Bummed out :(

[c_witch]

Well I went over to the boat yesterday for the first time since Sas had her operation. She is feeling ok so I figured it would be ok to go. I did a bit of painting on the hull just above the counter in the galley that didn't get done before we splashed and touched up some varathane here and there. Today I added a second eyestrap and block to route the furler line down the side of the cabin top and get it from running overtop of the anchor locker. I thought it might feed onto the drum better from this angle as well. So after much messing about I finally got the jib unfurled and tried to furl it again and no go. I kept getting hung up on the baby forestay. I had a good look at it and it appears as though its the hank on that is snagging the stay and causing the sail to ride up over top of it. I guess I should have taken them off, but I'm not sure how to. They are brass and have the pull down knob on the bottom that pulls a shaft down so you can slide in onto the stay and then release the knob and the shaft pops bank into place to lock it there. I finally got it refurled but will have to drop the jib onto the deck to try and remove the top hank as thats the one causing the problems.
So I got the new Linux Mint installed and the latest version of opencpn and got all of that working and added the compass to the dashboard. This shows a graphical compass heading as well as a textual one and also shows the SOG. I have been very curious as to what the speed to the boat has been while tacking at various angles etc. Unplugged the extension cord from the dock outlet and got it stored. Let the motor into the water and checked the oil etc and was all set to go. Had a nice wind as well 10 to 15 knots. Pulled the starter and she fired right up. So after a second or so I push the choke back in and lean over to have a look at the tell tale and NO water coming out. Shut the motor off lift the engine back up out of the water and have a look at the intake and it seems ok but kinda brushed it off an splashed some water on it. Drop the engine back into the water and fire it up and barely a drip coming out of the tell tale. So it appears as though we are back to square one again with the outboard. Rain forcast for tomorrow so Sunday I will go back over and try and use the dock water (pressure) to reverse flush to see if any water comes out of the intake. If it does then I guess the impeller and toasted again for some reason or maybe worse.

I'm a bit discusted at the moment.

c_witch

 

[seadaddler]

How About

Are you sure it's not pumping water out the prop exhaust,this why I ask and my yamaha 8hp has a small water tube that I assume shows that water is pumping and it is very tiny hole under motor head and it is always getting clogged from the salt water I guess but I can see water shooting out the prop exhaust telling me that plenty of water is pumping and the motoring has always run great with no problem over heating or any problem runing just great,I always carry a piece of wire and use it to unclogg the water flow and will shoot water much better.
Sorry if this is not the case with your motor.
Nick

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

Ditto on the wire for the indicator hole. Mine clogs often also.

If it's putting water out the exhaust, but not the indicator, that's probably the reason.

 

[Mike B1026]

I stick a small machine screw (bolt) in my outlet tube. Insects like to crawl in. Sometimes I have to pull the hose off the engine nipple and stick a toothpick in it (nipple) to dislodge some crud.

 

[Joe11688]

Most of the time the problem can be blockage in the water outlet. The water pump impeller can cause poor water flow, but I would check the thermostat before checking the impeller.

I lost the whole month of July waiting for my engine to be repaired because of poor water flow. The mechanic had to pull the power head off my engine to get at the water intake pipe to replace it. Big bucks! Talk about being bummed out. I've been there and done that. In fact, I'm still bummed out.

Then my Standard Voyager Horizon VHF developed a problem in the volume pot. I Mickey Moused it for now. I'll probably have to spring for a new radio next year. I really can't complain though. I bought that radio at Bliss Marine in 1987. I got my money's worth but I really hate to part with it.

Yesterday I was sailing on a run up the river toward the club and my Autohelm ST 1000+ started acting strange. Come to find out that my house battery was very low and was causing this problem. I charged the battery last night and stuck it back in the boat and tried out the auto pilot and she ran without a problem. Thank the good Lord for small favors.
If nothing else breaks down, I plan on sailing into October to make up for lost time.

Someone once told me, "Keep smiling, things could be a lot worse." So I kept smiling and sure enough,- things got worse.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Toothpicks?!?

I thought they invented wire coat hangers for that job.

 

[StanFM]

Nothing frightens or frustrates me more on my boat than the uncertainty as to whether or not my dang gas motor will quit on me... I keep a small 12v trolling motor in the bilge for emergencies-- and dang it, that thing has NEVER failed me, even though quite under powered. (That's why I gave up on gas lawn mowers years ago-- my electric mower has never not started!!! OK, so I ran over the cord once...) But this 2-stroke friend of Satan I have will fail me at exactly the wrong times... rocks approaching... dock approaching... circling to get in line for a spot trying to avoid power boaters.... etc. OK here it is: "We put men on the Moon, why can't we make a 100% reliable outboard?"

Stan :cry:

 

[kenn]

c_witch, have you tried just running the engine for a while to see what happens? If there's no piddle but it doesn't overheat at medium throttle, then you can assume there's water flow, and it's just your piddle tube blocked.

I hear that it's recommended to run your motor with some fresh water going in the water intake, after heavy use in saltwater. Do you ever do this?

: "We put men on the Moon, why can't we make a 100% reliable outboard?"

Oh, they have, yours just isn't one of them

Our 1983 Suzuki 5HP 2-stroke has its quirks, mostly to do with fuel flow. It seems that at the day's start, it'll start in 3 or 4 pulls tops, and I can take the choke off almost immediately, the piddle tube pees like a racehorse and we're away. When we shut it off and start sailing we tip'er up, and I find that when we tip her down to start again some hours later, now she's balky - sometimes 20 pulls before a catch. I'm suspecting it's to do with sitting tilted up, so I've started putting the engine vertical and in the water a few minutes before needing it. Seems to help. Otherwise this engine's been a brick for 6 seasons - hours of continuous running without a hitch, and when I removed and inspected the carb last year, it was clean as a whistle, with just a thin film of 2-stroke oil inside.

 

[Merlin Clark]

I'd suspect salt clogging the pee tube like the other guys.

Ken,
I wouldn't suggest running if you're unsure of if the cooling system is working.
I made the mistake, with my first boat of overheating the OB and that did it in. I don't remember what all was wrong (1987, too many brain cells gone bye bye) but I do remember the estimate was $600. Motor wasn't worth that so I picked up another used for a couple hundred.

 

[c_witch]

Hiee all,

Thanx for the various comments. It was suppose to rain today so I stayed home :cussing:the weather guys got it wrong as it was partly cloudy pretty much all day. Anyhow I'm going over to the boat tomorrow and will pull the hose off the motor block and see if its simply clogged or maybe the nipple in the block is clogged. I'm sure hopping that that is the issue. I don't have any idea as to how I can tell if water is coming out via the exhaust port as it is just to turbulent under the cavitation plate for me to tell.

This motor is in salt water and not run all that much recently. I use it mostly to back out of my slip and get pointed into the wind in order to hoist my main. And then when done dropping the main to motor back into my slip again. It was working fine only 2 weeks ago with a good stream coming out of the telltale. This whole thing in and out typically 15 minutes or so each way. The only thing I've be doing differently is tilting the motor up out of the water at the slip for the past 4 weeks as barnicles were starting to grow on the immersed section.

c_witch

 

[Merlin Clark]

Hi Brina!
A cool trick an old friend and small boat sailor taught me was to remove the wire handle from a 5 gallon bucket, drill a couple holes at the same points and thread a piece of line thru each hole and tie a knot in the end to keep it from pulling thru. place the bucket on the lower unit and tilt the motor down. The top of the bucket should be above the water's surface. Tie the lines together above or thru the carry handle. You can fresh water flush the motor this way without taking it off the boat.

 

[kenn]

Ken,
I wouldn't suggest running if you're unsure of if the cooling system is working.

A good point. And it requires knowing how quickly your particular outboard heats up, so any test run could be stopped before a damaging temperature is reached.

 

[Tom Hoffman]

I had mud dobber wasps plug my pee hole on the motor last season. Pulled the motor and hauled home 90 miles to find that was all the problem was and the motor was operating perfectly fine. Now I keep a hood over the motor the comes down and covers that darn hole.

 

[Fly_H23]

c_witch, have you tried just running the engine for a while to see what happens? If there's no piddle but it doesn't overheat at medium throttle, then you can assume there's water flow, and it's just your piddle tube blocked.

I hear that it's recommended to run your motor with some fresh water going in the water intake, after heavy use in saltwater. Do you ever do this?

Oh, they have, yours just isn't one of them

Our 1983 Suzuki 5HP 2-stroke has its quirks, mostly to do with fuel flow. It seems that at the day's start, it'll start in 3 or 4 pulls tops, and I can take the choke off almost immediately, the piddle tube pees like a racehorse and we're away. When we shut it off and start sailing we tip'er up, and I find that when we tip her down to start again some hours later, now she's balky - sometimes 20 pulls before a catch. I'm suspecting it's to do with sitting tilted up, so I've started putting the engine vertical and in the water a few minutes before needing it. Seems to help. Otherwise this engine's been a brick for 6 seasons - hours of continuous running without a hitch, and when I removed and inspected the carb last year, it was clean as a whistle, with just a thin film of 2-stroke oil inside.

If no water is coming out the tell tale pee hole, then no water could be going in either. A blocked outlet will prevent water flow going in and will lead to overheating.

 

[kenn]

If no water is coming out the tell tale pee hole, then no water could be going in either. A blocked outlet will prevent water flow going in and will lead to overheating.

As Nick suggested the OP's outboard probably has another water output besides the piddle. So no piddle could mean no water flow...or it could mean just a plugged piddle hole.

 

[c_witch]

Problem has been resolved. It appears as though it was just a blockage in the hose coming off the motor and venting thru the bottom of the cowling case. I pulled it out the the cowling case and blew into it and it seemed as though the air was moving someplace, although I could see no bubble coming from under the cavitation plate. I started the motor and whala a good healthy stream of water shooting out :dance:. Thank you all for your input.

Merlin a big thanx for that idea about using the bucket in the water idea as I will start doing that to flush with fresh water at least every couple of weeks, although the season is almost over for us up here. The docks are getting pulled the 13th of October .

c_witch

 

[Fly_H23]

On some outboards, a golf tee makes a great plug to keep mud-daubers and such bugs out of your "coolant indicator" hose.

I use a brightly colored one that is easier to notice.

 

[philwsailz]

What motor is it that you are fighting? Someone else here mentioned Suzuki and I have some news re: Suzuki, specifically the DT4.

I had an issue with no stream in the tell tale, but the motor was overheating. I replaced the pump impeller and went back at it. New impeller, still no water and yes, still overheating. Talked with the National Suzuki parts place on-line and the old guy asked if I had called him previously. I told him no, so he reluctantly went into his tale, apparently for the umpteenth time. Apparently the problem I had is a VERY commmon problem.

Many times, the seal at the top of the water pump housing will open up, not enough to make water squirt out, but enough to let exhaust IN, past the seal. The exhaust pressure in the stack is sufficient to blow by the upper seal on the water pump and render the pump dry whewre it will not pump even with a new impeller. The upper water pump housing seal is not available....

The solution is to drill the small exhaust relief holes on the back of the stack open to the next larger twist drill size, or maybe a couple more. By doing so, you lower the exhaust pressure above the water pump, keeping exhaust gasses out of the pump, which will alllow it to properly pump to the powerhead.


I was thinking "Cukoo-Cukoo" when the guy told me to drill out the holes, but it had a cost of exactly zero, so there was nothing to lose. Low-and-behold it worked.

This issue is common to the DT4 for sure, and it might be a problem with other older Suzuki or other brand motors. If your lack of tell-tale stream has you bugged, and a new impeller does not cure it, remember the exhaust gas trick.

 

[kenn]

We have a Suzuki DT5, and will definitely file this for future reference. Thanks!