Newbie Johnson 4-stroke question - Water Flow

[raquettelaker2]

I kind of have a grip on the workings of I/O engines but outboards are total witchcraft to me.... We've got a 24' pontoon boat at the family lake house in NY with (I think) a mid-2000's Johnson 70hp 4-stroke outboard on it. When we were up there in July the boat would make a loud ~10 second shriek after you started it. My grandfather said it was equivalent to a car's check engine light, saying there was insufficient water flow through the engine but he said "there's enough flow that it won't harm the engine." I blew it off, trusting him, but when I was up there this past weekend it was still doing it and he didn't seem to have any intent to get it fixed as it's a big to-do. I looked back and there is no water "pissing" from the water outlet above the water. I am of the mentality that cooling water is not something you want to mess around with. Can someone confirm to me that this a big deal before a make a family scene that we need to get this fixed? Thank you!

 

[jakedaawg]

Was th eshreik a warning horn? Or was it the sound of a bendix stuck on the flywheel. Try a paper clip in the tell tale outlet and see if its not just plugged.

But, to answer your question, yes cooling is an important part of motor operation. Its right up there with engine oil. No oil, no cooling, no engine for very long.

 

[raquettelaker2]

It's the warning "chime" on the remote control. Engine sounds and runs just fine.

 

[jakedaawg]

Does the horn stay on the whole time the engine is running or just beep at start up? The beep at start up is a self test but I have yet to hear a ten second long self test on an outboard.

Try to clear the tell tale of any obstruction if it just beeps.