Surveys
Oil and fluid analysis reads the inside of an engine without opening it
Oil analysis sends a sample of engine oil, coolant and transmission fluid to a laboratory that measures wear metals and contamination. The results flag problems such as worn bearings, a leaking head gasket or coolant crossing into the oil, often months before anything is audible from the dock. It is the cheapest look inside a diesel you will ever buy.
Internal wear is silent until it is not
Bearings, liners and gaskets do not announce themselves. By the time an engine is knocking or making metal, the repair is measured in weeks and thousands. A fluid sample drawn on a service visit costs very little and turns that invisible wear into a number you can watch across intervals.
What is included
- Engine oil sample drawn at operating temperature
- Crankcase and coolant sampling
- Transmission fluid sampling
- Wear metal, contamination and additive analysis by laboratory
- Trending against previous samples where history exists
- Plain explanation of what the results mean for your engine
How it works
Draw
Samples are taken properly, at temperature, so the result reflects the engine rather than the sediment in the bottom of the sump.
Analyse
The laboratory reports wear metals, contamination, coolant intrusion and additive depletion.
Act
You get told which numbers matter, which are normal for the engine hours, and what to re-sample at the next interval.
Laboratory analysis of marine engine oil can identify worn bearings, leaking head gaskets and coolant intrusion by measuring wear metals and contamination in a fluid sample, before the underlying fault becomes audible or visible.
Related surveys work
Mechanical Marine Surveys
A documented condition report on your propulsion engines and generator, from visual inspection through sea trial.
Pre-Purchase Engine Survey
The engine half of your buyer's due diligence, documented before you sign and priced against the repairs it finds.
Video Borescope Inspection
A camera inside the cylinders and passages, so the decision to open an engine is made on evidence.
Oil and Fluid Analysis: common questions
How often should I sample oil?
At every oil change is ideal, because the value is in the trend rather than any single result. On a survey it is a single snapshot, which is still worth having.
Is a sample useful right after an oil change?
Less so. A sample taken from fresh oil has had little time to pick up wear metals, so results can read artificially clean. On a pre-purchase survey I note it when the oil has obviously just been changed.
What does coolant in the oil indicate?
Commonly a head gasket, a cracked head or a failed oil cooler. It is a finding that needs following up quickly, because running an engine with coolant in the oil damages bearings.
Tell me what the engine is doing
Describe the symptom on the phone and most of the time the problem is narrowed before I arrive. Surveys are booked around your sea trial date.