Got the old stat out & just for kicks did the test in a pot of water with the old and new one. 10 degree difference between opening & closing. I am glad I decided to change it. I heated the pot up to about 160 degrees and shut it off. Figured it would be better/more accurate to see what happened while it cooled down. The old stat was closed around 152 degrees and the new just before 143.<br /><br />The question I have now is about cleaning out the water passages. They didn't look too bad but can I run something through it to dissolve the buildup? I figured I might as well do it while I'm in the process. I read a post a while ago (few months) about using CLR to dissolve some of the buildup. It definitely looked like calcium to me (maybe some hard water use or just years of buildup). Is this something I can do or are there any other options or procedures? Also, I was thinking about getting another head cover gasket, installing the cover without the new stat and using a hose to run the solution through it to clean the passages. Is there enough pressure from a hose run through the system, or does the motor need to be running? Or should I just install the new stat and do it after.<br /><br />Once again, I am so thankful for this forum and greatly appreciate the feedback. If it wasn’t for this forum and all the great advice from the experts, I would probably be running this motor without ever thinking of doing anything to it and possibly looking for a new powerhead now.<br /><br />Thanks again
<br /><br />no, really though, you can buy a product at westmarine or boatersworld or whatever that is designed to be flushed thruogh your motor and will desolve any deposits and buildup such as from running in salt water like this stuff