Oil Change Pump

[JLR]

Well I finally got around to using my new gear oil pump in my 43 Open. Where has this been for the past forty years. The gear oil pump pumped out my hot oil in less than one minute and pumped in my cold oil in about two minutes. Anyone left with an impeller pump---get rid of it. In fact, I will change out the 32 Volt Reverso impeller pump in my 56 MY. Anyone know of a good source for a 110V gear oil pump for that boat or better yet, a 32V gear oil pump?

[sandspur1966]

Oberdorfer makes the gold standard gear pump. It has been a while since I bought one but their website is below. Im sure you could talk to customer service there to ask about mateing one up to a 32volt motor.

Be prepared to part with some serious sheckels though... they aint cheap!

http://www.oberdorfer-pumps.com/index.html

[MikeP]

Glad to hear yours works so well. Wish mine did! I have a 120v gear-pump for oil changing but it still won't pull cold oil out of the container. I've been meaning to do something about it but since it pulls the warm oil out of the engine just fine, I've just lived with pouring oil into the engine the old fashioned way. Since it's a once a year event for me it's pretty low on the to-do list - not sure it's on there at all. Of course, the Admiral's SAT TV antenna was on the top... ;)

[JLR]

Checked in with Depco pump and the 32V Oberdorfer is $400 and the 100V pump is larger and more expensive. I would have thought that there is a compact 110V pump that would do the job at a price less than the 32V one. Heck, it may make sense to have a spare 12V battery in the engine room, use a 12V pump and use it to run just the oil change pump.

[JLR]

Assuming the amperage was high enough, would using my spare Newmar converter changing 32V to 12V permit me to use a 12 volt gear pump?

[GJH]

I put an Oberdorfer N991-32- A97 on my 1981 56MY last December. It cost me $352.80 at Depco. Really a quality piece of equipment. It sits right below the fuse bank in the port engine room; there was labeled a spot for a fuse in there. My guess is the boat came with one at one point; there was already a little manifold right below the spot I mounted it with lines to each engine sump. I wired a "hold to operate" toggle switch for reversing and was good to go.

Since we are putting around 600 hours a year on the boat, oil changes are a regular event. They'd be a snap if I can ever come up with a way to get a good hole in the bottom of the filters to drain them out. I think I may try drilling them with a 90 degree electric screw driver that I rarely use anyway. Anybody have other tricks worth trying? The only thing I can fit under the filter to catch the oil is a gallon oil jug with the side cut out, so I typically have to pump it out a bit with my hand pump so I don't spill in the bilge getting the jug out from under the transmission, etc.

So, in summation, getting oil in and out: clean and easy. Getting filters drained and changed: RPITA.

By the way, I bought some 40 weight CF2, with the DD endorsement at NAPA in 5 gallon buckets. Price off the street in Baltimore was $67.50. No bargain, I know, but another often more convenient source. Part # is 75118. I am sure you can get a better price depending on the NAPA dealer and your relationship to them. Anyway, another one to add to the list that circulates around here now and then.

George
"Incentive" 1981 Hatteras 56MY
Currently underway, just south of Wolf Trap light on the Chesapeake Bay, headed for Hampton today.

[GJH]

JLR: Looks like we simul-posted. How many amps is your Newmar rated for? And the pump? I had bought a 12v Groco with a similar idea in mind but didn't have enough ampacity. Then I found the Oberdorfer which worked out mo' bettah anyway.

George

[JLR]

George- I think the Oberdorfer is the way to go. Depco quoted me a price of $392.40 for the 32 volt pump. Kind of steep for a once a year change but may not be too steep to avoid the back strain of filling by hand. (While were on the subject, anyone ever see a device that would keep your oil transfer hose semi-permanently mounted to a 5 gallon pail of oil so that you could just leave it strapped into the engine room and just throw a switch to add oil throughout the season?) As far as drilling the filters, I tried that a few days ago. On the first one, I forgot to loosen the filter before drilling the hole and of course, once the filter got oily, my filter wrench would not grip the filter to loosen it. On the second one, I loosened the filter first, then drilled the hole. I thought it had drained enough to stop the top portion from globbing over the lip. I was wrong. Also, although obvious once the mistake was made, when the hole is drilled and the filter needs to be spun off, you obviously have a 360 degree circle of oil spinning around which is tough to catch.

[StratPlan61]

I have done this on my cars for years, I think it works great on boats also. Before applying your oil filter wrench to the old oil filter, pull a large ZipLock bag up around the filter first. Then apply the wrench over the bag/filter together. As you unscrrew the filter the oil 'flow over' spills into the bag and you toss it all as a package. It has saved me many messes.
Yes, of course, you need the correct size ZipLock bag - cost a couple of bucks but saves at least 2 Bacardi/Dr.Pepper periods of clean-up time!

[JLR]

You are a better man than I am because I have not been able to keep it that neat for the past ten years--and I have tried.

[GJH]

Bear, I would seriously pay for a video of that: I tried it once and when the oil globbed over, I couldn't get the filter to turn anymore as the bag just spun around on the oil; it got uglier from there! This is the one bit of PM on the boat where the Admiral wants advance notice so she can be sure to be off the boat while it takes place. It is not so bad if I can get a good hole in the bottom; otherwise it takes an hour for the tiny stream of oil to drain the filter.

JLR one other trick is to warm the buckets of new oil by letting them sit overnight on a warm (not hot) engine. I use the block heaters if we haven't run that day. Makes the new stuff go in in a jiffy.

George

[JLR]

I just ordered the 32V Oberdorfer pump today. Up North, I will be decommissioned from now until April and will not get to use it until a year from now. Nevertheless, it is nice to know it will be done quickly. I was too frugal (read cheap) to spring for gallon singles and the weight of holding up a 5 gallon pail of cool oil was not much fun (nor particularly neat) to deal with. I will leave it to my mechanic to deal with the plumbing issues, assuming there are any, in swapping out the Reverso and connecting the Oberdorfer. I will add the reversing switch myself.

[StratPlan61]

George, you're killing me buddy, you got me laughing so damn hard I could only envision the mess you speak of. Seriously, yes you cannot let the oil outside of the bag but it really does work well. Maybe I can figure out how to get some pictures next time I do it. It has saved me many times.
Rather than drill a hole in your pld filter, how about fashioning a length of 2"x4" wood just 1 inch shorter than the distance from the filter bottom to the bilge. Then insert a 'pry bar' type tool with a sharp point and punch a hole in the bottom (not side) and let her drain into a basin?
No kidding the bag trick works great - I'll think about a video.

[SKYCHENEY]

George, you're killing me buddy, you got me laughing so damn hard I could only envision the mess you speak of. Seriously, yes you cannot let the oil outside of the bag but it really does work well. Maybe I can figure out how to get some pictures next time I do it. It has saved me many times.
Rather than drill a hole in your pld filter, how about fashioning a length of 2"x4" wood just 1 inch shorter than the distance from the filter bottom to the bilge. Then insert a 'pry bar' type tool with a sharp point and punch a hole in the bottom (not side) and let her drain into a basin?
No kidding the bag trick works great - I'll think about a video.

Bear,
Could you come over to my boat in the spring and show me how this works? I have tried everything including a plastic garbage bag and I cannot keep from spilling oil into my bilge. I must just not be cut out for filter changes. You will have to show me what I am missing.

[bigbill]

i loosen my filter enough that it can be removed by hand, but not enough that the gasket leaks, then i punch a hole in the bottom of the filter,unscrew the filter enough to let it drain, then i put a piece of duct tape over the hole and remove the filter. no mess at all. bigbill

[Boatsb]

I have the cartridge filters. Put a turkey pan ( 1/4 sheet size roaster ) under the base and go to it. I usually pump out the leakage and then toss the whole pan. 2 pans 2 filters.

FYI the 40Wt tastes like crap on the turkey so throw out he pans before the wife tries to wash them.

[GJH]

Big Bill, that's what I do. The problem on my boat (or with me) is that it is hard to punch a good hole into the bottom. Not a good angle or much room to swing a hammer on anything big enough to get a good drain. I need a nice compact device that will get up under there and blast that thing, ergo the idea of drilling with a 90 degree electric screwdriver.

Next issue is getting something in under there that will not only hold the oil but be easy to get out from under with a filter's worth of oil in it. It's all an issue of how stringers and engine box the space in.

My issue with the bag trick was the oil stayed in the bag all right, but caused me not to be able to turn the thing when oil got twixt bag and filter.

George

[NAN-PO 41]

I use the throw away aluminum baking pans and pump the oil out of them so that I won't spill them when removing them. Pumping them dry before removing the filter also eliminates dropping the filter into a pan full of oil. ( talk about a mess, you don't need to ask how I know that can happen ) I then put pan and filter into a plastic bag and set them in a 5 gal bucket to remove from the boat.
Fred