Fish-Hawk.Net

Hey guys,

In was winterizing the boat when I realized that my water pump is not working! Price to pay for putting the earmuffs on with no water....doh! It really only ran for about 30 sec and the engine wasn't that hot so i'm not to worries.

But i was wondering Can i still run the engine 30-60sec at time in this cold weather until my fuel lines are empty!?? That's all i need to do to store it...i would change then water pump next year...

If not not can i leave gas in the lines?? Cause if not that would mean i have to change the impeller this year wich would suck....hahah....

Thanks in advance for your help

30 seconds wouldn't of done any damage whatsoever!!!!

I'm not sure I agree about running without water. Every motor manual I've ever read cautions about running a motor without water even for a very brief period. Basically your impeller which is rubber is rubbing at several hundred rpm on the metal pump casing without water to lubricate it. You know what happens when you don't have enough lube.

I'm guessing that your not getting water flowing out of your pee pee. It might not be your water pump. This time of year bugs climb in the tube and will seal it up tight. Disconnect the rubber tube at the motor and try again. If you get water your tube is plugged by bugs and need to be cleaned out.

Of course if you ran the motor without water you probably will need a new impeller.

Good luck.

Roblin wrote:I'm not sure I agree about running without water. Every motor manual I've ever read cautions about running a motor without water even for a very brief period. Basically your impeller which is rubber is rubbing at several hundred rpm on the metal pump casing without water to lubricate it. ...
Of course if you ran the motor without water you probably will need a new impeller.

Been there, done that, on a Honda 40HP ... ran it for what seemed to be no more than 30 seconds.
I've learned by lesson. I would never run any motor without water even for a very brief period.
Impeller is not expensive but if you are not mechanically inclined, labor can be very expensive.

It does damage every time you run the water pump with no water. Will it kill the motor? Probably not, overheating is not the issue. The fins on the impeller suffer a lot of wear in that short time you run it because they are not lubricated and if you have ever changed one, you know those rubber fins are under a surprising amount of pressure, so they get hot after just a few seconds and start tearing up, so I guess it comes down to how often you want to have a lower-end service done? If you change the impeller every year or two then it probably doesn't matter. If you want to squeeze 10 years out of your water pump, then always keep it wet

If running it for 30 seconds with no water flow ruined the impeller...please, please post the photos of the ruined impeller !!
I'd love to see them !!!

Well, that was 8 years ago (in 2005). It was on my Lund Rebel 16.
I sold that motor and boat in 2009.
Had I kept the burnt out impeller, I surely would have posted some pictures for your viewing pleasure.

This year I purchased a Ranger Comanche Z118 with an evinrude 150ETECH engine. (Love it).
I'll go out and start it dry for 30 seconds or so. I don't think so.

I think the main issue here isn't running a motor "accidentally" for 30 seconds. The issue would be repeatedly running in in 30-60 second intervals until all the gas is used up (which on my 70hp Johnson at idle takes a good 3-4 minutes for example).

There's no question that a one-shot accident, even at 30 seconds running dry, isn't going to kill a motor.

But running it several times without water, intentionally, is definitely going to take a toll on the impeller.

Thanks for the comments guys. Based on this i will store it with gas in the lines and chage the impeller next season!

I guess i'll see the shape of the impeller then...however i will trouble shoot the issue first who know what happened since i haven't ran the boat sine june!

good call and as long as you are using stabilizer your gas will be fine. As others have mentioned check for blockages in the pee hole, might be something that simple. If no blockage and all the tubes are connected best to get the impeller changed. And once you remove the lower unit change the impeller even if it "looks" fine. a bad impeller doesnt always have all its fins shreaded. I have seen some like that but I have also seen ones that just had a little nick out them and ones where all the fins were perfectly intacted. The impeller isnt like a pinwheel that spins around at will. It is a tight fit in the housing and all it takes is one of the fins to weaken and flex too much and it could comprimise the ability to pump water.

I have seen the impellers where they look fine, and it is only when you bend the fins that you see cracks and sometimes even holes! Since they flex in that area every single revolution, that's millions of flexes, and at some point the rubber just starts breaking down...

They are cheap online (checkout sierra's alternates) and not hard to change yourself on the smaller engines.

If you really have no way of gettting it to a water source I would spray sea foam down the carb, take the float screw out of the carb and let her drain. then sparay the pee pee out of her again with sea foam. Spray it in each cylinder as well

Thanks forn the tips but would the same apply to 4strokes?

impeller off my 2007- 25 merc.......ran through sand / mud / beaver dams....and also ran for over a minute with no water. Removed to have a look at it just out of curiosity=just like new !! No damaged or wear whatsoever !!

Bass Addict wrote:impeller off my 2007- 25 merc.......ran through sand / mud / beaver dams....and also ran for over a minute with no water. Removed to have a look at it just out of curiosity=just like new !! No damaged or wear whatsoever !!

Ya.. well... you are PLAYING WITH FIRE!

Its guys like you that ruin it for everyone else!

I'll bet you don't rinse and repeat when you wash you hair too!

Trouble maker.

Craig