Clearing outboard water intake when not accessible

Durcott

Durcott

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Hi Folks,

I have an old Honda BF9.9A mounted in an outboard well on a Newbridge Venturer.

The cooling water intake is blocked; I'm almost 100% certain it will be due to twice daily dunkings in the 'river of mud' I have recently moved to.

Normally, this would be a no brainer for an outboard, and so I'm not surprised I can find no reference to it in the archives.

BUT - I can't lift the engine, neither can I tilt it. I can just about reach the prop from the outside.

I need to get this intake clear, and the motor working NOW:eek:. The river is quite fast and narrow, and I must move the boat onto her assigned mooring ASAP.

So - are there any ideas out in the forum on how to unblock this particular intake?

Kind regards

Jeff
 
If it genuinely is a blocked intake can't you slide a deck-brush down the side of the leg and clean it like that?

I think the mud may have got itself a bit further in. At you first opportunity I'd take it out and check the impeller
 
That was exactly what I didn't want to hear. I have my 'common sense' voice telling me to take the damned thing out, but I was soooo hoping I could ignore it.

I think I shall just have to get on and take the thing out.

I've only just repaired the masthead after the last time I got it out <sigh>.

Jeff
 
I used to clear the intake of a Volvo inboard by attaching the inflatable dinghy foot pump and blowing through the coolant sytem with that; any chance you could do something similar ?

There should be a blanking screw on the head of the engine where it would be possible to apply air pressure by a tapered end on the foot pump, or maybe mains water if alongside.

I have to say, why a 9.9hp on a 22' boat ?!, A 5hp would be fine and you could lift & stow it - and insert a fairing plug - with benefits to sailing speed & reducing drag, fuel consumption & corrosion.

Just my two pennarth

sj
 
Lakesailor said:
You damaged your masthead lifting the motor out???
Click to expand...

:eek: Yes - I rigged up a derrick with mast, boom and main halyard with topping lift as safety line.

Rather unhelpfully, the main halyard stretched (heavy, heavy motor) and put too much weight on the topping lift. Topping lift block's sheeve promptly exploded. Boat too small to risk Bosun's chair (scared), too big to reach any other way, so mast had to come down.

I have put in a new block, but didn't really want to test it this way...

Ok - so it wasn't really the masthead, but it might as well have been. Mebee I'll take the opportunity to put a decent main halyard in while I'm at it :-) It's only money after all :(
 
Seajet said:
I used to clear the intake of a Volvo inboard by attaching the inflatable dinghy foot pump and blowing through the coolant sytem with that; any chance you could do something similar ?
Click to expand...


I've got a similar engine, there should be a rubber pipe crossing over the engine block from one side to the other. This is part of the cooling system, maybe a good blow job :eek: will sort it out.
If mine get's blocked it's usually around the thermostat housing (on the side of the engine block), there are some small dia channels behind it which clog easily with salt/silt.
 
Cleared mine (tohatsu 8hp 4 stroke) by connecting the marina hose to the telltale so creating back pressure. Luckily the hose was a push fit over the hose to the telltale end. Blew out the blockage, whatever it was, which I could not clear via the lower end. Not sure it would work if you had a foot of mud rammed up the channel though.
 
Seajet said:
I used to clear the intake of a Volvo inboard by attaching the inflatable dinghy foot pump and blowing through the coolant sytem with that; any chance you could do something similar ?

There should be a blanking screw on the head of the engine where it would be possible to apply air pressure by a tapered end on the foot pump, or maybe mains water if alongside.

I have to say, why a 9.9hp on a 22' boat ?!, A 5hp would be fine and you could lift & stow it - and insert a fairing plug - with benefits to sailing speed & reducing drag, fuel consumption & corrosion.

Just my two pennarth

sj
Click to expand...

Brilliant - I can certainly give that a go.

Well - to be blunt - that was the motor that was on the boat when I bought it. Mind you, in the Bristol Channel, it is occasionally good to have plenty of grunt. If I could afford it, I'd put in a smaller/lighter lump.

Jeff
 
Lakesailor said:
Lash some poles together to make a tripod over the well. By the time it's at the top you should be able to manhandle it.


Cleaning and flushing Page 46 (.pdf file)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link.

My old man was an airframe mechanic in the FAA in the 50's. He told me stories of taking engines out of planes with sheer legs and a monkey wrench. I try not to let him down too much, but in this case, not only is the motor bulky and heavy, it also has an unfeasably long shaft. So the vertical lift, from low down in the well, to high enough to swing out from the locker, is considerable. Honestly, I'd like to find the guy who designed this arrangement, and ask him to get the damned thing out :-)

There's space for an inboard under the cokpit sole - why wouldn't you fit an inboard???????
 
Durcott said:
:eek: Yes - I rigged up a derrick with mast, boom and main halyard with topping lift as safety line.
Click to expand...

According to google, that motor weighs 44kg. Surely that's not unliftable on flat water at a mooring? Maybe some kind of temporary harness round the engine if it's hard to grip?

Pete
 
prv said:
According to google, that motor weighs 44kg. Surely that's not unliftable on flat water at a mooring? Maybe some kind of temporary harness round the engine if it's hard to grip?

Pete
Click to expand...

44kg ?

Pete,

please remind me not to upset you in any way when we meet !

I find I usually lift my 5hp 2 stroke Mariner out of the well when a bit offshore, so it's rarely level but one develops a knack to shut off fuel to run it dry, lift the thing, drain coolant water then stow it.

I must be geting decrepid, but I and my aching back don't fancy doing this with a 44kg lump !
 
Seajet said:
please remind me not to upset you in any way when we meet !
Click to expand...

Shrug. My ready-reckoner for weights of things needing lifting is that a 12 litre diving cylinder (the normal size) weighs about 20kg. I weighed mine when I was 14 or 15, as I was making a trolley for diving kit as a GCSE metalwork project, and I've used it as a benchmark ever since. I used to sling my cylinder onto one shoulder without even thinking about it, to carry it back from the filling station. Some divers carry two of them as a twinset. In that context, a one-off lift of double the weight doesn't seem implausible.

Another known weight is the bucket of anchor chain I took home to measure and mark last winter. According to the Internet, 40m of 8mm chain weighs 54kg. I lifted that out the car, through the house, and down to the shed ok. Yep, bloody heavy, and I wouldn't have wanted to take it much further, but again a simple lift and put back down is all that's proposed here. Biggest issue is likely to be getting a good grip on the thing; my bucket of chain had two well-placed handles.

Seajet said:
I find I usually lift my 5hp 2 stroke Mariner out of the well when a bit offshore[...]
I must be geting decrepid, but I and my aching back don't fancy doing this with a 44kg lump !
Click to expand...

Ah, well, all bets are off once under way in a small boat. The motion would make things much more complicated, plus you probably wouldn't be able to adopt the required position. I don't know what the OP's cockpit is shaped like, but I'm assuming squatting over or in front of the engine and standing up, lifting with the legs not the back - not something you'd want to do in a seaway. On a mooring to unbung the intake, a different matter.

Pete
 
How about 2 people? That's just like a 5hp each.

Seriously. You could sell a 10hp for enough to buy a decent 5hp.

I bought a boat, on a trailer with an excellent 5hp Tohatsu long shaft for £500.
I sold the boat and trailer for £300.
As well as a fistfull of buoyancy aids, anchors, fishfinder and car battery I got a nice motor for £200.
 
Outboard in a well

One thing for sure is that you need to be able to remove the motor from the boat. I would not encourage you to try to lift 44kg from low down> it is just too much risk of injuring yourself. Purpose built sheer legs to make a tripod (or 4 legs) is the best way. Consider 3 or 4 Wind surfer masts. They will need to be attached properly to the deck with the centre above the engine and with plenty of room to raise the engine high enough and then to be pulled sideways to lower into the cockpit. As said use a harness around the power head.
Now I don't know the Honda engine but I know over 30 years my Johnson has had far more maintenance on the cooling system than anything else. You need to be able to replace the impeller and sometimes the housing and to be able to clear the pipes etc. The water intake is large and never been a problem. So bite the bullet pull the engine and fix it properly and in a way you can do it yourself in future. olewill
 
One argument for keeping the big engine is that if you can't lift it then no-one else is likely to try and even if they do they won't get it very far!
If you are trying to blow it out with a dinghy foot pump then you could try filling the pump with water, that might give you a bit more pressure.
 
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