Posted by Mitchell Bernardo on 19th Jun 2014
The small outboards that run on gas still need some routine maintenance to keep them ready for the next time you want to use them. These smaller gas outboards have smaller carbs and small jets for idle speeds. They can easily be blocked by the evaporation of the fuel in the carb when fuel is left sitting. The fuel leaves behind deposits that block these jets and cause the motor to not idle and run poorly. This means a trip to your dealer (me) for us to dissassemble the carb, clean, reassemble and test. An unwanted expense for you. So what can you do? First you can run the carb out of fuel when finishing up using the outboard. Just shut off the fuel supply and let it run until it quits. If you want to do an even better job you can access the drain on the carb bowl and drain it as well. Running the fuel out makes a big difference just by itself. This applies to larger outboards as well. The second item is flushing the salt water from your outboard. The passages around the engine block that cool the motor can be blocked by salt that gets left behind when the motor is stored. Over time the salt blocks the passages and the motor starts to overheat. Back to your dealer for a some times expensive dissassembly of the motor to clean out these passages. To avoid this problem you need to flush the motor with fresh water. You can do this with small motors by flushing in a bucket of fresh water. You can also purchase a flushing "bag" that works like a bucket. The slightly larger motors can accept a flushing tool called a " muff" that allows you to attach a hose directly to the water intake at the bottom of the gear case below the prop. You only need to flush for a few minutes..just enough to replace the salt water with fresh water. Be careful to pay attention if the hose should come loose and the motor does not get any water you can easily burn up your impellor and then back to see us you will go... These two maintenance items with keep your motor running better and longer. Be sure to visit us yearly for regular maintenance and the motor will last a long time.