Oil & Fuel Ford 1720 - Oil from vent hose

[okmurdog]

Hello,

I'm new to the Ford/New Holland 1720 tractor, and I noticed last night there is something wrong somewhere -


Last night, I started and moved the tractor approximately 100 yards. When I turned it off and started to walk away, I noticed an oil puddle under the tractor on the concrete about the diameter of a baseball.

The oil was dripping from an overflow/vent hose from underneath the tractor, and had just about stopped within a minute or two from shutting it off (it appeared that the oil was actively dumping out when the engine was running).

I traced the hose back to the origin - the hose appears to be a vent hose, that originates from the side of the Valve Cover on top of the engine.

A couple of questions:

1. Anybody have any idea what could be causing the oil to dump out the hose?

2. What keeps oil from normally dumping out of the hose in the first place?


I don't have a service manual (yet)....but plan to get one pretty quick. Also, anybody have any recommendations regarding a service manual?

Thanks in advance for the help!

-Mark

 

[Johnp33]

You should call the dealer and ask for the exact oil capacity of the oil pan and be sure the oil level is not over full. That is the most, likely problem.
Also it is posible the oil you have in it is to thick the dealer can tell you what is used, also high RPM when cold, the oil does not drain back as fast, especially when the engine is cold and has a lot of blow-by with the pieces not at there size they are when hot.

 

[okmurdog]

You should call the dealer and ask for the exact oil capacity of the oil pan and be sure the oil level is not over full. That is the most, likely problem.
Also it is posible the oil you have in it is to thick the dealer can tell you what is used, also high RPM when cold, the oil does not drain back as fast, especially when the engine is cold and has a lot of blow-by with the pieces not at there size they are when hot.

I forgot to mention that the first thing I checked was the oil level - it showed midway on the cross-hatch pattern on the dipstick.

The oil that leaked out did not appear thick....if anything, it was quite thin.

The engine was cold when I started and moved it, but I think the amount from the overflow was excessive. Also, upon further examination - it was evident that the oil was coming out at a steady pace as the tractor was moving (before I stopped).

Thanks for info

 

[okmurdog]

Some follow-up info -

-The tractor is new to me, and only has ~ 810 hours. It is a 1991 model. It is in very good shape, and has been kept out of the weather.

- The tractor hasn't been used much in the past 10 years - only 200 hours have been put on it in the last 10 years, and I think it has only had approximately 30 hours of use in the past 3 or 4 years.

-There is no visible smoke from the exhaust when the tractor is started or while the tractor is running. The engine runs strong.

- The oil from the vent hose only occurs after the tractor warms up. After the tractor warms up, there is a visible vapor (oil or exhaust vapor?) exiting from the vent hose, along with a good amount of oil. The amount of oil exiting the hose will fill a teaspoon in ~ 10-20 seconds.

- Attached is a photo of where the vent attaches to the valve cover.


A couple of questions:

1. Is there anything else besides piston blow-by that could be causing this problem (high pressure in the valve cover/crankcase, with oil spewing from the vent hose)?

2. Is it possible the blow-by is normal, and the oil blowing out is due to a faulty trap/valve to keep the oil from blowing out?

3. Is it possible this problem is a symptom of it not being used for several years? Is it possible this problem will clear itself up with more hours on the tractor?

4. Is there any harm to the tractor by running it in this condition, besides having to check the oil more often?

Thanks for everybody's help!

p.s. - does anybody know where I can find an exploded parts diagram?

-Mark

 

[90cummins]

It is not normal.
I would change the oil & refill with 15w40 or Shell Rotella T6 5w40 synthetic and install a new filter.
Check coolant level.
Does the engine coolant temperature guage show it is warming up?
Look in the oil fill spout to see if there is any moisture, (white foam)
When running you can check for moisture by placing a mirror near the engine breather, moisture will condense on the glass oil vapor will not.
Does the engine start easy & run smoothly at idle?
It is remotely possible that the cylinders are glazzed due to low HP & cold operation.
The early model tractors had a defective thermostat housing which prevented the engine form warming up. There was a recall on this.
I have heard of this condition sometimes being resolved by running hard or on a PTO dyno which loads the rings forcing them to seal.
The 1720 is a very good tractor. I have 2200 hours on mine and it earned every one of them.

 

[okmurdog]

It is not normal.
I would change the oil & refill with 15w40 or Shell Rotella T6 5w40 synthetic and install a new filter.
Check coolant level.
Does the engine coolant temperature guage show it is warming up?
Look in the oil fill spout to see if there is any moisture, (white foam)
When running you can check for moisture by placing a mirror near the engine breather, moisture will condense on the glass oil vapor will not.
Does the engine start easy & run smoothly at idle?
It is remotely possible that the cylinders are glazzed due to low HP & cold operation.
The early model tractors had a defective thermostat housing which prevented the engine form warming up. There was a recall on this.
I have heard of this condition sometimes being resolved by running hard or on a PTO dyno which loads the rings forcing them to seal.
The 1720 is a very good tractor. I have 2200 hours on mine and it earned every one of them.

I did change the oil this past weekend - the last documented oil change was around 200 hours ago (nearly 10 years ago), and I presume this was indeed the last oil change. The oil that came out was not foamy or had any indications of contamination with water. I put 10W-40 dino back in it.

I'll check for moisture using the mirror trick by the vent. I did notice that if I remove the oil fill cover, the oil no longer drips from the vent hose - this is why I believe that the oil is being forced out of the tube simply by the amount of pressure in the crankcase...just not sure if piston blow-by could be the only cause of this.

The temperature gauge does deflect as it warms up. I didn't check the coolant though - will do that this evening.

As I said, the tractor runs great & has no visible smoke from the exhaust.

One other thing that just popped in my head - is it possible for too much exhaust back pressure to cause this problem? The exhaust on this tractor comes straight up via a baffle, without anything covering the exhaust on the end of the pipe. I wonder if something has gotten down in there and maybe has increased the exhaust back pressure?

 

[Jerry/MT]

I did change the oil this past weekend - the last documented oil change was around 200 hours ago (nearly 10 years ago), and I presume this was indeed the last oil change. The oil that came out was not foamy or had any indications of contamination with water. I put 10W-40 dino back in it.

I'll check for moisture using the mirror trick by the vent. I did notice that if I remove the oil fill cover, the oil no longer drips from the vent hose - this is why I believe that the oil is being forced out of the tube simply by the amount of pressure in the crankcase...just not sure if piston blow-by could be the only cause of this.

The temperature gauge does deflect as it warms up. I didn't check the coolant though - will do that this evening.

As I said, the tractor runs great & has no visible smoke from the exhaust.

One other thing that just popped in my head - is it possible for too much exhaust back pressure to cause this problem? The exhaust on this tractor comes straight up via a baffle, without anything covering the exhaust on the end of the pipe. I wonder if something has gotten down in there and maybe has increased the exhaust back pressure?

Exhaust back pressure won't cause this.

In reading the history of this tractor in your post, I believe you have excessive blowby as a result of stuck rings from the tractor not being used very much. I'd be surprised if it also wasn't "wet stacking" ( black, oily exhaust residue in the exhaust pipe) as a result of not being used at even moderate powers very often.

I'd work the snot out of it for several hours (plowing is a good excercise) making sure the engine comes up to operating temperature while you are doing so. Watch the oil level and don't let it get too below the min allowable level when you are doing this. A few hours of hard work should cure this problem.

 

[okmurdog]

Exhaust back pressure won't cause this.

In reading the history of this tractor in your post, I believe you have excessive blowby as a result of stuck rings from the tractor not being used very much. I'd be surprised if it also wasn't "wet stacking" ( black, oily exhaust residue in the exhaust pipe) as a result of not being used at even moderate powers very often.

I'd work the snot out of it for several hours (plowing is a good excercise) making sure the engine comes up to operating temperature while you are doing so. Watch the oil level and don't let it get too below the min allowable level when you are doing this. A few hours of hard work should cure this problem.

Thanks for the reply....I'll try working it hard for a few hours & see what happens. I hope you're right, and this issue can be resolved.

I won't have time to do it this weekend as I will be out of town. However, I'll put it thru it's paces after that.

 

[Hooked_on_HP]

If you didn't put oil in it designed for diesels I would change it again and put Rotella 15w40 in it. I have used Rotella dry up engines manny times.As others have stated "work the snot out of it".
Bill

 

[okmurdog]

If you didn't put oil in it designed for diesels I would change it again and put Rotella 15w40 in it. I have used Rotella dry up engines manny times.As others have stated "work the snot out of it".
Bill

Thanks...I plan to change the oil again, and then start working it hard. Hopefully, can get this issue resolved.

I'll report back after I've put it thru it's paces and let everybody know what happens.