After the lake care

[Stacey]

So this is my first jet boat and the dealership I bought from was vague on jet boat dos and dont. My question is does everyone flush the cooling system after each use? I read in the manual to run the engine for 3 to 5 minutes. Is this an idle or do you increase RPMs? Also is it normal to have water on top of your port caps? Thank you.

 

[jcyamaharider]

Fresh water or salt water?

Salt water I would flush after everyuse, Fresh water I just rev the motors a couple of times to clear the water boxes and that is it.

Water on top of your cleanout ports is normal, if you don't have water there I would be concerned. This means the plug didn't seal.

 

[djetok]

So this is my first jet boat and the dealership I bought from was vague on jet boat dos and dont. My question is does everyone flush the cooling system after each use? I read in the manual to run the engine for 3 to 5 minutes. Is this an idle or do you increase RPMs? Also is it normal to have water on top of your port caps? Thank you.

Are you freshwater , salt or brackish? If freshwater , no need to flush. Salt and brackish yes you flush.

It is normal for water on top of the cleanout plugs.

 

[Stacey]

Freshwater.
The dealership had made me a list of things to do after each trip and flushing the cooling system was one thing. I wanted some experience jet boaters input.

 

[swatski]

I spray CRC656 (lubricant) on the steering cables after I pull out, keeps them moving nice and smooth. At least for a while, lol.

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[djetok]

Freshwater.
The dealership had made me a list of things to do after each trip and flushing the cooling system was one thing. I wanted some experience jet boaters input.

No need to flush. Just prepare a list of items to do before launching and after retrieving.

My quick list of the top of my head. Before I backdown the ramp. We keep a mental note of fuel as we usually don't go through a tank and half per season. We float more than we drive.

(I) back the trailer / My (S)pouse gets in the boat

• I remove my trailer straps
• I install the drain plug and cleanout plugs
• (S) Turns on the battery
• (S) Turns on the engine blower
• (S) Stows items out of the truck
• (I) Back the trailer down the ramp just far enough for the engine to get cooling (usually water is halfway up the trailer wheel closest to the truck)
• I get out and the (S) starts the engine
• I unhook the safety chain and the winch strap
• I get back in the truck and back her in to where she can get off the trailer

Retrieval is basically reversed except the cleanout plugs are the last thing we do, so the water doesn't drain down on us while removing drain plug and installing straps.

 

[Ancient canoe]

Is blowing the water out of the boxes a big deal? I don't do this. The dealer told me to do this and barely any water was coming out and just think the adverse affects of revving the unloaded engines without any cooling supply to outweigh the positives of a getting a little more water out. I would probably do this after the last trip before winterizing. We don't get a hard freeze in Texas though.

 

[djetok]

Is blowing the water out of the boxes a big deal? I don't do this. The dealer told me to do this and barely any water was coming out and just think the adverse affects of revving the unloaded engines without any cooling supply to outweigh the positives of a getting a little more water out. I would probably do this after the last trip before winterizing. We don't get a hard freeze in Texas though.

I only do it at the end of the season to winterize.

 

[afsigma21]

A big one is to remove the cleanout ports and spray them with a shot of some kinda lube, keeps them from getting stuck.

I also always chamois down my whole boat after each use.

 

[jcyamaharider]

To each his own, I do a couple of little short shots after every time I pull the boat out of the water. I store the boat in the garage and don't want water on my floor if I have to fire an engine for a quick second.

 

[swatski]

Is blowing the water out of the boxes a big deal? I don't do this. The dealer told me to do this and barely any water was coming out and just think the adverse affects of revving the unloaded engines without any cooling supply to outweigh the positives of a getting a little more water out. I would probably do this after the last trip before winterizing. We don't get a hard freeze in Texas though.

Can get all of it anyway even up a steep ramp, but I do it all the time to get the water out of the cooling hoses - by just gently revving up a couple of times out of the water. Kind of habit that I decided to cultivate!

Here is the reason - water can freeze in those lines

https://jetboaters.net/threads/freezing-weather-overheat-alarm-fixed.20335/page-2

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[afsigma21]

The revving the water out is something I always do as well, for a little different reasons. I store my boat 4 hours away from my house.

Before I had the jetboat I had to make a special trip down in November to winterize the I/O because that Sept and October lake trips ended up not happening. Driving 4 hours each way just to winterize is a PAIN!!

If I clear the water out, every time, then I don't have to worry if for some reason I cannot get down to the lake before the first freeze. I prefer to do a fogging and wax and all that Jazz to winterize, but if I know there's no water in there it can save me from a $300 round trip!!

 

[suke]

I flush mine, even after fresh water use. I also wash it down and dry it completely, just as I would my cars, after every trip. Then leave all the hatches open to air out before I put her back in storage or cover her up.

 

[Ancient canoe]

I'm not adverse to it just new to it. Freezing I understand and will make it a point to do it before winterization. Just making sure not doing it isn't a big issue with these boats. I haven't noticed any water in the garage yet.

 

[Gym]

Only suggestion I have is if your lake has a high mineral content I might want to flush a few times a year. If you do flush you may want to flush in "no wake" mode. The reason I do this is if there is any interruption or reduction in water flow causing an overheat condition the ECU will immediately drop the RPMs to low idle which you'll hear immediately so you can shut it down to investegate.

 

[captras]

I flush mine after every weekend....I admit I am a little anal about it, but I had an I/O previous to this boat and had some problems. The shop suggested to flush even in fresh water because of organisms, chemicals, pollutants, and other things even in fresh water. Granted, probably not needed, but 10 minutes extra for me is a small price to pay to make sure nothing is left inside. I do rev each engine at the end of the flush to blow out excess water.

 

[jEt_jAk]

The instructions say to rev the motors to get out water, so I always do this.

 

[biffdotorg]

Is blowing the water out of the boxes a big deal? I don't do this. The dealer told me to do this and barely any water was coming out and just think the adverse affects of revving the unloaded engines without any cooling supply to outweigh the positives of a getting a little more water out. I would probably do this after the last trip before winterizing. We don't get a hard freeze in Texas though.

There are no adverse effects of a quick burst. It is important for everyone to understand the invasive species laws of the area they are boating. They are different in each state of course. In MN, once we are on the ramp after loading it is required to pull all plugs and jets are required to rev their engines to remove as much water as possible. Carrying water from lake to lake is a big no-no that you will get fined for.

In California, if you show up at some landings with the least amount of water in your bilge, you will not be allowed to drop into that lake (Lake Tahoe is the tightest controlled) I have seen folks wiping down the inside of their bilge. wow.

So understand your waterway laws, and clear that water out when possible. We are on a lift for most of the season, so I have gotten out of the habit of clearing the water boxes, as it's a non issue. But pulling the plugs and hitting them with silicone spray is required. I don't want to be the next guy posting on here with a high lift jack and a come-along above his swimdeck trying to pull stuck plugs.

Good luck!

 

[swatski]

Revving up out of water is tricky...
I started doing it very gently after reading @Cobra Jet Steering LLC advice, below.

Im in fresh water but flush with SaltAway when changing oil, every 50hrs. Figured it can not hurt.

This is probably a good time to pass along some pointers that I always follow, In no way am I implying that these caused the issue with this engine but any one of them could cause one for you.
Here are some things to think about with any 4 stroke engine used in a boat.
Always start the engines before you launch, run them a few seconds and then turn them off.
Always follow a strict warm up procedure.
After idling for about a minute I gradually increase my rpm's so that I get on plane and stay there at a moderate speed for another few minutes before increasing the speed of the boat.
After that I usually take care to kick it in the butt and ride hard all damn day.
After the boat is on the trailer, start the engines and let them run for 40 to 60 seconds. Do not rev the engines out of the water, nothing good can come of it .
When the first 1800 engines were put on the market I was informed that people were revving the engines out of the water and causing the flywheels to come loose from the crank shaft.
This created a major recall, just an example of what can occur with no load on the engines.
Fore stroke engines are a lot more complex than 2 stroke engines, remember the exhaust system has water in it, when the engine is off some of the exhaust valves are OPEN this allows for water vapor from the exhaust system to rise up the exhaust system and condense in the combustion chambers, Rust or corrosion can follow so starting the engine and warming it up slowly can save you from a stuck valve, if just one valve sticks open and the piston strikes it you have a major issue.
Also revving the engine out of the water can get a valve to float and do the same thing. I put over 650 hard hours on a 2010 supercharged 1800 engine with only one trip to the dealer for a new heat sensor, I have 315 hours on two 2014 1800 engines now with no issues so far. It works for me so I stick with it. It will probably work for you also.

 

[S1LV3R4D0]

Revving up out of water is tricky...
I started doing it very gently after reading @Cobra Jet Steering LLC advice, below.

Im in fresh water but flush with SaltAway when changing oil, every 50hrs. Figured it can not hurt.

Thats good info right there!! Thanks for posting that refresher @swatski