Priming boat for first trip in 3 years+

[JamesCoste]

A buddy of mine inherited a nice 1995 Boston Whaler with a 1995 90HP Evinrude on it. The thing is my buddy isn't really into boating, but I can't let that boat sit there without getting wet. He has updated the tags and boat stickers on it. He has cranked the motor about once a month these past 3 years and run it with muffs. He told me it "pees" fine and cranks quickly.

My concerns:
- 3 year old gas - what should I do with it. The tank (I don't know how large) is about half-full he said.

What other items should I look for before waking up this boat from the long drought it has experienced:

1) Check tires?
2) Tow boat around neighborhood to make sure trailer is in good condition?
3) Charge battery?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Priming boat for first trip in 3 years+

http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=158086 get rid of gas, and change the impeller.

 

[Skidooosl]

Re: Priming boat for first trip in 3 years+

ya, get rid of the gas for sure.... it will still be good for lawnmowers ect... or slowly mix it in your car or something... and if your not going to clean the carbs I would not go to far from the ramp for the first 45min or so to make sure it does not suck something up into the carbs. if you can see in the tank use a flashlight and look to see if the bottom of the tank has any slime on it... this will give you an idea of what you can expect the inside of the carbs to look like.


its always fun to me when you get something running that has been sitting for that long

good luck!

 

[JamesCoste]

Re: Priming boat for first trip in 3 years+

I was thinking that removing the gas was going to be a good idea. I'll do a search on how to remove the gas from the boat's tank. I guess I could syphon it, but I don't have much experience doing that.

My grandfather-in-law used his shop-vac to remove some gas once from his gas tank. An explosion was the result so I know better. He had some burns on his neck and had to paint on some eyebrows, but otherwise was ok.

Thank both of you for the tips.

I'll definitely remove the gas, and possibly do the impeller and carb rebuild. I've rebuilt some carbs before, but never replaced an impeller.

Before I do anything, my buddy is going to buy a manual.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Priming boat for first trip in 3 years+

if you can get to the fuel level sender, remove, and run a hose thru the transom drain hole. works great for empting the tank. remember, no pee stream, mean no cooling. keep an eye on it. i always start mine on muffs, in the driveway. one day after running on muffs, i lauched, started the motor, no pee, back on the trailer it went. worked 10 minutes ago. they problem was i had put off changing it and it bit me.