Can engine get damaged from minor dirt in the oil

[Sweaty_Doughnut]

I was wondering, when checking the engine oil level, there is a little bit of dirt around the thread and if you put the dipstick on the ground there is a chance even after you clean it for some dirt to stay on it (sand grains or whatever we can call it). Can this minor dirt damage the engine or the filter would catch that?

[jaffa90]

Clean the area around the dipstick before removing, filters will stop engine damage.

[stinkwheel]

Don't put the dipstick on the ground. You have a rag/paper towel to wipe it with. Put it on that.

There is a screen filter on the oil pickup that would stop bigger bits being sucked into the oil pump and most bikes have a finer gauze/paper filter somewhere in the circuit. They are mostly there to filter out bits of carbon deposit and small particulate matter resulting from wear of engine internals. They are also acting only on the pressurised part of the oiling circuit. They are not there to filter out lumps of sand you stuck in there on your dipstick.

Any dirt that goes in the oil filler hole is going directly into your gearbox and crankcase. There is no filter there so it'll be sloshing around in with all the gear componants, clutch, alternator and crank.

Also consider. In most cases, that gauze filter on the pickup is right in the middle of the engine and never gets cleaned in the bikes lifetime (and isn't designed to be for most bikes). Any dirt that is caught in there will gradually build up over time. If it blocks, your engine is toast.

So it is good practice to avoid as much as possible, dirt going into your engine.
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Yes a tiny bit of dirt can cause major damage. Although most of the time not. While there is a screen before the pump, the mesh isn't that small on some bikes. And the oil filter is after the pump, hence the dirt can damage the pump. Further, depending on engine temp, pressure, etc, some oil will bypass the filter before being pumped around the engine.

All the best

Katy
____________________
Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Shinigami]

why are you putting your dipstick on dirty ground to begin with though
____________________
Current: Honda City Fly CLR125 2003 Honda CB600F Hornet 2008 Yamaha FZ6 S2 + 1991 Kawasaki GPZ500
"Once you realize what a joke everything is, being the Comedian is the only thing that makes sense.

[tom_e]

[Shinigami]

[Evil Hans]

[Gone but not forgotten]

You're main concern is HTF did dirt get in there,( other than your apparent lack of concern for dipstick placement)

Dirt inside any engine is not a good thing, & l'd advise you to buy some flushing oil & a new filter as well as new oil & just make sure you don't do the task on the back field!
____________________
Mick

[ackack]

[james1988]

[ackack]

Flushing oil was a handy thing to have in the 70's and 80's on cars when oil quality was not like it was today and the engines on your average family car had shit crankcase ventilation and you either got mayo or black death in your engines. The problem I have with engine flush is that it is designed to break down 'sludge' and 'carbon' deposits and while that is all fine and dandy how do you make sure that when you've drained the oil and engine flush that there isn't any engine flush still left in the engine?
You don't so whatever is left in the oilways or in the engine is going to be mixing with the next batch of oil you put in the engine and it is going to affect the new oil in some way. Plus you're going to have it go all over the gearbox and clutch. One thing I do notice is that of all the manufacturers handbooks I've read regarding oil changes not one mentions flushing oil. Only regular changes.

[Gone but not forgotten]

Oh how wonderful, a discussion about flushing dirt out of an engine, l think this one will break all records!!

When l were a lad tha' wuz lucky if yer cud afford to put old tea bags mixed with cow dung into yer Austin Cambridge!!!😉
____________________
Mick