Advice on starting engine not run in a year

[Jim Cate]

This is a convenient time to do a cylinder compression check)

Seems a poor time, for as you have said, the rings are dry and so are the cylinder walls. so, it may be convenient, but not as meaningful as if you waited until it had run a while.

Cranking for a while with the stop solenoid engaged (or other shut down means) so that it will not start is a simple and fairly low stress way to get oil circulating. If it has decompression levers, that's even better.

Jim

[bletso]

The 4-108 is a great engine. Mine sat for 15 years and when I decided to refit Vigah. It had been more of less moth balled. Two squirts of ether and off she went. (That was before I learned the hair dryer trick). Actually ether is worst thing for a Perkins. If anything a little WD40, but the hair dryer works in the coldest of temps.Engine Restart | Sailing Vessel Vigah and it is amazing what a little spit and polish can do. Engine / Power Train | Sailing Vessel Vigah

[Captsteve53]

Major Point,

1) While there's lot of input re turning over the engine etc and checking testing etc be aware that water is filling your water lock /muffler with sea water all the time the engine is not starting and will eventually enter your engine (that is if your engine is below the water line type installation -normal yacht type),combined with this is the very real possibility of a corrosion filled and leaking exhaust riser/mixer, so would pay to remove the riser and check where possible (although normally hard to see the real area were corrosion is bubbling away), Do this if you do not know how old the riser is, if nearly new
or only a few years old could be OK.

1 A) Corrosion can also build up in the heat exchangers so checking with a laser thermal temp gun around various points in the engine system is highly recommended

So check/ replace your raw water pump impeller first/ lube it up with some rubber grease/silicon grease or even dish washing soap, and keep the raw water intake valve closed until the engine fires, then immediately open and check for water exiting the exhaust system,
2)Drain and Change your coolant out with new as coolant left sitting in an engine can get very acidic depending on temperatures

All the other relevant fuel and oil situations have been well covered

Cheers Steve

[Pauls]

What hasn't been mentioned is that an engine which has sat for a long period of time has lost virtually all of the oil film protecting the protecting the bearings. Diesels have very high compression and the crank and rod bearings are seeing loads of well over 1000 lbs just from cranking the engine with the starter against the cylinder compression. Getting oil into the bearings BEFORE you crank the engine is a really good thing to do, and it is easy to do it. Get a pump type oil can and fill it with clean engine oil. Your engine will have a threaded connection to the oil system for attaching the oil pressure sensor. Unscrew this and replace it with a plug fitting in which you have drilled a hole large enough to partially insert the nozzle on the end of the oil can. Push the oil can nozzle hard against the hole and pump away. You will be able to fill the oil passages and pressurize them to several PSI which will force oil to all bearings. Then replace your oil pressure sensor.

[seabreez]

Originally Posted by exMaggieDrum

Due to some medical and other issues, my Perkins 4108 has not been started for over a year. I know that I should have done that at least every three months but was unable to do so.

I did lay it up with new oil and filters, the fuel has anti-growth additive as well as an additive to try and keep it from going bad from sitting there. This was run through the engine before it was laid up. It has been an oldie (vintage 1981) but reliable and strong, even with many hours on it.

Any advice on what I can do to make its next start as easy as possible would be appreciated. Perhaps I can just start it up with no problem, or, crank it over gently a few revs without starting it to get oil back in the system.

If I had to I could remove the injectors and put some oil in the cylinders but not sure if that is necessary. It is definitely a pain to rebleed it but I will do what I need to do. It always started immediately before.

Thanks.

We had a 4108 on a generator that had not run in yeeeeears and on day ran out of power in ice storm 98. We simply connected a fuel drum to it, a good battery and cranked it over bleeding the injectors to check for fuel and voila! It started. Do not rev it too hard on start up. Let it warm up. We recently had a Lister 2 cylinder that had not run for 9 years and just parked behind the garage. Same as the Perkins... good fuel, good battery and it started good. We did remove one head to check for rust and there was none. Just reassembled it and it was fine.