Outboard tilt starting

[Frosty10]

Hi , i'm new to this forum but perhaps someone could give me some information. I really don't know anything about outboards but I was having some trouble with the pee hole squirting water ( hope its OK to use that term) . After being convinced by a car mechanic friend to try starting the outboard for a few seconds in that position (horizontal) it started for maybe 3 or 4 seconds before cutting out , we tried this again and the same happened ..Since reading more about outboards I understand this was definitely not the thing to do ...Do you think I have caused any damage ..I haven't run the outboard again as I still have the pee hole problem , so no water pumping ( I am trying to resolve this ) and of course don't want to overheat the engine

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Two periods of a few seconds unlikely to have damaged the engine. The tell-tale pee hole is easily blocked by debris and there may still be cooling water flowing around the engine - just not coming out of the pee hole. Try running the engine and stuffing a nodger into the hole. You can usually disconnect the tell-tale pipe if it has one at the other end under the cowl where it connects to the engine and nodge or blow through from that end.

A good indication of an overheating engine is when the block is too hot to hold your hand on.

If the engine is overheating it may be the impeller failed in the lower leg, but is more likely to be a build up of crud in the cooling galleries. The former requires the lower leg taking off to replace the impeller; the latter the cylinder head and thermostat to clean out the gunk. Neither would be difficult for a car mechanic to do. You can get exploded diagrams online of pretty much every outboard which would help a machanic unfamiliar with outboard engines. They aren't complicated in small to medium size.

 

[Refueler]

What engine is it ? Once we have some more info - answers may come more easily.

Lets assume the 'pee-hole' is direct from block... ( a few are via a short length of tube from block). You could try a piece of stiff copper wire into the hole to try clear whats' blocking it .. usually doesn't work - but worth a try.

I have helped get a 'pee-hole' start by gettng a syringe and vinegar ... squirting it into the hole so it basically acts like descaler ..... once something can get through - then engine run in a bin with Rydlyme or Central Heating Descaler (without prop) .... the descaler then gets at the scale to help unblock the rest.

Hopefully its just a scale blockage easily dislodged .. otherwise its an engine strip down job ..

Running while tilted ? Not such a good idea but as long as water intake is below water surface - it should run .. as you are only mimicking shallow water mode .. but if water intake is at or above water surface - then engine will not get enough water to cool.

 

[rogerthebodger]

I had a suzuki 2T 16hp outboard where water did not exit the pee hole. and I knew it was clear

The engine did not overheat so there was water flow.

after stripping the power head off the leg I found corrosion from the water jackets into the leg where the gear linkage was, so water was not passing down the correct section of the leg so no water was passing the pee hole so no water flow.

I blocked up the corrosion with epoxy putty and the water then flowed the correct way and water exited he pee hole.

Have you checked the pump impeller this is the first thing to check

If your outboard has a carburetor the engine will not work with the engine horizontal as the fuel in the carb bowel will not be at the correct level. It may start but as you found will only run for a very short time.

If the outboard has fuel injection there may be a different issue

 

[Sandy]

You don't say where you are, but find a local place who services outboards and ask them to service the offending bit of kit with you there and explaining what they are doing as they go along. A brilliant way of picking up all sorts of tips.

 

[thinwater]

Overheating and circulation aside ...

Why would you expect a carb, with a float, to operate correctly tilted to an extreme angle? It won't.

(Chain saws and line trimmer carbs work on a completely different principle for this reason.)

 

[Refueler]

I assumed the tilted was as per usual when engine is mounted and then tilted fwd and pinned. Not fully horizontal.

 

[William_H]

In my experience a failure of the tell tale water coming out is a failure of cooling of the engine. Typically engine will stop after a while seized due to over heat. (done it a few times no problem after cool down.) My best rick with old Johnson is to separate bottom of leg and attach a hose pipe to the water up tube from pump. A bad pump and you will get water flowing out of tell tale and also down the exhaust tube. Blockage of channels (my most common problem) can't get water through engine. The poor old Johnson only 45 years old has now gone for scrap. Corrosion of ss bolts in ali is main problem and I can't get water pump cover off. Will go Honda air cooled. ol'will

 

[Refueler]

Had an Evinrude few years back engine ran beautifully - but no tell-tale ... Fareham Outboards took it apart - all the tube runs in the leg were corroded away so water was just sloshing about in the leg. Nothing to do except sell for parts.

 

[Stemar]

Unlike some others, I've had success with poking a bit of wire into the hole.

However, to give sensible advice - it does happen - we'd need to know what engine it is. A Tohatsu 2HP 2stroke is one thing, a 200HP 4 stroke is a very different beast, but either needs servicing and it you aren't in a position to DIY, get it done professionally. It isn't hard to imagine a situation where an OB dying at the wrong time could be at the least embarrassing, and at worst very serious.

 

[Mark-1]

In my experience a failure of the tell tale water coming out is a failure of cooling of the engine.

I'm sure most sane people would always treat it as such and wouldn't run the engine until they'd worked out what was going on, but sometimes you get lucky and the tell tale itself is blocked without the channels in the head being blocked.

 

[Sandro]

Some Yamaha 3 hp Malta were issued with a tell-tale hole, some not. As mine had not one, I pierced a suitable hole in the power head lower casting.
Before taking to the drill, the pro and con and where etc. were thoroughly discussed in a long and useful thread in this forum lasting from 2019 to 2021.