to get access to the sump drain, we'll have to collect the remaining oil in flex-strength plastic bags, and then try to use a pick-up tool to fish out the tubing. Is anyone aware of any other potential access to the oil sump? (we're supposed to be in the ocean as we speak!!).

Thanks for any wisdom you could share, and I told you so's :-)

[tdw]

I'm not all that familiar with the Westerbecke but on some engines you can unscrew the sump tube giving a larger access hole to the sump. This may (wishfull thinking perhaps but worth a shot) enable you to fish out the excess. If that doesn't work methinks you are in bad shape. The only other way to get at that excess tubing will be to drop the sump and that is not something that has any positives attached to it. I know that with my engine (Bukh) I'd have to lift out the engine itself to drop the sump.

Good Luck, I fear you are going to need it.

[Boasun]

Measure the length you need to go when inserting the tube. Put some tape around it at that point and insert to remove the rest of the oil.
Then put some adsorbent pads under your engine. Remove the Oil pan drain plug and use a wire snake going in to find the broken off tubing.
Now re plumb a new waste oil line leading from the Oil pan drain plug outlet.
By taking the slump plug and go to the hardware store and get some tubing and connections that is of that size.
will be: Slump pan hose connection, Length of oil hose, another connection, a valve, and a pipe plug for the value unless you want to put a quick connect on the end of it.
Then you won't need to ever use the dip tube again for waste oil removal.
This is the way we do it on the bigger vessels.
The oil hose is the type used for oil and hydralic lines. Don't subsitute water hose for this purpose.

[mikeedmo]

Many thanks.... options are looking dimmer and dimmer!!

[Rockter]

mike....

Serious bad luck that one.

I would try what Boason says but I suspect it will be difficult to find the end. The drain plug on my motor is hard to get at... a Volvo MD17c.... and the bilge is narrow. Boason's idea sounds ok for the future, as long as you can get to the valve and the hose does not perish or the fittings snap.

With willing hands and about two 1/2 hour sessions with a wee crane, engine out and in again is not too difficult. I would not use the boom.... it's too hard on it, for my motor (780 lb) at least.

I will remember this lesson.

[mikeedmo]

Well... the good advice worked perfectly. Only drawback was the oil drain bolt had probably never been removed due to its bruising location, it ended up being a 1 inch, 6 point box wrench, nothing else would work and every other bolt on the engine is metric, go figure. Anyway, after chasing over the entire county and buying 15 different sized wrenches we met with success this morning. With access to the drain sump it only took a few tries with the pick-up tool to get the kinked hose out and the oil changed. So, I'm complying with Boason's guidance from here on out!

Thanks again for the advice.

[billangiep]

Good for you Mike.....you must have had a few points in that black box.(grin)...I also had a problem when using those plastic suction line's, it would hit the bottom then curl up and not remove all the oil from the pan, my solution was to install with a compression fitting a foot and a half or so cooper tubing on the end that slides into the dipstick tube.
Bill,

[Rockter]

Well done... that looked bleak for a moment.