8hp 4 Stroke Water pump, fuel question.

[AnacapaBoater]

Hi everybody,
Thank you in advance for your help!
I have a 2005 mercury 4 stroke 8 hp outboard and I think my water pump is out. No water comes out from the outlet. In your opinion should I still burn the gas off left in lines? Or is it safer to leave it there until I fix the water pump.
Thank you for your help.

 

[achris]

Re: 8hp 4 Stroke Water pump, fuel question.

Leave it there until you fix the water pump... If you run the engine without water, then you do damage to the powerhead (exhaust and head covers and gaskets mainly, and the exhaust column, it relies on cooling water)...

 

[bilge rat jim]

Re: 8hp 4 Stroke Water pump, fuel question.

First, check that your tell tail is not blocked, run a piece of wire thru it to clear any obstructions. Still no water? Time to drop the gear case and repair the pump. You may also want to consider draining the fuel system for storage, rather than running it dry. This causes a severe lean condition as the fuel runs out, and can do some serious internal damage. I admit this is rare, I've only seen it a cupla times in 25 years, but neither owner was a happy boater.