A couple problems…

[ldefoggi]

Greetings everyone! And thank you in advance for your help! I’ve been out of town for the last few weeks and had my 2017 ar195 out all day yesterday and noticed a few things.

1. Cavitating BAD on take off. I sealed my pump last season, and installed a new impeller and wear ring. I could yank grown adults up on a wake board and the boat didn’t act like there was the extra pull. Everything was great, until I changed spark plugs earlier this season. Ever since, I can hardly get the boat out of its own way, much less pull a skier out of the water. The engine has TONS of power, like it’s overpowering the jet pump. Last month I had two adults and 1 kid plus one kid on a wake board and Yesterday, I had 4 adult and 3 kids in the boat, so weight may be an issue, but I had similar weights last season without the same cavitation. I’m considering buying a Luck 13 cone. It looks like I can install it without removing the nozzle? Thoughts?

2. Yesterday, I opened the ski locker to store an unused cooler and notice water was flooding in thru the drain plug. The water was HOT. I checked the engine compartment, bone dry. So I opened that drain plug and moved all my people weight to the back and the ski locker drained and started filling the engine compartment, then the bilge pump kicked in as designed. This was a continuous fight all day, and it seemed like I never got all the water out. Hot water indicated to me this has to be an exhaust cooling leak. This morning I opened the ports next to the clean out plug and found the lower band for the clean out port tube loose. I haven’t unscrewed the plate yet to get a better look but the initial look with a flashlight, everything else SEEMS ok. Thoughts?

Thanks again for your help!

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

If the water is HOT you have a leak somewhere on the engine. You will save a lot of time if you get the boat on the water and start looking for it that way as putting it on the hose generally doesn’t produce as much water flow into the engine. You can try it for the heck of it. You said the drain plug was not installed in the ski locker and that water was rushing in through there, then you said you opened “that plug” and water started draining into the engine compartment. I’m confused by that statement.

When you say the bilge was bone dry, was that the liner or the hull?

What about your pilot water outlets? Are they flowing good?

Your clean out plug is the culprit for your cavitation issue. If it was working before then something else is at play here.. don’t spend the money on a 13 cone until you get it back to where it was at. When you say the clamp at the base of the clean out tube was loose, please define loose, like hanging there because it is broken? More than likely you found the source of your cavitation here.

Have you thoroughly checked the impeller for any attached debris?

 

[ldefoggi]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Drain plugs: the ski locker plug was open and the engine compartment plug was closed. I opened the engine compartment plug and water flowed in, which started the bilge pump.

When I first noticed the water on the ski locker and then checked the engine compartment, that area was dry, so I guess that would’ve been the liner that the bilge pump is located on.

Pilot water outlets all flow at idle and spray very strong at higher rpm.

The clamp at the base of the clean out plug tube was loose in that I could spin in around the tube, but was tight enough to stay in place. I took the tube out to clean it and I had to really work to get to come loose.

I’ve checked the impeller, all clear, no nicks or damage that I can feel.

I have the clean out port plate all the way out and removed all the old rusted hose clamps to replace. I’m about to reinstall all the exhaust parts and take it back to the water and look for an engine cooling system leak again.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Thanks for the quick reply.

Drain plugs: the ski locker plug was open and the engine compartment plug was closed. I opened the engine compartment plug and water flowed in, which started the bilge pump.

When I first noticed the water on the ski locker and then checked the engine compartment, that area was dry, so I guess that would’ve been the liner that the bilge pump is located on.

Pilot water outlets all flow at idle and spray very strong at higher rpm.

The clamp at the base of the clean out plug tube was loose in that I could spin in around the tube, but was tight enough to stay in place. I took the tube out to clean it and I had to really work to get to come loose.

I’ve checked the impeller, all clear, no nicks or damage that I can feel.

I have the clean out port plate all the way out and removed all the old rusted hose clamps to replace. I’m about to reinstall all the exhaust parts and take it back to the water and look for an engine cooling system leak again.

Sounds like a good plan!

What about your clean out plug seals? Are they in good shape? Ever been replaced? Be sure that whole area where they seat is clean and free from any kind of spooge, including the walls where the seal will billow out to. There has been more than one person who has the clean out seals be the source of their cavitation issue. One guy with a 210 FSH down in Florida had a similar problem to you, all good until one day leaving the marina the boat would cavitate badly. He hadn’t really looked at the seals, just pulled them up and left them laying in the tube. When I suggested that might he his problem he pulled them out and they were visibility degraded, he replaced the seals and no more problem.

Have a good look down in and around all the hoses on the engine where hot water could escape from.. you may be able to find a source before heading back out to the water, but your best bet is when cooling system water pressure is at its highest which is when you are cruising. Since you have found rusted clamps in the aft bilge that could be a source of the problem.

Is this a salt water boat?

Please keep us posted, and best of luck!

 

[ldefoggi]

Good morning! This boat was a salt water boat for about 5 years but since I bought it it’s been on a fresh water river. Yesterday I replaced all the band clamps on the exhaust. Took it back to the river to test some more but didn’t find anything obvious. I found a drip at idle below the exhaust manifold but couldn’t pin point it without a mirror and it didn’t turn in to a spray that could tell with higher rpm. I only ran the engine up to about 5500 rpm while I was over top of it with a flash light and reaching down the sides looking for a leak (I had a friend driving). I did find that there was a little standing water on top of the oil cooler and one of the top mounting bolts for it was corroded. But again nothing obvious when the rpm were up.

For the cavitation, weight seemed to be my major factor the other day. With just the 2 of us there was very little cavitation. I had rebuilt the clean out plug with a new seal last season but the tube still fills with water every time. The deck hatch is sealed really well and the water just drains out thru the tube to the thru hull near the jet pump. I’ve greased the clean out plug seal in the past and tried wax as well, primarily to keep the plug from seizing in place. Should that seal prevent water from coming through in to the tube?