Oil Catch Can and PCV Routing (and what to look for)

So I made my PCV catch can using a nice stainless thermos and some brass fittings. I do say it fits perfect in the stock Charcoal Canister location.

My main gripe is that I'm not sure how the Z31 engine responds to certain PCV setups.

Here is how I have mine:

1) Filter/Breather on Passenger side.
2) Original PCV hose on the driver side that has been turned toward front of car, and has a brass fitting siliconed into the outlet.
3) Line runs from brass fitting to inlet on catch can.
4) Catch can has a brass fitting on the outlet.
5) Hose runs from brass fitting to the original PCV suction tube fitting on the Compressor housing inlet elbow (black pipe that twists over the mount).
6) Ran a small vac line from the small nipple on the same elbow pipe to the left-over vent line from the Charcoal Can removal.


Now, normally I would run a closed system, and I still can. Not a big deal, but if this works… it works.

But yesterday I decided to twist open the catch can (with my steel wool wicking medium to disperse fuel from the suction line), and at the base of the can I found a thin, watery liquid that smelled somewhat like seafoam. It was not oil, but it could have had some vapours of the oil trapped within it.

I know the catch can is doing it's job, but my question is this:

1) is it moisture entering the breather filter and being purged into the catch can (which could be a good place for it, if it's collecting there rather than my oil… but could this also mean it's in the oil?) if it is moisture from the oil that was just trapped in there, I'm glad it's purged it's way to the tank and not developing a white mayonnaise like paste under my oil filler cap, which is no longer there. (BTW, RB26 oil filler caps make taking the damn thing off sooooo much easier).
2) is it sea-foam + oil vapour and moisture mix? It did smoke white for a long while but now it's all gone and it's no longer smoking white, which would indicated seafoam still in my crankcase.
3) is it fuel from having a considerable amount of misfires and having it enter the crankcase through cylinder washing?

at this point, I'm not sure what to think, but it looks like it's collecting something, and that's a start.

I think my last small bit of work I will do to the car is to purge the oil one last time and put some better oil in there, as I went from a 1 hour seafoam + quaker state wash with a fresh turbo, to a full fill on Castrol GTX, both with new filters. I have a Nissan blue filter that is brand new that I can install on my next oil change soon, and I would just like to get all the seafoam out of there.

What should my plan of action be here? Should I make it a closed loop PCV system? I was told that a check valve must be put in place along one of the lines if there is a closed loop system going from valve cover to valve cover, so that I do not pressurize my Catch can, and I have a PCV fitting that will fit the brass threaded coupler just fine, and I can use that on the inside of the can to block one flow direction or on the ouside to block the other direction, on either line too.

any help is appreciated.

below is a pic of the catch can. I think for 9 bucks (two thermos' for 9 bucks, actually), and about 8 dollars in fittings and some steel wool and hose + a paint can cap that I RTV'd to the inside base of the unit to seal up the lower fitting (yes, there is a drain fitting there as well for when the inside gets really full) it wasn't a bad deal. And I get another coffee thermos to carry around with me too. total was about 25-ish dollars =)

[attachment=0:e6bd0]_DSC3659.jpg[/attachment:e6bd0]

You'll also notice that behind the can and underneath the the lower-resting plate that it sits on, just resting on the front frame rail for the core support is the fan control relay box that houses the relay circuit to control my taurus fans too. the box is an outdoor wiring conduit junction that has a 3/4 inlet and a 90 degree 3/4 outlet that shoots straight up and under the headlight bucket, goes around the factory relay box, behind the A/C receiver dryer and PS pump, and up from the same area where the cruise control is.

I've since removed the fuses and will put a fuse BEFORE the relays, as they will be 70 amp and will handle the load, the fuse I will put in will be a 50 amp, which I will pair with my alternator and sub-box (if I decide to put that in) using a junction block with maxi fuses mounted to the side of the battery (or close to it) with double sided 3M tape that is weather proof.

that's all for now.