White crap in oil sight glass

jerkybear said:

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and have a safe New Year. Remember Cagers will be drinking. I know that this has been touched on before, but I just recently, 1 month ago, had my sight glass replaced by the Kawie dealer due to some kind of white crap obscuring the upper half of the sight glass. I had gotten to the point that I was having trouble checking my oil. I now have the same problem again. The bike seems to run fine. Same loud Vulcan 900lt engine noise. The mechanics wouldn't give me a straight answer to what the problem is. Does anyone know why I keep having this problem????? I don't leave the bike in the rain, I wash it at the carwash without using high pressure on the engine, and I use a blower at the carwash to dry the bike. I have not seen any oil leakage on the ground or on the engine anywhere. Sorry so long, please, any suggestions.



Jerkybear

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sounds like condensation ! the oil isnt getting hot enough to burn it off !! do you live in a cold climate or do short runs ? also think about changing brand ,type of oil if the temparature where you live is cold !.

I usually ride a minimum of about 25 miles at a time. That is to town and back. I live in the boonies. It has been cold here in east Texas for the last couple of weeks. I don't know. The oil is changed at the dealership, so I assume they use Kawi oil.

jerkybear said:

I usually ride a minimum of about 25 miles at a time. That is to town and back. I live in the boonies. It has been cold here in east Texas for the last couple of weeks. I don't know. The oil is changed at the dealership, so I assume they use Kawi oil.

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well i live in spain europe !always warm here even today is about 16 -18 degrees c dunno what that is in farenheight! never have that problem i change oil filter my self and use semi syn oil ; i had the same problem with a car once and that was the problem not getting hot enough running temp! jerkybear what or where is the "boonies " ah ha! sorry a dumb european !

My nomad will do it on short run's during cold weather,but will clear up on a longer ride that get's the oil hot enough to get ridd of the condensation. The only way I can see they had to replace the glass if it was double and the moisture got in the middle.

jerkybear said:

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and have a safe New Year. Remember Cagers will be drinking. I know that this has been touched on before, but I just recently, 1 month ago, had my sight glass replaced by the Kawie dealer due to some kind of white crap obscuring the upper half of the sight glass. I had gotten to the point that I was having trouble checking my oil. I now have the same problem again. The bike seems to run fine. Same loud Vulcan 900lt engine noise. The mechanics wouldn't give me a straight answer to what the problem is. Does anyone know why I keep having this problem????? I don't leave the bike in the rain, I wash it at the carwash without using high pressure on the engine, and I use a blower at the carwash to dry the bike. I have not seen any oil leakage on the ground or on the engine anywhere. Sorry so long, please, any suggestions.

Jerkybear

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Have a look at the underside of your oil filler cap, if there is a white-beige sludge under there, you could have done a head gasket, if you have you won't see oil leakage, because the oil will be riding on the top of the pooled coolant. Just a first thing you can check, hoping that you don't find any!
Christo.

rokket said:

well i live in spain europe !always warm here even today is about 16 -18 degrees c dunno what that is in farenheight! never have that problem i change oil filter my self and use semi syn oil ; i had the same problem with a car once and that was the problem not getting hot enough running temp! jerkybear what or where is the "boonies " ah ha! sorry a dumb european !

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Dude, I spent 6 1/2 years in Germany while I was in the Army. Loved Europe and the Europeans. The French are a little hard to take.:lol: The "boonies" is a slang term for living out in the country, away from the city. Texas is usually warm too. It is about 9-10 degrees C here today. A little bit cold for my liking. Thanks for the input.

Christo said:

Have a look at the underside of your oil filler cap, if there is a white-beige sludge under there, you could have done a head gasket, if you have you won't see oil leakage, because the oil will be riding on the top of the pooled coolant. Just a first thing you can check, hoping that you don't find any!
Christo.

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Thanks, I'll do that. I just don't want to do anything to harm my bike. I love to ride!!!!!!!:mrgreen:

can this happen if the bike has been sitting a while? Now that its winter here and cold, i havent been riding much and i noticed the same thing yesterday while out in the shed. Im still about 1500 miles away from an oil change but its been 3 months now so im thinking of changing it anyhow. Thoughts??

If the oil itself is a pale beige sort of colour that indicates emulsification, and would mean that coolant is getting into your oil, i.e. head gasket. If you are just seeing white in the oil sightglass, that's condensation, it's entirely normal in cold weather, and it's nothing a good long ride won't fix. Check for the worst, hope for the best.
Christo.

Christo said:

If the oil itself is a pale beige sort of colour that indicates emulsification, and would mean that coolant is getting into your oil, i.e. head gasket. If you are just seeing white in the oil sightglass, that's condensation, it's entirely normal in cold weather, and it's nothing a good long ride won't fix. Check for the worst, hope for the best.
Christo.

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Nice, i was hoping for an answer like that. Let me know when i can come to a land down under to meet you and help you out with that donut testing.

Once again, great information. I appreciate all the members.

S.D.Willie said:

Nice, i was hoping for an answer like that. Let me know when i can come to a land down under to meet you and help you out with that donut testing.

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Mate, the invitation to visit, for you and indeed all, is implicit!
There's always beer in the refridgerator, it's no trouble to defrost a few steaks, the BBQ is gas and is set up to use 365 days a year, we have plenty of space to throw a few mattresses down, for when you've had sufficient beer, the bay is 10 minutes ride away, the beach is 25 minutes ride away, the tidal river is 50 yards away and mudcrab season runs from september to april, with hauls of about 10 2kilogram crabs per day the usual thing. Prawn farm selling cheap tiger prawns is about 5 minutes away.
Some of the best riding in southeast Queensland is on the doorstep, and the Local Rentacar will hire you a Meany or a VN900 custom for about $120AUS a day.
My wife and I love to entertain, and both ride.
When did you all say you were coming?
Oh yeah, Krispy Kreme opens their regional distribution centre in the area in the new year!
Christo.

Christo that sounds like paradise to me!:biggrin:

i wouldnt use a hi pressure hose to wash with- MO

jerkybear said:

The "boonies" is a slang term for living out in the country, away from the city.

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Exactly. The origin is Tagalog (Philippines), meaning "mountains", the connotation is rural, unsophisticated. Originally "bunduk" or "bondok", anglicised to "boondocks", or "boonies". Made its way into American English common usage via military personnel serving in the Philippines.

More than you wanted to know.

jerkybear said:

Dude, I spent 6 1/2 years in Germany while I was in the Army. Loved Europe and the Europeans. The French are a little hard to take.:lol: The "boonies" is a slang term for living out in the country, away from the city. Texas is usually warm too. It is about 9-10 degrees C here today. A little bit cold for my liking. Thanks for the input.

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hey jerky bear , even the french dont like the french ah ha !! if ever your this neck of the woods southern spain call in , !!! great bikin country spain !!