Trim Blown: Had to tap on cylinder to make it come up. Blew the bottom ... Now What?

[Solace]

Awww man everything was going so smoothly on my maintenance run.

Went to replace the trim switch for the 3rd time, this time with marine-grade-waterproof (they kept rusting out).

Haven't used the boat this summer, and so I trim down. Worked great. Trim up... just a clicking relay. So I gave the cylinder a few taps as it came up and it did come up. Then I opened the cap to see how much fluid was in there and when I jumped down it was a disaster!

Where do I go from here to fix this?

PS: Just tried the trim controller again and it goes up/down easily - I'm thinking water got into the hydraulic fluid and blew out the seal? Drain, flush with fluid, twist the cap back on and refill -- cross fingers?

PPS: God knows how old this fluid is btw, boat sat in a field for YEARS and YEARS. I replaced the gearbox oil recently and it was also really gross and green. I'm hoping the seals are OK and I just blew it out because of the water? Ughh I'm broke. I need a poor mans fix.

 

[jerryjerry05]

IF??? you have water in the T@T?? you don't open the ram or use a hammer.
The motor in the down position is where it should be for filling, NO OTHER WAY!!
CAUTION!!!!!!! VERY HIGH PRESSURE IN THE LINES CAUTION!!!!
Motor down, undo the fill cap on the reservoir add fluid if thats what you need.
Water in the unit: undo the front hydraulic line and activate the pump.
The oil is under pressure and can cause eye damage and can inject oil in your skin.
Undo the front line and then activate the system. Add more fluid, activate the unit, crack the line, activate and repeat until the old oil is gone.
The standard system uses 30w oil. not tranny fluid.

The nasty oil from the lower unit. Drain and pressure test. 90w oil.

 

[Solace]

Thank you! So this doesn't appear to be a complete loss thank god! Naturally I was scared when I broke a part that I didn't YET understand.

Tools to fix arrive today.

So I'm going to essentially treat this like a brake line. Bleed the line until new fluid is coming out.

30w oil? Really! I'll be sure to research and get the correct stuff.

Lower unit is good now I hope. The gaskets were these tiny rubber things which weren't correct. They should be MUCH larger quark board style gaskets. I've got the center pin that I ended up putting some caulking over top of because I didn't have a gasket that fits and I'm not taking the lower end apart for... a while.

 

[Solace]

NOT this stuff then? I ordered before your post:

Amazon.ca

 

[jerryjerry05]

NO
You can use it in your power steering.

 

[Solace]

OK Thanks, tools didn't arrive yesterday Will hopefully fix it today.

 

[topgun3690]

Get the 30w Non Detergent oil......

 

[Solace]

Hey all. I got my tool grinded down to fit. Tightened the cap back on. Filled it up with 30 SAE Non Detergent Fluid -- WORKS AMAZING. My tilt must have been filled with water since the day I got it. I've never seen my motor so high!
Cheers all