Please help! Low oil warning will not shut off

[slapshot1848]

Was out tonight and low oil warning went on for starboard engine. I turned that engine off then idled in on port engine. As soon as we got to dock I filled both oil tanks to full but the low oil level alarm will not shut off....any ideas what I need to do? I'm praying I did not fry an engine but we were only about a quarter mile out when the alarm went off and like I said we idled in so I'm keeping my fingers crossed the engines are ok.

Thanks-

 

[slapshot1848]

If it helps I have twin 225 ox66 saltwater series II's on the 265 express

 

[BobP]

Which oil tanks were low, the ones in the boat or ones on the motor itself under the cowl ?

 

[Parthery]

Take the cowling off, turn the key on, and wait 3 minutes to see if the engine tank fills.

You can flip the toggle switch on the back of the power head and manually fill the tank as well.

If oil isn't transferring between the remote tank and the engine, you will need to pull the remote tank and replace the filter. Not difficult to do...

 

[slapshot1848]

I did not know about the reserve in the engine itself I will have to try that. The oil I put into the boat was in the main oil tanks In-between the Folding engine shroud and the motors themselves.

 

[BobP]

Was the alarm continuous or beeping?
Did you run the motor yet?
Pul off the cowl and see the tank, is there oil in it?
If so the real oil pump did not run dry, which is good. Motor was never compromised.

Your motor has two oil pumps, an electric transfer pump and mechanial pump, one transfers oil from the bigger boat tank into the motor tank, and the other pumps the oil into the motor, mechanical driven. The transfer pump is under the big tank integraly mounted.

Have the oil system alarms checked out to be sure everything is working so you get the alarms.
When the motor goes on lack of oil, it doesn't make a whimper about it.
And too late to do anything but spend about 5K or more to get a new power head.

 

[g0tagrip]

It is either the filter from your oil tank or it is the pump at the oil tank. Also check the float switch in the engine oil tank, make sure it is free and with oil in the engine tank the float should shut off the low oil warning. Had the same problem with my Sailfish several years ago, it was the remote oil pump at the oil tank, not the one on the engine.

 

[slapshot1848]

The alarm is continuous, once it started going off I shut off the engine and rode in on port engine that was not alarming. I did not know about the separate oil tank on engine so I will have to pull off cowling to see if there is anything in there or not. After I put oil in the main tank I started the starboard engine (the one that was beeping I the first place) and it seemed to run ok but I did not put it in gear.

 

[g0tagrip]

Take the cover off and check the oil tank on the port side of the engine. Is there oil in it? When you hit the switch on the back of the oil tank does the oil level go up? If you cannot fill it with the switch on the engine oil tank you will need to follow the oil line to the big tank and check two things:
1. the oil filter, if clogged clean it out/reinstall it
2. then check if the remote oil pump is running or not.
If not you will have to take the tank out and empty the oil (be sure to filter it thru a fine screen to a bucket). Disconnect and take out the old pump and go to a Yamaha engine dealer and buy a new one, reinstall, pour oil back into tank and hook up all the connections.
One more tip, if one went bad, you may want to replace both while you are at it.

 

[slapshot1848]

Thanks, Great advice I'll let u know how things work out.

 

[slapshot1848]

There was oil in the remote tank, it was approx. 1/3 full, right at the low arrow line. When I had batteries turned on with keys in ignotion to on position but not turned over the remote tank did not fill up to the top arrow line, the oil level did not change at all. I tried the toggle switch and still nothing. For giggles I tried the toggle switch in the port engine and the oil level did not move on that engine either...although the oil level was already at the upper arrow line in the remote tank. I think at this point I am just going to bite the bullet and have a tech come out to make sure everything is checked over so nothing further happens. I was happy to see the oil in the remote tank so hopefully there is no catastrophic damage to engine. I wish I was savvy enough to try cleaning the filter and some of these other ideas but I'm admittedly a novice with engines and would rather not foul anything up further by not knowing what I am doing.

 

[Parthery]

Your port engine wouldn't have filled if it was already at the top line.

If the starboard engine didn't fill, then it's likely the screen inside the tank.

I just went through this about a month ago....$13 in parts, $62 in fresh oil, and $200 in labor but my tech removed both the motor and remote tanks; drained and cleaned both of them; flushed the lines between the tanks; and cleaned and reset the foam mesh on the motor float switch. Runs perfectly now.

Let us know how you make out.

 

[slapshot1848]

I figured that might be the reason the port engine didn't fill when I used the toggle switch. Either way I'm happy to pay a little money to know the engine will be safe. Will update when I have a final outcome.

Cheers!

 

[slapshot1848]

worked with the Yamaha Master Tech on the boat after work today looks like the major issue is the pump in the main oil tank is not working to get the oil up to the remote tank. Since we have to do the work we are also going to switch out the filters on both oil tanks while we are at it. if the marina has a extra oil pump then we should be able to get the boat ready for fishing this weekend! Will update as I find out more.

 

[slapshot1848]

the issue was with the oil pump in the main oil tank on the starboard side...replaced the pump today and the remote tank filled right up just to where it was supposed to go. bonus, we just pinched off the line while making the switch from the old pump to the new one so we lost a very minimal amount of oil saving some money. the yamaha master tech had the job done in a jiffy...now to go catch some fish!