merc 25 no water coming out telltale

[floatmiboat]

Hi,
I started my motor today with the muffs and had a pretty weak stream coming out the telltale. Shut it off and restarted, it dribbled a bit and then nothing so I turned it off. There was water coming out of the lower port though, We have had freezing weather latley [-5 to -8 celsius] but I had the motor sitting vertical. not sure if that would have had anything to do with it? Any suggestions? Thanks

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

How long`s it been since you replaced the impeller?Servied/inspected entire water pump?Every two yrs for impeller change and every 4 for water pump rebuild.that said,remember,if your supply(hose)water is REALLY cold,you may get nothing more than a dribble as engine will not come up to temp very quickly at all and thermostats have to open to allow flow.You may want to pull out t stats and then run on there to see if flow improves.If it does,put t stats in pan of hot water(140 degrees or more)and make sure they function properly(open).If flow is good w/out them and they open properly,you just are running too cold of water to your motor.If flow is bad still,tear into the waterpump(easy to do)and replace impeller and check base plate for wear/scoring.If t stats dont open in hot water,replace.Should get you going.Good luck.

 

[floatmiboat]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

Thanks for the suggestions. The motor is a 1996 2 str and I bought it June, so other than the repairs I've had done on it, I don't know what has been done in the way of maintenance. I'm not sure what temp the water was but, it was about 2 degrees C out today. Any suggestions on a good repair manual for this motor.

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

First, I will recommend either doing youreself or having the impeller changed and water pump inspected.This will give you the base line for the every two yrs.As for manuals,I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the oem service manual for your motor.Seloc/clymer manuals are vague at best and while you may get through "simple"stuff w/them,OEM Is invalueable when troubleshooting and doing more"extensive"things.I havent done it but I believe you can download the manual from the sticky ant the top of this forum.If not,or you want a hard copy,they are more expensive than seloc/clymer but WELL WORTH IT.change the impeller and see how she does.report back good or bad.good luck.

 

[redjmp]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

Quite often, bugs will nest inside the tell tale hole.
Try running a coat hanger up the hole to clean it out then give it a shot of compressed air.

Sometimes though if the boat has been run near sandy beaches or has run aground or just passed too close to a muddy bottom, debris will get pumped up through the motor and end up in the cooling chamber around the cylinder "heads" and collect at the bottom.

Or sometimes if it is run in salt water and not flushed properly after each use, the inside of the water passages will start to corrode and any loose corrosion will collect in the same place.

This then starts to plug the passage under the block that runs to the tell tale.

If the shot of air doesn't fix it, you might have to take the cover off over the heads and clean it out. If it is full of gunk, then you will need to pull the powerhead off as well and clean out the passages in the plate under the block.

 

[floatmiboat]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

Turns out the thermostats were working fine. After about a minute water started coming out the telltale again.

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: merc 25 no water coming out telltale

Supply water was probably too cold.I still recommend replacing impeller.If its old it could break up at any moment,roasting your motor.Since you dont know how old it is,it needs done.Its a $20,15min job.No reason not to.