tool

Hi all.

Just did a 2500 mile runafter a fresh oil change in very cold temps! ie. -30.

Stopped and frequently checked the oil (evey fill up) as I have the vacuum pump seal leak.

Noticed I had scummy stuff ( like oil and frozen water) in the top of my dipstick tube. and it was getting on my dip stick.

It was at first freaking me out making me think I was burning antifreeze or something but the engine oil is still honey coloured.

There is no scum on the bottom of the filler cap either. Water level is staying normal.

Anyone guess what it's from???

thumper 549

condensation..normal in most eng. if not runing hot enough to evaperate...is h20 getting up to 180 190??

Kyle Graham

Man I dont know that is bizarre Never had that expeirience anyone else

Dieseldude4x4

My old Dodge van with a 318 did it all the time till I figured out what it was. The valve cover breather was totally plugged up and the engine had to breathe through the dip stick tube and I had a cooler thermostat in the engine cause I had a few performance parts in it too. The condensation would build up until this ugly nasty looking cream brown colored stuff would accumulate on the stick. Changed the breather cap out and never happened again. Make sure your crank case breather tube is not obstructed and the engine temp gets up to normal.

tool

Engine temp is normal but let me tell you it was a long cold run!!!

I ran hard straight through that big snowstorm in Minnesotta and North Dakota on Saturday and into Sunday. Was really fighting through deep snowat times and so forth. So I wondered if maybe my breather tube got blocked with snow or ice???

Tazman

tool,

I think you got it on your last post. Plugged breather tube came to mind right away

thumper 549

Naaaaaaaaa......I am voteing for a open (busted stat) . they mostly break in the open position.

Fueling around

I'm hoping you have a blocked crank breather. Most of the time, signs of water in the oil system of an open vent engine is a cracked block or head.

Did you stay around for the record -38°F yesterday?

Hemi Cat

As long as your eng coolant temps are in the norm range, no coolant loss, and the oil on the end of the stick look clean and normal, I would guess that it is just condensation as a result of the extreme cold temps. Don't do anything until it warms up and see if it goes away. Make sure you monitor things to make sure things are OK. The area you notice the sludge is in a cold area and the moisture will collect there. (You said it looked like frozen water)

torquefan

If you have a small taste of the brown gunk, you can tell right away if it's antifreeze (sweet taste.) No joke, it works.

natstayl

But if it's condensation how exactly does that taste/smell? I'm guessing like motor oil because it has enough oil mixed with it (but still not smell like antifreeze.) Condensation gathers at the top of the tube, head gasket leaks causes water to float on top of the oil in the crankcase so there would be some sludge near the full mark on the dip stick as well. Are you running Dino oil or syn? Are you warming the truck up before hitting the road? Are you leaving it outside or parking in a warm garage when you power it off at night? All of these can effect amount of condensation that forms inside the engine IMHO.
Nat

tool

Truck was outside the whole time. Dino oil. (Rotella)

Can't see it having anything to do with the thermostat. Engine Temps are normal and it never lost an ounce of collant in 2500 miles.

Nope I was out of Minnesota before -38 I'm pretty sure. I did have -35 in Saskatchewan though. And it is supposed to be -38 here by the first of the week.

natstayl

So Tool, you're of the opinion that it must be condenstation then? Could it be that's it's cooling off so fast condensation is forming? If that is the case, you would see condensation on the outside of lots of things under the hood first as those would cool off the quickest. But at those outside temps, I'm sure I would take it for a Dino to Synthetic transfusion and monitor it for a while before doing anything else. Just my $.02.
Nat