I think I fried the impellor on my F90!

[lookinforwalleye]

Got the boat out of storage on Saturday changed the oil and the gear oil put the muffs on and cranked her up she started no problem nice strong stream of water coming out the pee hole I let her run for a few minutes then shut her down top up the oil and start her up again starts fine but this time no water coming out the pee hole.I checked the intake and the line and there are no obstructions so I am assuming it`s the impellor.

I just find it strange that the impellor works fine and 5 minutes latter it`s dead i just hope i did no other damage,if anybody has some thoughts fire away.

So it looks like i will be boatless for the Walleye opener and that sucks.

[glen]

I never use muffs on a boat. That right there is the reason.

[didoban]

could be the thermostat not letting water thru...but I'll check the owners manual.

[Greencoachdog]

I use muffs on mine all the time and never have had a problem, usually the impeller goin' out is a gradual thing... but I'm sure it can go all at once too. How old is your motor and when was the last time the impeller was changed?

 

If it over 3 yrs. old, or hasn't been changed in 3 yrs. you need to do it... it'll save you problems like this in the future.

 

Even if it isn't the impeller, but has been longer than 3 yrs. You should have it changed.

[Fisherman]

If it was the thermostat, why did water come through on the first run...if it's closed, water runs through the bypass.

[BryonG]

This is the 2nd thread I've seen today regarding impeller issues. In 35 years and 4 different motors.( 60 and 70 horse mercs johnson and evinrude,2 stroke and 4 stroke, I have yet to have an impeller failure and never replaced a single one. Have I just been lucky or is this not as common as some make it out to be? I probably just jinxed myself for even asking the question.

[irishfield]

I've bite my tongue many times as well Camp Chef, as don' t want to jinks myself. I've never had an impellor failure in my life on everything from 4HP to 5.7 Litre Merc Cruisers. The old 9.8 Merc in the boat house probably has the original impellor in it and it's a 70's unit. The 2003 25HP Honda I got with the cottage was pooched though...but the orignial owner had run it out of the water to show people it ran fine (and it sure was melted). I'd suspect if you run clean, rocky lakes not such an issue. Weeds, sand etc I'm sure cuts their life short.

 

Problem with Muffs from say CTC...they may not cover all the water intakes letting the engine suck air while doing those laneway runs. Be sure to read the ops manual fully for water intake locations.

 

The other killer is all these people I see start their motors quickly on the ramp before launching. NEVER do that...get it in the water and give it time to fill the pump before firing her up.

[ChrisK]

Like the others have said here, Ive used muffs on most of my ooutboards in the past with no issues.

I would check the for a blockage in the water discharge tube. You might have dislodged some debree on your second start up.

 

GOOD LUCK !!!

[Fisherman]

. The 2003 25HP Honda I got with the cottage was pooched though...but the orignial owner had run it out of the water to show people it ran fine (and it sure was melted). I'd suspect if you run clean, rocky lakes not such an issue. Weeds, sand etc I'm sure cuts their life short.

The other killer is all these people I see start their motors quickly on the ramp before launching. NEVER do that...get it in the water and give it time to fill the pump before firing her up.

That's like test running an engine without oil, a total no brainer.

[lookinforwalleye]

The motor is a 2004, I bought it August of last year and the dealer said he changed the impellor.

My previous motor was a 10 year old 2 stroke rude and it had the original inpellor and it ran fine, I have heard that some people will change the impellor every other year as a precautionary measure.

I checked the lower intakes and they seem clear I also disconnected the tube and blew air into it and the air was going threw no obstructions.

My dealer suggested i put the boat in the water and start the engine and see if that helps, I just hate to start it dry and risk doing further damage.

What do you guys?

[Greencoachdog]

... btw.. the "pee-hole" is actually called the "tell-tale".

[Fisherman]

My dealer suggested i put the boat in the water and start the engine and see if that helps, I just hate to start it dry and risk doing further damage.

What do you guys?

Can you get a big plastc garbage can under it, fill it so the water level is at least over the anti cavitation plate? If so, get the water level up as ligh as you can, start it up and it should shoot water within seconds. If no water comes out, turn it off and then go for further diagnostic, ie, take off the lower unit and inspect the impellor, replace if necessary.

[OhioFisherman]

I have a set of muffs around somewhere, I used them once and didn`t like them. I use a plastic barrel, safer for the motor. All the impellors I have seen were a wheel like shaped star made of rubber sort of like a car tire with a metal center. It on takes seconds to fry them, never start your motor out of the water and while your running make sure you have a steady flow of water out the tattle tail hole. I didn`t get the one changed on my Merc for about 10 years, no problems with it but it was due.

 

I have seen older motors that went a lot longer.

[lew]

I have seen older motors that went a lot longer

 

My buddies got a 30 year old 9.9 Evinrude still running on the original impeller. Infact, he's never even changed the lower unit oil and sofar, so good. New plugs every few years and it's still running good, and he asks why I spend so much time and $$$$ maintaining mine......maybe he's right

 

As for the muffs, I use them anytime I'm putzin around with the motor outta the water and I'd say anyone is lookin for BIG trouble firing up & running a dry, hot motor.