Perkins 4.108 - Water in Base

[Blundon]

Can anyone offer a suggestion as to why my engine would start puting water in the base??

Thanks in advance.

[S/V_Surya]

Do you mean water in oil sump?

[Blundon]

I guess so. I have to apologize, this question if for my father who has no clue about the internet. He has had no luck and asked me to see if I could find him some help. Could you explain why that might happen or what might cause it??

Thanks so much for any help you can provide.

[SkiprJohn]

If the water is in the crankcase then more than likely you have a headgasket or cracked block problem. The other option is that water is coming back through your exhaust. If you've been cranking the engine a lot without it starting you may have filled the exhaust up to the valves. I believe the water plumbing for heat exchanger is all external to the block.
Could be several things so give us more clues. Did it just stop running or did you notice the water on an oil check?
Don't try to start the engine without draining the exhaust system. If there is water in the crankcase you need to change oil before trying to start the engine.
regards,

[SkiprJohn]

There are a lot of diesel experts here on the forum so the more information you can provide then they might be able to sort things out for you. I am, by far, not an expert.
regards,

[Blundon]

Just spoke to my dad and he had it running for about 2 hours and then temperature was fine but after 2 hours it started going up. He said that he just redid the head gasket and she starts fine but after a while it runs hot and puts water in the crank case. Hopefully this helps.

[S/V_Surya]

I always like a nice challenge. A bad head would I think cause exhaust to blow out through the cooling system. The only other place that water comes in contact is the oil cooler heat exchanger. I had water in transmissions fluid before and that is the same unit that cools the oil. They are also notorious for going bad. Easy to pull and check.

[Blundon]

Thanks so much I'll let him know and hopefully this is the problem. he did tell me that this is not a boat engine but the same perkins 108 that is used in boats, just some sligt differences in cooling units and stuff.

Thanks so much everyone that is trying to help and please keep the suggestions coming. If I can get more information to provide I'll post it right away.

"he did say that it seems like the water is running down from the head right into the oil casing or something like that"

Thanks again
John

[FSMike]

Since one of the ways for water to get into the sump is via a bad head gasket,
and since apparently the only thing that has been changed on the engine is the head gasket -------

That's where I would start, anyway.

[Chief Engineer]

Warped or cracked head.

Or head was not retorqued after installation

Have him run the engine with the coolant cap off and see if there is any air bubbling out......Take the cap off before starting the engine....for safety sake.....

Or if you have access to a radiator pressure tester use that....a lot of auto parts stores, Advance, Auto Zone etc will have loaners.

[NCboatrx]

Two other things to check which have not been mentioned are the raw water pump and the oil cooler. Not every 4.108 had an oil cooler but if one is fitted it is suspect. Likewise some of the raw water pumps will pass water through the seals and past the bearings into the crankcase.

[Blundon]

Hey Thanks that's a great suggestion and something he has not tried yet. He is going to give this a shot right now and try it out. He did mention that the water pump seems a little sloppy at times.

He's going to give it a shot now and I'll surly post the result. Thanks again to everyone for these great suggestions. You have made my dad a very happy man who now believes you can find anything on the internet.w

[Blundon]

ok a little more info that might help...

he said he checked the water pump and everything surrounding it and there is nowhere that water could be leaking through or getting down to the crank case. As for the temperature issue he had it running for 3 hours yesterday and it was fine and withing minutes it went from normal temp to burst. He's not sure what caused it but it increased really fast and just running normally not being used in any way. As well he said when he started it this morning after only a few mins there was preasure on the oil cap when he removed it and that there shouldn't be pressure built up that fast just normally starting the engine... Hopefully this will help a little more.

[Blundon]

on another note, he just mentioned that the water pump on the engine he has is almost the same as one would be on a car or something, just a normal water pump.

I did find something from another website that said "As an aside -- if the oil level, per the "dip stick" begins to rise -- and there is a "milky" appearance -- shut the engine down immediately. It is indicative of water getting into the crank case, usually due to a malfunctioning raw water pump, but it can also come from other sources. Corrective action is to immediately flush the crank case -- with a minimum of 3 or 4 oil/filter changes -- after correcting the basic problem (e.g., raw water pump)."

My father would like to know if anyone has any suggestion as to HOW water could get from the water pump down into the crankcase. He's not sure how this could even be possible.

Thanks again!

[NCboatrx]

The raw water pump that I was refering to is the raw water pump, not the circulating pump.
If you are building up crankcase pressure, follows chief's advice and get the cylinder head and /or gasket attended to.