water from spark plug

[catching more]

hi i have a 1974 mercury 50 hp 500 and i started it up today and it was starting hard so i got it running and took off the cover and seen water coming oujt of the top spark plug area not sure if coming form plug or case i pulled plug and it spelled like fuel and turned it over and no water was coming out hole i am wondering it that is the head ? water manifold ? not sure what i even need to fix it please help me thank you

 

[Moody Blue]

Re: water from spark plug

Those motors don't have a head as you would expect. The cylinders are blind (closed at the top) and the cover you see is the water jacket cover. The threaded spark plug hole protrudes thru the water jacket cover. The cover is sealed to the powerhead with a gasket.

It is common for the gasket to leak around the plug hole as you are experiencing. You could TRY to remove the cover and replace the gasket but more than likely you will break off one or more bolts trying. Most just apply a sealant around the threaded plug hole to try and stop the leak.

 

[catching more]

Re: water from spark plug

would that cause hard starting and idleing ?

 

[Moody Blue]

Re: water from spark plug

No. If you are getting water INSIDE the cylinder then it could be an issue.

To check for water in the cyl, run the motor then shut it down. Pull the plugs and see how they look. Water in the cyl will result in a "steam cleaned" sparkplug.

 

[catching more]

Re: water from spark plug

no water in there plug smells like fuel and normal wear on it so i guess that is a good thing if there was water i would have to replace the hole cover ? where could i get one of those ?