oil change in fall vs spring

skennelly

With my winterizing routine I always change the engine oil in the fall.

This past weekend I went to my storage facility to winterize only to find out they have winterized their buildings already.
This means I could not run the engine of muffs to warm it up to change the oil.

So for the first time I'm going to leave it to the Spring and change the oil then.

How bad is it leaving old oil in the engine over winter?

jhofmann

I have had to store mine for the winter with the old oil in it due to engine issues that were fixed in the spring. That being said, you should always try to change it before any long term storage due to contaminates that build up in the oil during usage. These contaminates will be in contact with the bearing surfaces for the duration of the storage. Not changing it for one season will not kill your engine, but changing it before is good preventive maintenance.

skennelly

jhofmann - Thanks for the input.  Totally agree.  Same time of year last year I had no problem...why they winterized the water system so early in the building is beyond me.

zaverin1

In all reality unless oil is so used aka hours and already lost its main properties it would make no difference when you change it.
make sure to warm up the engine before oil change.
i have done spring service and fall service and end resUlt is the same.

212rowboat

you have not the obsession to be a rinker owner... the proper answer is "both".  

but more to the point:  ash is acidic.  suspended in the oil and the oil in rest it will have it's way with it, altering it's pH.  The point of filtering it is to remove the stuff and trap it in media that is made of material that neutralizes it's impact to the compounds and structure of the oil..... so... when you're going to let it sit a long time, you want to have fresh oil with a high moly count- such as that for a classic car, as well as an dispersant so water doesn't chase the oil off hard parts and doesn't clump.  

during the season, you'd rather attack it differently- you're not as concerned with dispersing the insolubles because the filter will collect it, and emulsifiers are a better plan of attack to absorb the water present instead of letting it collect and rest against metals- to be evap'd when the engine runs.  

but all of this is just to mess with you... all oils that match the prescribed rating will be fine in there over the months to come and will do what they're intended to do in your absence.  

randy56

Thanks oilfesser, the time period of 6 mos, should not hurt. 

zaverin1

It's like in which order do you dress in The am
lol

skennelly

You guys are making me feel better....thanks

69fastback

I change mine in the fall, but letting it sit isn't the end of the world. When you change the oil, you're draining the pan, so all that "contaminated oil" remains suspended in the engine, in the bearings, valvetrain, journals, ect, exactly where any harm can be done. You're draining the pan, and filling the pan back up. 

Handymans342

So the best thing is to change in fall and run for a few minutes so the nice fresh oil is all thru the engine. Gee, too bad I dont have to worry about this LOL

zaverin1

Do you use a hand ✊ pump 

Handymans342

I believe that AL as I see boats on a lift never moved for a year now. 

Cableguy Greg

Handymans342 said:

I believe that AL as I see boats on a lift never moved for a year now. 

There are boats at the marina that I dock at that only get started/moved twice a year. Once to put the boat in the water and once to remove it from the water. I can't imagine paying for a slip and not using the boat.

rasbury

ditto at the marina we visit, heck most of the boats don't even look like they would run and some of them float! I suppose having to pull the boats for winter kind of forces the issue as far as the maintenance.....my boat had 100 hours, assume he did very little maintenance during po term but then he did not spend much time on it to screw it up either. So far, prob shaft seal and coupler have been my only issues in what 3 years and I have more than doubled the hours so I'm feeling a little good about it.