I got curious regarding the discussion of rinsing an outboard using the
garden hose flush port versus muffs on the water inlet so I did some
reading. I had a Yamaha 250 four stroke on one of my outboard boats
and seemed to remember reading something about it.

First of all, it is not recommended that the engine be run while
flushing using the flush port. Yamaha states that *if* your water
supply pressure is sufficient to generate a steady stream from the pee
hole, it's ok to run the engine while flushing at idle RPM and for no
longer than 15 minutes. If the flow is *not* sufficient to generate a
steady pee stream, Yamaha says to use muffs in addition to the flush
port if you want to run the engine.

The flush port injects water after the thermostat which will be closed
if the engine is not running. If somehow water can still get down to
the inlet passages and impeller, the impeller won't be turning (unless
the engine is running, in which case it would simply pump the water back
in the opposite direction), so I don't see how it can be rinsed off.
The impeller would tend to seal off any water from running through it
with the engine not running.

So, I still question if using the flush port thing really does anything
to rinse the water inlet and impeller, extending it's life.

Here's some collaborating information:

http://www.saltawayproducts.com/FlushPortPage.htm

On Fri, 14 Mar 2014 03:47:59 -0400, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:


I got curious regarding the discussion of rinsing an outboard using the
garden hose flush port versus muffs on the water inlet so I did some
reading. I had a Yamaha 250 four stroke on one of my outboard boats
and seemed to remember reading something about it.

First of all, it is not recommended that the engine be run while
flushing using the flush port. Yamaha states that *if* your water
supply pressure is sufficient to generate a steady stream from the pee
hole, it's ok to run the engine while flushing at idle RPM and for no
longer than 15 minutes. If the flow is *not* sufficient to generate a
steady pee stream, Yamaha says to use muffs in addition to the flush
port if you want to run the engine.

The flush port injects water after the thermostat which will be closed
if the engine is not running. If somehow water can still get down to
the inlet passages and impeller, the impeller won't be turning (unless
the engine is running, in which case it would simply pump the water back
in the opposite direction), so I don't see how it can be rinsed off.
The impeller would tend to seal off any water from running through it
with the engine not running.

So, I still question if using the flush port thing really does anything
to rinse the water inlet and impeller, extending it's life.

Here's some collaborating information:

http://www.saltawayproducts.com/FlushPortPage.htm

===

I'm not convinced that rinsing the impeller does anything to extend
its life. They are essentially self flushing everytime you use the
engine. Sand and shells do not accumulate in the pump and have
already done their damage as they pass through. Pumps and impellers
are not harmed by salt water corrosion, unlike engine blocks,
manifolds, heads, risers, etc.

On 3/14/2014 11:18 AM, Wayne.B wrote:
On Fri, 14 Mar 2014 03:47:59 -0400, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:


I got curious regarding the discussion of rinsing an outboard using the
garden hose flush port versus muffs on the water inlet so I did some
reading. I had a Yamaha 250 four stroke on one of my outboard boats
and seemed to remember reading something about it.

First of all, it is not recommended that the engine be run while
flushing using the flush port. Yamaha states that *if* your water
supply pressure is sufficient to generate a steady stream from the pee
hole, it's ok to run the engine while flushing at idle RPM and for no
longer than 15 minutes. If the flow is *not* sufficient to generate a
steady pee stream, Yamaha says to use muffs in addition to the flush
port if you want to run the engine.

The flush port injects water after the thermostat which will be closed
if the engine is not running. If somehow water can still get down to
the inlet passages and impeller, the impeller won't be turning (unless
the engine is running, in which case it would simply pump the water back
in the opposite direction), so I don't see how it can be rinsed off.
The impeller would tend to seal off any water from running through it
with the engine not running.

So, I still question if using the flush port thing really does anything
to rinse the water inlet and impeller, extending it's life.

Here's some collaborating information:

http://www.saltawayproducts.com/FlushPortPage.htm

===

I'm not convinced that rinsing the impeller does anything to extend
its life. They are essentially self flushing everytime you use the
engine. Sand and shells do not accumulate in the pump and have
already done their damage as they pass through. Pumps and impellers
are not harmed by salt water corrosion, unlike engine blocks,
manifolds, heads, risers, etc.


True. I think you can get salt deposits within the casing though that
harden and might cause premature wear on a rubber impeller, especially
if you boat in the ocean but trailer the boat home at the end of the
day. My point in this discussion was that using the flush fitting
doesn't necessarily mean you are flushing the inlet passages or impeller
area. The Yamaha outboard I had was equipped with the flush out port
but when I hauled the boat I always flushed it with a muff over the leg
inlet screens.

On 3/14/14, 11:37 AM, wrote:


You are probably better off to turn on the water,
pressurize the system, then turn it off, let it drain down and repeat
several times.

The other factor is the hose to the flush port is 5MM ID (less than a
quarter inch) so you are not really moving that much water anyway.

If you really want to flush the block, you need to remove the
thermostat, drop the foot and back flush through the thermostat hole
... but you are not going to do that very often.

These are wonderful, time-consuming suggestions for those who are
retired and have little of importance to do, sort of like painting a
ceiling and watching the paint dry.

I especially like the second suggestion.

When I trailered the boats home to wash them after using them, I hooked
one hose up to the fitting and washed the boat and other stuff off with
a second hose, a brush, and soap. When the boat was washed, I simply
turned off the hose to the flush fitting, removed the hose and secured
the fitting.

In the good old days of boating when I was a kid, my boat was kept on a
mooring, about 1000' offshore*, beyond the low tide sandbars. The motor
sat on the boat from late May through the end of September, and only saw
fresh water if I drove the boat to Milford, where my dad's marina was,
and I used a hose there to rinse off the motor's exterior. I used those
boats many days a week in the summer, probably about 75 hours a month,
and at the end of the season, my dad's shop winterized the engine. That
included dropping the lower unit and replacing the impeller. He usually
sold my little boat and motor over the winter, so I got to start anew
the following summer. Hey, it was tough, but someone had to do it.

Here's a photo of the beach where we "summered", but modern-day. A lot
of the old small cottages I remembered have been razed and replaced with
much fancier summer homes.

The tile topped mansion on the right was, when I was a kid, owned by the
Poli family of movie theater fame. The last I heard of it, it was
housing a nunnery. Seriously.

http://tinyurl.com/lzlwbsp


* If I wanted to use the boat, at high tide, I rowed out to it in a
dinghy. At low tide, the last sandbar in our cove left me about 200'
from the boat, so I simply swam out to it.

On Fri, 14 Mar 2014 12:02:26 -0400, F*O*A*D wrote:

On 3/14/14, 11:37 AM, wrote:


You are probably better off to turn on the water,
pressurize the system, then turn it off, let it drain down and repeat
several times.

The other factor is the hose to the flush port is 5MM ID (less than a
quarter inch) so you are not really moving that much water anyway.

If you really want to flush the block, you need to remove the
thermostat, drop the foot and back flush through the thermostat hole
... but you are not going to do that very often.

These are wonderful, time-consuming suggestions for those who are
retired and have little of importance to do, sort of like painting a
ceiling and watching the paint dry.

I especially like the second suggestion.

When I trailered the boats home to wash them after using them, I hooked
one hose up to the fitting and washed the boat and other stuff off with
a second hose, a brush, and soap. When the boat was washed, I simply
turned off the hose to the flush fitting, removed the hose and secured
the fitting.

In the good old days of boating when I was a kid, my boat was kept on a
mooring, about 1000' offshore*, beyond the low tide sandbars. The motor
sat on the boat from late May through the end of September, and only saw
fresh water if I drove the boat to Milford, where my dad's marina was,
and I used a hose there to rinse off the motor's exterior. I used those
boats many days a week in the summer, probably about 75 hours a month,
and at the end of the season, my dad's shop winterized the engine. That
included dropping the lower unit and replacing the impeller. He usually
sold my little boat and motor over the winter, so I got to start anew
the following summer. Hey, it was tough, but someone had to do it.

Here's a photo of the beach where we "summered", but modern-day. A lot
of the old small cottages I remembered have been razed and replaced with
much fancier summer homes.

The tile topped mansion on the right was, when I was a kid, owned by the
Poli family of movie theater fame. The last I heard of it, it was
housing a nunnery. Seriously.

http://tinyurl.com/lzlwbsp


* If I wanted to use the boat, at high tide, I rowed out to it in a
dinghy. At low tide, the last sandbar in our cove left me about 200'
from the boat, so I simply swam out to it.


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.

On 3/14/14, 2:00 PM, Poco Loco wrote:


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.



It's not my fault I didn't grow up on a dirt farm in ********, Missouri,
or Nebraska, or wherever it was you transmogrified from
a fetus into a racist.

On 3/14/2014 2:04 PM, F*O*A*D wrote:
On 3/14/14, 2:00 PM, Poco Loco wrote:


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the
sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.



It's not my fault I didn't grow up on a dirt farm in ********, Missouri,
or Nebraska, or wherever it was you transmogrified from
a fetus into a racist.


The exchanges between you and John are becoming reminiscent of the old
Skipper/Harry wars of the late 1990's although a little less eloquent in
style and substance.

So which of you are going to fess up to owning a Bayliner?

On Fri, 14 Mar 2014 14:04:57 -0400, F*O*A*D wrote:

On 3/14/14, 2:00 PM, Poco Loco wrote:


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.



It's not my fault I didn't grow up on a dirt farm in ********, Missouri,
or Nebraska, or wherever it was you transmogrified from
a fetus into a racist.

You'd best update your spreadsheet. You're getting a whole ****pot full of facts wrong.

The sparkles are cute. Gives that special name a 'Christmassy' feeling.

On 3/14/14, 2:18 PM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 3/14/2014 2:04 PM, F*O*A*D wrote:
On 3/14/14, 2:00 PM, Poco Loco wrote:


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the
sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.



It's not my fault I didn't grow up on a dirt farm in ********, Missouri,
or Nebraska, or wherever it was you transmogrified from
a fetus into a racist.


The exchanges between you and John are becoming reminiscent of the old
Skipper/Harry wars of the late 1990's although a little less eloquent in
style and substance.

So which of you are going to fess up to owning a Bayliner?





Skipper was far, far more literate and far, far less of an asshole than
Herring. Skippy and I exchanged emails on a back channel that were far
funnier than anything either of us posted here. RIP, Skippy. Alas, he
sold his Bayliner before being able to enjoy a Viking funeral.

On Fri, 14 Mar 2014 14:18:04 -0400, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

On 3/14/2014 2:04 PM, F*O*A*D wrote:
On 3/14/14, 2:00 PM, Poco Loco wrote:


You are just so, so special, FOAD. That must be why you added the
sparkles to FOAD. It's more
fitting for one of your unique 'specialness'.



It's not my fault I didn't grow up on a dirt farm in ********, Missouri,
or Nebraska, or wherever it was you transmogrified from
a fetus into a racist.


The exchanges between you and John are becoming reminiscent of the old
Skipper/Harry wars of the late 1990's although a little less eloquent in
style and substance.

So which of you are going to fess up to owning a Bayliner?


Since I'm a member of the 'right wing boatless assholes' crowd, it probably won't be me!

Does Bayliner make a twin-Volvo-diesel powered trawler?