Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

ngt · Nov 23, 2011

After fishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water?? Today I was out in Bodega and flushed my motor for a few minutes..3-4. Is that enough? or should I go 5-6 or 8-10?

jigngrub · Nov 23, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

After 3 or 4 min. catch a glass full from the tell tale and take a couple big swigs of it, if it's still salty you need to flush some more.

J/K ngt

3 or 4 min should be ok, but longer won't hurt either.

We don't really care how long you flush your motor afterward... we just wanna see some fish pics!!!

giericd · Nov 23, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

I usually flush for about 5 min, I fill a bucket of soapy water, and start to scrub the deck while the motor is flushing (keeping an eye to make sure the motor keeps peeing). by the time i'm done with the deck about 5 min has passed and it should be about as flushed as it's going to get, and this way helps with time management

ngt · Nov 23, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

jigngrub said:
After 3 or 4 min. catch a glass full from the tell tale and take a couple big swigs of it, if it's still salty you need to flush some more. J/K ngt

3 or 4 min should be ok, but longer won't hurt either.

We don't really care how long you flush your motor afterward... we just wanna see some fish pics!!!

thanks! lol...

and here you go:

jigngrub · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

You caughted a Halibut ngt?

dingbat · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

If your going to bother to flush at all, you have to run the motor long enough to get it up to temp to allow the thermostat/s to open.

Fly Rod · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

since it it kept at the dock it gets rinsed once a season at the house and I run hot water through it for about 30 minutes.

ngt · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

jigngrub said:
You caughted a Halibut ngt?

I'm pretty sure it's a flounder. Never "caughted" a halibut. That was just the ugliest fish I've caught, lol.

dingbat said:
If your going to bother to flush at all, you have to run the motor long enough to get it up to temp to allow the thermostat/s to open.

How long does that take? How do you know when the thermostat is open? 5 min? 10 min?

I just got this motor back and it's running like a champ. I don't want to screw anything up...

jigngrub · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

ngt said:
I'm pretty sure it's a flounder. Never "caughted" a halibut. That was just the ugliest fish I've caught, lol.

With about a minute of digging around in Google, I see you actually caughted a Sole.

True flounders are found in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. Most populations have declined from overfishing and poor management.

True soles are found in the Pacific Ocean, where fisheries are better managed than in the Atlantic.

ngt · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

It's a Starry Flounder. They're on the North Pacific Coast. We catch them on occasion in the San Pablo Bay.

Here's a nice article about their decline...if I read this, I might have tossed it back. Scroll down a bit to get to the article.

http://monkeyfacenews.typepad.com/my-blog/2009/10/whatever-happened-to-the-starry-flounder.html

capt sam · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

dingbat said:
If your going to bother to flush at all, you have to run the motor long enough to get it up to temp to allow the thermostat/s to open.

dead on, here it usually doesn't take but a few minutes but otherwise you're not flushing the powerhead completely.

ngt · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

capt sam said:
dead on, here it usually doesn't take but a few minutes but otherwise you're not flushing the powerhead completely.

so how long? Or does that depend on the temp. outside and that of the water etc. Any idea on the length of time for flushing a 9.8 hp 4 stroke tohatsu?

Black Snow Slide · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

I find cleaning the boat is a drinking affair sense I don't drink on the water. I hook up the hose to the flush and start the motor. I sit back and drink 2 beers as it flushes. Then 1 beer for cleaning the cabin. 1 beer for washing the port side and another for the starboard side. Pop open another for the cockpit and covering the boat. So the answer to the question is at least 2 beers. Cheers.

ngt · Nov 24, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

I'm a light weight...if I drank a 6 pack while cleaning my 12 foot SeaKing, I'd either be drinking a beer every 2 minutes or cleaning my boat in an hour or two. Either one isn't a very good option for me

joe009 · Dec 27, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

the yamaha manuel says to flush for 15 min.

Sea Rider · Dec 28, 2011

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

Besides peeing port, your engine has another exit water port located at rear engine, place your hand and feel the water flow how it changes temperature from cold to warm, warm enough as not to burn your hand or make poached eggs, that means thermostat is working opening, closing properly. Disconnect fuel line while flushing and let engine die if won't use engine again for some days.

Happy Boating

cgibbo308 · Jan 4, 2012

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

when the guy next door puts his bible down and yells at me to "turn that noisy F^%$&@G thing off" is when i know i have flushed enough lol
usualy i just taste test from the telltail if i taste salt i keep running it.

Home Cookin' · Jan 5, 2012

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

cgibbo308 said:
when the guy next door puts his bible down and yells at me to "turn that noisy F^%$&@G thing off" is when i know i have flushed enough lol
usualy i just taste test from the telltail if i taste salt i keep running it.

Spot on. I couldn't stand the sound of an outboard on muffs for 15 minutes--and it would be a lot of fuel, burned at idle no less.

A friend shopping for a used boat had a seller say, "I never flush it; leaving the salt water in there keeps it from freezing." Even though I am not a big flusher (and 100% salt water use) I know that statement is just wrong on so many levels.

Philster · Jan 5, 2012

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

Most people I know don't flush the engine long enough. I don't think they have any idea about the t-stat being closed. It takes a good 5-7 minutes to pop the t-stat, especially if the flush takes place at home, after you've hauled the boat out and got your garden hose out.

With the engine running, 7 minutes feels like a very, very long time. Most guys let it go about 4-5 minutes.

Flynny · Jan 8, 2012

Re: Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

After I start my engine, I just keep my hand in the water stream coming out of the "pee hole" and after it gets warm, I let it run for a few more minutes and I figure that's fine. My engine has the privilege of being flushed every time it's in saltwater because we trailer it, but if I was flushing only a few times in the season, I would run it longer.

Afterfishing in salt water, how long do you flush your motor with fresh water??

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