oil and water dont mix

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Nov 1, 2013
2
catalina 30 san carlos mexico
Got a mighty YSM 12, 78 vintage and just blew a head gasket, so sea water in the crankcase. Im going to siphon all I can but is there something else I can do to clean it all out. I cant drop the pan. Other than running several courses of diesel oil thru, that is..Thanks
 
May 24, 2004
7,213
CC 30 South Florida
They do mix to form an emulsion grayish in color. The color ranges from very light gray to very dark gray depending on the amount of water. This can give you an indication of the amount of water. By syphoning the emulsion out you will remove most of the oil. There will be some residue in the crankcase and oil passages but should be minor. Go ahead and purchase some cheap oil and a couple of oil filters. Fill up the crankcase and run the engine for a few minutes. Check the color and viscosity of the new emulsion. If it shows very little water or none at all then change the oil and filter, this time with good oil, and you should be good to go. If it still shows some gray then replace the cheap oil and repeat the flush. The fact that water and oil do mix is what will allow you to remove the water rather easily. Make sure you replace the head gasket and re-torque the head bolts to specs after some 20 hours.
 
Jan 4, 2006
7,649
Hunter 310 West Vancouver, B.C.
As Benny has mentioned, several oil changes is the ONLY way to do this as the emulsion is in the passages and needs to be flushed out. Hopefully, should be as good as new after flushing.

How it runs will tell the story.
 
May 4, 2005
4,062
Macgregor 26d Ft Lauderdale, Fl
a 50/50 flush of marvel mystery oil + diesel oil?

its good for gas engines, cleaning out the gunk.
 

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
5,074
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
I would fill the crank case above the crank shaft with diesel and let it sit a week or two. You have water in the bearings and It will cause major problems down the road. I would also turn the engine over quite a few times (making sure it is unable to start), lubricating the cylinders and rings with diesel, before filling the cylinders for a time as well. Good luck.
 
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