Actually Capt, the lack of regular use will make initial starting harder on
a great many engines. If a motor hasn't been fired for a couple of weeks,
the fuel in the float bowl will have partially or sometimes completely
evaporated. Under these conditions, it will often take more cranking time
for the fuel pump to refill the bowl before the engine will fire. This only
applies though to many carb engines, normally does not apply to FI engines
as the electric pumps run as soon as the key is turned on (as apposed to
only running while rotating) and there is no float bowl to fill.

This condition seems most common on Merc or OMC that run Chev V8's as the
Rochester Quad's are notorious for this. What makes it worse on these
engines is many people give it the initial 2-3 pumps on the throttle and
don't realize they are not squirting any fuel into the barrels because the
bowl is nearly dry. If you have an engine that does this after a few weeks,
continue to pump the throttle while cranking until the first cough, then 2
shots and it should start fine. Again though, this only applies to the
first time after several weeks of sitting, the rest of the weekend it should
fire right away like normal.

Greg Moore

"Capt. Mooron" wrote in message
...
If you can't start your boat engine with the same ease as you can your
car.... batteries are the least of your problems.
The engine should fire within 3 seconds with no hesitation anytime
anywhere.
Cold or hot weather should not make a big difference.... neither should
the
lack of regular use impede it's ability to fire up on command.

All my engines are serviced seasonally and they will start immediately. I
loaned a friend an 8 hp Merc I had stored in the boat shed for 3
years.....
it started on the first pull. The diesel auxiliary on my 30 ft sailboat
starts without hesitation at a push of the button. It's 10 years old and
has
470 hours on it.

I learned many years ago the importance of dependability of engines on a
boat since often it is your only means of propulsion.... especially on a
powerboat.

Have a qualified mechanic look at it and get it operating properly.

CM


"Michael Knight" wrote in message
om...
| "dmp" wrote in message
t...
| Hi
| I'm a newbie to all this boating stuff and am having problems starting
my
| outboard.
| First off, its a 140 hp Evinrude, about a 1983. I start off by pumping
the
| fuel bulb til its is hard (a fellow collegue informed me of this) and
then
| lift the choke lever all the way up, push in the key and start turning
it
| over. It cranks for about 3 mins and then I stop to let the starter
cool(if
| it is hot?) Then I start again and finally it will start about another
3
min
| or so.
|
| I have a 1987 Evinrude 225HP. When I first got it, it used to take
| several minutes and several attempts to get it started. The more I
| used it, the better it got. But for sure let the starter cool down
| after a 3min crank attempt...that's a lot of cranking.
|
| Question is, should it take this long? I plan on changing the plugs
this
| weekend. Is there something else I should do? If the battery is low,
will
| this not help the problem? I had to take it home tonight to give it a
charge
| as it stopped cranking the motor.
|
| If the battery is low, it definitely makes a difference. I've tried
| cranking on a low battery several times with no luck. Each time I've
| taken it back and left it on the trickle charger all night and tried
| again the next day, or even several days later. Wow! Usually with a
| fresh-off-the-charger battery, it cranks immediately.
|
| Like most cars, boats are the same way...the more often you run them,
| the easier they are to get going. I try to crank mine at least once
| every two weeks.
|
| Incidently, they are cold natured beasts. Trying to get it started
| when the weather has been in the 40's or 30's for a while is a trick.
| I've come close to draining the battery, ready to give up, and give
| it that last college try, and miraculously it suddenly decides to
| start. This after several minutes of trying.
|
| Bottom line, run it as often as you can, it will be easier to start.
|
| Good Luck,
|
| Michael