parkiboy
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 03:27 PM |
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Can someone explain how my dry sump works?
Right, since getting my dry sump fitted by day tuner I have regularly checked the oil even though it has hardly been driven amd it has always been
below the bottom baffle in the tank, I got told it should be just below the top baffle so I bought a litre of the same oil and topped it up, much to
my surprise it was still below the bottom baffle, but have to breifly running my engine to circulate the fluids there is now too much oil in the tank,
it is now an inch above the top baffle.
Why is this?
Thanks
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Dooey99
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 04:59 PM |
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a dry sump system basically works like so...
instead of all the oil collecting in a 'deep' pan at the bottom of the engine a much shallower pan is fitted which has a pipe fitted at
the lowest point of the pan which leads from the pan to some sort of additional pump (not the standard oil pump) a 'scavenger' pump which
pumps the oil from the shallow sump to the oil tank than a different oil pipe goes from the tank to the normal oil pump on the engine which then
circulates the oil through all the oil veins and to every where in the engine that oil is needed then then the oil ends up at the shallow sump and
then gets pumped round the system again and again...
I HOPE THAT MAKES SENSE
Basically dry sumps are fitted so that the engine oil can be stored in a different place to allow the engine to be situated lower in a vehicle.
and you thought your oil level was low because when the engine isnt running the 'scavenger' pump isnt pumping so the oil from the tank
slowly seeps back to the shallow sump so the oil level appears low but it is actually not low it is just in the engine rather than the oil tank.
the way to check the oil level on a dry sump system is to run the engine for 3-5 minutes then turn the engine off and check the oil level in the tank
sort of within the next minute or so, (release the cap on the oil tank slowly incase there is any pressur that needs to be released.
HOPE THIS HELPS
Less weight more speed, more power more speed
If in doubt, give it a clout
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parkiboy
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 05:08 PM |
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Right i didnt know the oil seeped back through the pump. I did try checking the oil a minute or so and you couldnt really see as the top was very
foamy, it worrie me at first but after a bit of research I read this is normal, the oil returns pretty much foamy and twice the size due to the
agitation in the engine then the tanks are designed the split the air from the oil to return it back to its normal form.
I have pretty much got that right haven't I? Or am I wrong?
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perksy
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 05:30 PM |
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Ideally you want to check the oil level in the dry sump tank as soon as you've switched the engine off.
(Eventually the oil will run back into the engine sump)
I made a dipping stick up for mine which was basically a piece of solid straight wire.
There is also a theory that if the dry sump tank is sat on some rubber that helps to take some of the agitation out of the oil as if its solidly
mounted to the chassis the tank can be 'shook' by engine vibration.
I mounted my tank on some 3mm sheet rubber and it seemed to work fine (XE Engine).
Its really important that you don't use right angled fittings on the dry sump system, Use only swept type fitings if required.
The more straight fittings the better.
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parkiboy
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 05:43 PM |
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Right, it was probably fine then, they did tell me how to change the oil but not how to check it! Looks like im going to be buying a syphon tomorrow
to remove the litre of oil I've just added :-/
Cheers guys
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perksy
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| posted on 29/3/13 at 05:50 PM |
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*If* you are using a catch tank on your set-up the extra oil will be 'blown' into that.
I'm lucky to have an electric syphon machine and this allows the whole of the dry sump tank to be emptied, Some tanks can be split but sadly the
SBD one can't and i was always worried about any crud gathering at the bottom of the tank below the
outlet fitting 
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redturner
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| posted on 9/4/13 at 06:57 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by parkiboy
Right i didnt know the oil seeped back through the pump. I did try checking the oil a minute or so and you couldnt really see as the top was very
foamy, it worrie me at first but after a bit of research I read this is normal, the oil returns pretty much foamy and twice the size due to the
agitation in the engine then the tanks are designed the split the air from the oil to return it back to its normal form.
I have pretty much got that right haven't I? Or am I wrong?
You really should not be getting froth in the dry sump tank. I run a single seater with a Zetec and never get this problem. Frothing can be caused if
you don't have a well made windage tray. I produce lots of x-flow dry sumps and they never seem to have a problem. Granted, a racing car
won't be subject to the same vibrations as a road car but we have never found it neccesary to mount a tank on rubber. I always check the oil
level after a few minutes running at initial start up.......The dry sump tank should have a 1/16" hole in the cap for ventilation and the rest
of the system sealed
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