Mercury 1150 Water In Bottom 2 Cylinders

[jakec]

Earlier this year you guys helped me get my 1150 going. I did basically a full tuneup on it and it's been great up until now. The boat is moored on lake union in seattle which has a speed limit of 7mph. So during the last 2-3 weeks I've had it out maybe 10 times, going at low RPM the whole time.

Last time I was out there was a noticeable loss of power and a bit of a knock sound at low RPM so I figured I fouled the plugs and wasn't running on all cylinders. I got new plugs and went to replace all 6. What I found was that 1-5 were all dark and oily. But #6 had this milky residue and no dark oil, like it hadn't been firing, and also sucked in some water.

First image is the plug when I took it out. Super wet. Second image is compared to another plug after I had wiped off the water.

So I cranked the engine over with no plugs to blow out any excess gas oil and water. After doing that I saw there was white stuff in the water (3rd image) and there was watery residue on the 5 & 6 plug holes (4th image).

I was cranking with the engine lowered in the water, so I think I have water in the bottom two cylinders when engine is spinning? Is this water jacket or crank seals? I had a huge trip (6 days) planned on the boat for next thursday. I'm wondering if this is the water jacket 100% can I fix this in time? Or is it a lost cause?

Final pic shows the milky substance wiped off of the plug and plug holes.

 

[jakec]

I also posted this one facebook and got corrected, I meant the exhaust baffle / cover, not the water jacket. the part on the starboard side of engine.

 

[racerone]

Intake / bypass cover is on the starboard side.----No water there.-----You need to address this issue YESTERDAY !!----Water on the bearings will destroy the engine quickly.

 

[Faztbullet]

Either lower crank seals or baffle problems. Powerhead needs oiled down and pulled..yesterday as Racer stated

 

[Chris1956]

Replace the lower crank seals, bearing cap oring and likely the lower main bearing. Hopefully it is just the crank seals, as it is an easier repair.

 

[jakec]

Don't worry I'm not running it as is. I stopped running the boat the day that the issue came up. I'm gona tow it to the launch and put it on the trailer this morning.

What people said on my facebook post is to remove the exhaust cover (Sorry, port side). And look inside and see if the middle cover in there has holes in it. And that is a likely cause. People talk about that cover being warped and/or having pinholes. Is it part 16 or 18? I've also seen people talk about the bolts on this part having a tendency to shear off.

If it's really a case of pulling the powerhead then that's it for me on this engine haha.. sorry to say. I have read a lot of suggestions but none have said its necessary to remove powerhead? I assumed running more oil/gas thru will be ok? I wish I could link my FB post but I think it's private. It is on the vintage mercury outboard fanatics page.

 

[racerone]

???--Some will argue.-----Water inside on the bearings is a NO , NO !!------You need to make sure to do this repair ASAP

 

[jakec]

I got the boat out of the water. I was going to take off the exhaust cover today. But I'm looking at it now, and it seems like you would have to lift the powerhead to remove it? Because lower bolts are blocked by the lower cowl? Is this correct?

 

[Chris1956]

You have to pull the powerhead to replace the crank seals. You can pull the exhaust cover, baffle and inner cover, w/o pulling the powerhead, but it is real hard, (real hard) and the likely culprit is the crank seals, in your situation. It is best to pull the powerhead.

 

[jakec]

Ok. This is unfortunate. I'm definitely not able to get this done in time for the planned trip next week. And to be honest with a repair of that level I would probably just get a different engine altogether (I already hoped to get a 4 stroke some time in the future).

I have the boat out of the water at its long term storage location now. I was wondering what should I do while it's stored? Leave plugs in? Out? fog crankcase somehow?

 

[Faztbullet]

Your chances of repair fades hourly! The water mix is in cylinders and causing corrosion as I type. The lower main bearing,the top main along with wrist pins, rod bearings and crank will all be affected. Flood the engine with 2S or fogging oil till it pour out exhaust.

 

[racerone]

It can be difficult to teach.-----I agree with above post.-

 

[jakec]

Ok! I totally understand the urgency, I will fog the absolute crap out of the engine today. Since I don't want to introduce any more water I should crank the engine over with no ear muffs, no fuel connected, and spark plugs in? To ensure the fogging oil makes it way to the exhaust (doesn't just go out the spark plug holes). I just can't do this repair any time soon unfortunately. My dry storage is an hour away from where I live.

 

[Chris1956]

Tilt the motor up and pour 2 cycle oil into the spark plug openings. Tilt the motor down.. Squirt some fogging oil into carbs, while turning it over a few turns. Hopefully the 2 cycle/fogging oil will replace the water in the cylinders and crankcase.

 

[jakec]

Should I put the spark plugs back in after putting 2 stroke oil in the cylinders? I guess so? It will be damn hard to get the oil down in that #6 plug hole haha.

 

[jakec]

Ok. I added 2 stroke oil to the cylinders thru the plug holes and fogged the engine thru the carbs. I undid the throttle linkage so I could hold the butterflies open. And I cranked the engine (no muffs) about 5-10 seconds per carb, 3 times. I did not see anything come out the exhaust. But I'm confident that the crankcase would be fogged considering that I was spraying directly onto the con rods for about 20-30 seconds each.