IO-550 Oil Levels

[Txbyker]

I am wondering what you Ovation and Acclaim pilots experience with your oil levels.  If the engine is serviced to 8 quarts there is a natural amount of oil that will sling out and leave the level at a given "normal" point.  On my old J that was 6 quarts.

 

If my plane is topped to 8 quarts and I fly somewhere, park overnight, when checking the level it will usually be about 6 quarts.  However if I park the plane for a few days the oil level will be much higher, nearer the 8 quarts.  I am assuming the prop must be holding some amount for a few days.  At 6 quarts, away from home, I tend to want to add a bit but am I overfilling it? 

 

So question is, what do you believe to normal for the IO-550?  The reason I ask is that I am monitoring my usage much more now that I have about 800 hrs on the engine and the expected mid TBO cylinder maintenance.

 

Russ

[Robert C.]

Mine invariably settles at 6 quarts and stays there for a while.

So I add a quart when it gets down to 5.5, or if it has been at 6 for a while and I'm leaving on a long flight.

Robert

[Cruiser]

I look at the oil stick and hours flown because of what you say above ^^^. 

 

It takes several days for all the oil to drain to the sump. Also, you need to pull the oil stick and wipe it clean than check the level , seems the oil has a tendency to wick up and may not be indicating the true amount if you just pull it and look without wiping clean first and then checking.

 

Another thing I found was the levels will read different based on how you lock down the dip stick. It doesn't matter which way you do it, just do it the same every time.

I always insert it with the "OIL" on the top of the cap to the rear so when rotated 180° to the lock position the "OIL" is forward.  Put it in the other way and it will read a slightly different level, I was told the rotation in the filler tube wipes some oil around with the dip stick and it wicks up the stick, the level being different on the front side of the stick than the backside.

[Joe Zuffoletto]

Mine settles at just a hair above 6 quarts and stays there.

[BorealOne]

I'm with the 6 q crowd in my O.

[carusoam]

Once...

I put in th 8qts. It stayed there...

Running the engine seems to absorb a quart....

Adding a quart, brings it back to 8.

Letting it sit, the absorbed quart now shows up on the stick...>8...

The IO550 apparently doesn't have the vent characteristic of other engines.

The oil stays in the engine.

The oil burn rate is much lower.

Best regards,

-a-

[Guest]

Most of the IO550's I have experience with seem to run between 5 and 6 quarts. My engine would seize at that level, it's happier in the 12-14 quart levels.

Clarence

[Seth]

My IO-550A has a larger sump capacity and I'm supposed to keep mine above 10qts. The 10-12 is what it should be at when I start it. Anything over 10.5 ends up on the belly, so I fill it to 11 at oil changes and then put a half quart in once it returns to 10. By the time I'm putting that second half quart it its oil change time.

I think the sump on the IO-550N has a max capacity of 8 quarts.

-Seth

[Deb]

According to Roger Gradle, TCM factory service center manager, A&P with IA, (also PPL with Instrument rating), the IO550G is designed to hold 8 qts. So, we filled it 1 qt at a time after an oil change, and checked the dipstick after each qt for reference. Then we ground ran it to check for leaks, then checked the dipstick the next day before our flight. At that point, ours reads a bit more than 8 qts. YMMV. Although TCM has demonstrated that the engine will run on 2 qts, we have not run that particular experiment. Roger has suggested that we keep the level around 6.5–7.5 qts. So for us, if we're going on a longer trip, we'll add oil to aim for 7.5 qts. For local trips, we'll let it drift down to about 6.5 qts before we add oil. FWIF, we've noticed that ground slope appears to affect this measurement.

[carusoam]

The N's last line is marked 8... Same as the G.

Long flat oil sumps.

Unless I forgot something...

Best regards,

-a-

[Jeff_S]

6 quarts seems to be my happy place as well.

[StevenL757]

I'm with the 6 q crowd in my O.

Ditto for my Ovation.

[M20S Driver]

7 for long flights, will add below 6, targeting 6.5.

[PMcClure]

My Ovation seems to suck up anything above 6 and settle in around 6. But if it sits for several days, 1-2 quarts will magically appear.