Oil leak becoming noticable...

[r@+5un620]

So... I recently noticed a small puddle of oil after my truck sat for a week or two now when i park it for the night and go out the next morning in a different spot i notice quite a few drops. I looked under the hood and the engine on pass side has quite a lot of gunk built up under there but i can notice a lil bit of fresh oil around the sending switch. Yet when i get underneath the truck it appears as though its coming from the gasket or the front of the head. Any ideas on where to start. I havent noticed a loss of power or anything like that but im worried as shes my daily. And Id like to fix and clean her. Another curiosity was will any oil come out when i replace the oil pressure sending switch? Thank you guys for any advice or help! Kyle 

 

[jvb5577]

For the oil pressure switch, no oil will come out when you remove it.  Most will have settled back in the pan.

 

Are you thinking the headgasket is leaking?? 

[datzenmike]

Power wash or degrease the engine, (engine shampoo?) clean even the pan and underside. Blast away any dirty places. (if you need to replace a gasket it will be cleaner anyway) Let it dry and take for a drive. Keep checking regularly for wetness.

 

Likely to least likely.

 

The most likely is the valve cover... it's the most often removed for maintenance. Oil from it can travel a long way before dripping and appear to be the oil pan or something else.

 

Oil pressure senders also develop leaks, wetness really. 

 

Oil pan gasket. Made worse by over tightening the pan bolts distorting the mating pan surface.

 

Front crankshaft seal. appears as a drip just to the rear of the pulley. Air from the fan will blow it all over the underside of the motor.

 

Fuel pump fulcrum pin. May look like the pump gasket but often it's a tiny pin that the pump arm inside rocks back and forth on. Degrease well and put a finger dab of RTV on it.... yes I said RTV one of the few things that shit is good for. Oil form the pump drips down on the alternator or is blown down the right side of the block

 

Rear crank seal. No way around this.. the engine or trans must come out

 

Distributor base

 

The rubber seal around the dipstick can leak and internal blow by can push it out.

[r@+5un620]

thanks guys im probably going to keep dd until next wed payday before any fixes... but until then ill clean the crap off and become overly observant. Just wanted to let ya'll know how appreciative I am of you guys because honestly, without ratsun she'd still be in that field rustin' away. Thanks everybody.