Fuel in water?

When the boat is moored or anchored in the water and a wake hits the transom, i notice a spot of (fuel or oil) float away from the back of the boat. What could this be. ( You see a small circle floating on top of water-- looks like it could be gas)? <br /><br />Engine off. <br /><br />88 Fourwinns I/O OMC v8

Re: Fuel in water?

if its there on a regular basis its most likely a slight oil leak from the outdrive or it could be from the hydraulic rams.. if its the rams it should get worse if u lift em up and down a few times..<br /><br />looking for oil films at the back of my boat is one of my regular maintainance checks.. he he.. a slight sign from the rams i dont mind but if its from the drive the seals need looking at..<br /><br />i dont see how it could be gas..<br /><br />trog100

Re: Fuel in water?

I get the same thing...and I have traced it to the port ram...my biggest indicator...I have to top off the fluid in the trim/tilt pump every season or my tilt stops working.<br /><br />Looking into rebuild kits myself...found at Doug Russell "reasonably priced.<br /><br />-JustMrWill

Re: Fuel in water?

so nothing really serious.. unless the outdrive is leakin at the seal, however just had it completely maint. in spring. Seals bellows and all involved with annual maint. and then some

Re: Fuel in water?

A couple comments...as a bit of an enviromentalist, I'd personally appreciate it if you isolated the leak and had it fixed ASAP. I really dislike seeing oil slicks in the water, no matter how small.<br /><br />I'd also recommend the same quick diagnostic/repair from a purely mechanical standpoint. If oil is possibly coming out of the outdrive, then water is possibly going in. Water, oil, gears, and bearings don't mix well. A little spec of rust on a bearing can create some noticable expenses. So a simple repair now could prevent a complete rebuild later. And if your recent maintence/repair work resulted in something loose or improperly installed which caused the leak, you might get it fixed for free anyway.

Re: Fuel in water?

Well now i need to find out where its leAKING.. while tubing i noticed some white grease.(smelled like 8090 gear lube to me.. it was on top of the drive unit. WHat the fu--????

Re: Fuel in water?

any ideas... is this common????

Re: Fuel in water?

hope its not the drive.... could it be the fill screw (seal)... i noticed some whiteish fluid on the top of that screw last night...??