MEP 803A smoke after oil change

[Louis9113]

Hi,
I recently changed the oil/filter (Wix and Rotella) and now shortly after startup I’m getting an unusual amount of smoke. 2100 hrs. New to me set and it did fine (no smoke) before oil change.

I have a video but I can’t upload it. The TM I looked at didn’t go into much detail about blue/white smoke 10-15 seconds after startup.

 

[Light in the Dark]

Rotella conventional or synthetic?

 

[Louis9113]

Rotella conventional or synthetic?

15-40 conventional. Oil pressure gauge went from 45-50 psi to pegged at random.

 

[nextalcupfan]

My 803a smokes for a bit after startup.
But it always clears after a minute or 3, longer in cold weather.

I run AMSOil SAE 15W-40 Heavy-Duty Diesel and Marine Oil.
Says its formulated for Pre-2007 engines.

 

[Louis9113]

My 803a smokes for a bit after startup.
But it always clears after a minute or 3, longer in cold weather.

I run AMSOil SAE 15W-40 Heavy-Duty Diesel and Marine Oil.
Says its formulated for Pre-2007 engines.

I’ve had a knot in my stomach since I first saw the smoke from my unit but it has eased a little after seeing your videos. I was scared to run it very long, but you think let it run to clear up? Nearly identical amount/color as your smoke.
It was clean burning with the unknown old oil in it a month ago.

 

[nextalcupfan]

You should probably wait until others with more experience chime in here.
I've only ever seen my unit in person.
But personally I'm not worried about mine since it clears after a minute or so.

 

[loosegravel]

I've seen other threads about "excessive smoke" at start-up on these machines. My home stand-by 10kw unit smokes much like the units in nextalcupfan's vids. It always clears up in a few minutes. I try to run mine at least every other month under a 100% load for 30 - 45 minutes. I've never had to add engine oil, so I assume the smoke is fuel related. I would take a deep breath (not from the exhaust smoke!) and allow your machine to come up to operating temperature. Also, it's a good idea to run these engines under a load if possible. They are prone to "wet-stacking" due to running for long periods of time with no load. Unburned fuel can enter the exhaust manifold and muffler and sit there. The next time you fire it up and put a load on it the unburned fuel will burn out causing excessive smoke.

 

[jamawieb]

Have you been running the unit under load? How long has it run without a load? I would say nothing to worry about and run it hard. You may just be seeing the start of wet stacking.

 

[csheath]

15-40 conventional. Oil pressure gauge went from 45-50 psi to pegged at random.

Oil Pressure pegged sounds like a stuck pressure relief valve. I would double check with a mechanical gauge on that.

 

[Digger556]

2x recommend load banking the unit once a month if you don't already. 70-80% of max rating usually works.

With the oil gauge, double check end-to-end for loose connections, it may be a coincidence the gauge is pegging.

If your really concerned, buy a new bottle of oil from a different source and chamge the oil again. Covid-era production of all things has resulted in less than stellar quality control. Maybe the oil was bottled with the wrong weight.

 

[Louis9113]

Oil Pressure pegged sounds like a stuck pressure relief valve. I would double check with a mechanical gauge on that.

Sometimes the oil pressure would display correctly and other times not.

 

[Mullaney]

View attachment 863999
Sometimes the oil pressure would display correctly and other times not.

.
It is electric rather than a mechanical gauge. I would think maybe you have a faulty gauge or sending unit - OR maybe a bad ground possibly?

 

[DieselAddict]

I'd suggest verifying your oil pressure with a known good mechanical gauge.

I have to ask since I don't see it in the above reponses - How much oil did you put in it?

 

[Guyfang]

15-40 conventional. Oil pressure gauge went from 45-50 psi to pegged at random.

Since when is 15/40 needed in Louisiana?

 

[Louis9113]

The smoke cleared up after a few starts, so yesterday was moving day (off the trailer to it’s final resting place.

 

[CallMeColt]

White smoke after a cold start, even in a warm climate, is pretty normal in a mechanical diesel engine. Especially if it is a little rich. My diesel ATV with the fuel turned up has a lot of while smoke for about 5 minuets.