im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

[jacobsladdergrice]

I just bought a used 15 horse mercury and winterized it this winter... I ran the gas out and then later thought it might be a good idea running some stable in the engine... yep ( you guessed it ) I ran it with out water! for around 30 seconds on idle....

Now after reading all the WARNINGS about not doing this...Im wondering if i should take the motor in and have the impeller and water pump replaced( the motor was 10 years old when i purchased it) It ran like a champ all summer. I just assumed that it would be ok to run it for a real short period of time with out water, and now everything i read states thats a big no no...

So my question is...should i just take it out next spring and see if she runs ok.? Take it in and have the impeller and water pump replaced?(might not be a bad idea anyway since its a used unit) Or do you think i may have done more damage to the engine? I did rev it once or twice but then just allowed it to idle until the gas ran out of the lines.. any help would be appreciated? thanks

 

[kkr26]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

Depending how used it is I would replace the impeller anyway, unless you know it has been replaced within the last year. If it has just try it in the spring and see how it does. If it was a new impeller there is a good chance it is fine.

 

[jacobsladdergrice]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

would damage occur in less than 1 minute... or would the engine have to run longer without water? Is the waterpump and impeller and easy do it yourself job?

 

[fishrdan]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

Yes, Yes, Yes...

Chances are the impeller is scored up and needs to be replaced. But, you should change it anyway since you have no idea when it was last changed. This is one of those parts that if not changed, could become a very expensive repair.

The engine would have probably run a lot longer just idling it, but in the process frying the impeller more. Always have the outboard in water when running it, I use a garbage can slid up under my boat's outboard. Or if your outboard can run off muffs (don't know on yours) you can use those also.

Impellers are pretty easy to replace and an inexpensive part. Depending on how everything looks you might get away with just the impellar, but I wouldn't be surprised if the housing needs to be changed also, never know how the PO treated the outboard.

 

[jacobsladdergrice]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

Is the impeller and water pump two seperate parts? or are they housed together?

 

[rtpassini]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

where can you buy the whole kit? surplus unlimited only has a few and i would like to do mine.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

The water pump on an outboard consists of a pump housing inside of which rotates the rubber impeller. If the housing itself is not scored or otherwise damaged you can replace just the impeller. But installing a new impeller on a damaged housing will simply chew up the impeller. You don't know what you have until you get it apart so don't buy the parts until you know what's needed. Parts are available right here on iBoats or any dealer.

 

[rtpassini]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

i looked up on here for the water pump kit for mine, but they didnt list the serial number for mine. do they not make one then?

 

[DJ]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

i looked up on here for the water pump kit for mine, but they didnt list the serial number for mine. do they not make one then?

You really should start your own thread.

Without knowing what you have (Make, Model, Year) we can't help.

 

[JUSTINTIME]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

jacobsladdergrice

wait to next spring to replace it

 

[j_martin]

Re: im a newbie and possibly made a big mistake

To answer yer question, I took the goodie out of my almost new water pump in 15 seconds. The water cuff had fallen off.

If it's over a year old, I'd replace it. If you haven't been into it yet, tear it down, then decide if you need an impellor kit, or a full kit.

You can tear it down now. Water pumps deteriorate from the time of install, whether they're run or not. That's why the gent suggested you wait till spring to put it together.

Normally water pump maintenance should be an annual event. You can buy a lot of impellors for the cost of a power head.

hope it helps
John