Honda BF45 - impeller bits in water jacket

[glidepath]

I recently bought a 9 year old BF45, and I've noticed the cooling water telltale (pee hole) getting blocked regularly, and the flow is weak even when it's not blocked. I took off the thermostat, and found a lot of small rubber fragments around it, which I assume are bits of the impeller blades. I guess these guys are also responsible for blocking the pee hole. I'm obviously going to replace the impeller, but my question is how do I go about clearing the impeller bits out of the passages in the water jacket? Should they come out if I reverse-flush the engine (through the pee hole nipple) with the thermostat cover removed, or do I have to put some kind of acid through the system to melt them? <br /><br />I was thinking maybe I could train a cockroach to crawl through and eat them

 

[hondon]

Re: Honda BF45 - impeller bits in water jacket

Once you have the gearcase down, you will need access to a supply of compressed air and a blow gun that allows a tight seal to the water tube.Blow that air back through that tube and you should feel a nice stream of air at the tell tale.Carefull here as anything you are blowing out of there will come out like a bullet,so do'nt be staring at that pisser and wear gloves if you hold your hands over it.Since you have already found debris at the t stat you know it is there and the only recourse is to flush it out.

 

[jim dozier]

Re: Honda BF45 - impeller bits in water jacket

Try temporarily removing the thermostat and stuffing a garden hose (use a rag to help seal it) into the thermostat housing. With the lower unit removed backflush the engine. Put a bucket underneath the water tube and check to see what comes out. You can also clamp a garden hose on the water tube and flush it out (forward) through the thermostat housing (removed).

 

[glidepath]

Re: Honda BF45 - impeller bits in water jacket

Thanks guys. I guess it's a case of repeated flushing, alternating through the three access points (pee hole, thermostat hole and water tube), perhaps with the odd air blast thrown in for good measure, until no more bits of debris come out.<br /><br />On the subject of applying compressed air to clear blockages, does anybody know if there's any delicate parts in the water jacket that might be damaged by this?

 

[jim dozier]

Re: Honda BF45 - impeller bits in water jacket

Hopefully the only delicate bits in the water jackets are the remnants of your impeller .