Bubbles on disptick

[radiod]

I've done some searching and couldn't find anything specifically in this forum, but I wanted to confirm anyways.

I check the oil immediately after the engine's been running and it's been warmed up, and I'll occasionally see one or two small bubbles BELOW the oil level (not sitting on top). I'll wipe off the dipstick, stick it back in, pull it out, no bubbles. Not foam at all, just a bubble or two no bigger than a couple mm in diameter. On checking oil after it's been sitting for 5 minutes it's perfect too. Just a sign of recent use?

No lucas added, no bubbles in the rad, no creamy junk under the oil cap or in the PCV, coolant is clean, and no white or sweet smelling smoke out the tailpipe. (I just did a headgasket recently, can you tell? :biglaugh

Almost forgot. I'm using Royal Purple 5-30.

 

[thedave925]

Oil drain off from the turbo dump drizzling into the pan would pull a few dinky air bubbles down i suppose, kinda like a waterfall aerates the water it hits.

 

[radiod]

Any other ideas? Any reason to be concerned at all?

 

[kamikazemkiii]

Maybe a small leak.

 

[radiod]

Would have to be pretty tiny, oil level hasn't changed at all in a month of daily driving and hasn't left any drops whatsoever where I park.

 

[thedave925]

The turbo dump is right above the dipstick hole.
Thick cold oil would retain air bubbles which would find something to stick to like carbonation to a straw.

What else could possibly induce small air pockets to form under the surface of oil?
The head oil galley drain offs are on the driver side of the block. The crank is not submerged in oil.
The oil pump never goes backwards
I don't think crank case pressure would ever be strong enough to force oil to aerate.
Does boiling oil aerate like boiling a pot of water would create bubbles?

Maybe in leaking oil, the trade off for allowing a leak is sucking in little air bubbles through a crevice air can pass but oil cannot, under the oil surface.
So that means your oil pan has a microscopic crack which allows air in for oil to leak elsewhere, possibly up the oil pick up where it can inconspicuously be hidden and stored in the oil pressure galley. Very sneaky, that oil


Okay how about this:
Drain your oil into a BUCKET and not a funneled catch can thingy.
Watch the oil drain closely.
The bucket started out empty, but as it fills, you notice air bubbles coming up around the heavy stream of oil draining in.
Why?
Does that mean the oil coming from the engine started out with air in it?
Maybe the bucket also leaks air from underneath when oils in it... but that would mean that the oil has to go up somewhere so that aint right lolz

AFAIK, the inertia of the oil draining hitting the surface pulls down air too, and the turbulence under the surface helps pull the air further beneath the surface before the air has a chance to rise.

Or maybe theres a secret air injector system putting air bubbles on the dipstick

 

[radiod]

Ok, so 90% likely it's just the turbo drain. That's all I was wondering =P.

10% that we're underestimating the sneakines of the oil...hmmmm.......

 

[IJ.]

oohhhh noes you have "BoD" :runaway: (BubblesOdeath) ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh














































seriously though nothing to worry about dude unless they contain coolant.

 

[radiod]

^

Exactly what I was looking for =P. With the :runaway: and everything!

I know I'm losing a bit of coolant, but I know where it's going (NOT through oil or combustion chamber ), so I think I'm safe