How to Maintain Your Boat’s Outboard Motor

Your boat’s outboard motor is one of its most vital components. After all, you can’t propel your boat through the water without a fully-functioning outboard motor attached to your transom.  If you have recently acquired your first boat with an outboard motor, you should know that it is vital to perform regular maintenance on this engine.

 

In this guide we will go over why it is important to maintain your boat’s outboard motor. We will also discuss some outboard motor maintenance tasks you will need to perform periodically.

 

The Importance of Maintaining Your Boat’s Outboard Motor

Some reasons to maintain your boat’s outboard motor regularly include:

 

Keeping Your Boat in Functional Order

While some boat owners plan their trips many days or even weeks in advance, others like taking their boat out on the water on a whim. This is one of the perks of owning your very own boat.

 

You can check the weather forecast and call your best friend for an afternoon trip. However, your plans will come to a sudden halt if you realize your boat isn’t in working condition. The truth is that there are many factors that can render your boat unusable.

 

It may take several hours or even days to get your boat back in working condition. For this reason, it is best to perform regular maintenance on it and ensure all the components are in working order.

 

Avoiding Costly Repairs

The average outboard motor consists of dozens of moving parts. These must be maintained regularly if you want them to stay in tip-top shape.

 

Keeping up with regular maintenance activities also forces you to inspect every part of your boat motor. This gives you a chance to identify any potential issues with its components. Attempting to operate a boat motor with damaged components can lead to disaster. This increases the risk of you and your passengers being left dead in the water.

 

Operating a boat motor with damaged components can also lead to much greater damage occurring. Such damage may cost thousands of dollars to get repaired. No one wants to foot a hefty bill caused by their own negligence. For this reason, you should keep an eye out for any signs of wear or damage on your boat’s outboard motor during maintenance activities.

 

Lengthening Your Motor’s Lifespan

Every boat’s motor has a limited lifespan. Even high quality outboard motors sourced from reliable manufacturers kick the bucket at some point due to their components degrading.

 

The good news is that you can minimize such degradation and wear by performing engine maintenance tasks regularly. By keeping the right components dirt-free or lubricated, you can extend their lifespan and keep your motor functioning at its true potential.

 

This also helps your boat maintain its value. Therefore, someone may be willing to purchase your boat for close to its original retail price if you have maintained its outboard motor regularly.

 

7 Ways to Maintain Your Boat’s Outboard Motor

Maintaining your boat’s outboard motor isn’t difficult to do. However, it does require commitment and a bit of elbow grease. Some outboard motor maintenance tasks to keep up with include:

 

1.     Flushing the Engine

You will need to flush your engine with fresh water after each outing. This is vital because the outboard’s water passages come in contact with salt water and sand while it is in operation. Salt exposure is especially troublesome because it can lead to corrosion such as rust build up.

 

The damage that corrosion does is difficult to undo so it is best to flush your engine with freshwater when you return from each boating trip. This stream of water should remove any particles that would otherwise cause corrosion if they are left in the engine.

 

Flushing your engine requires some specialized equipment. You can purchase some flushing “earmuffs” for your engine at online stores or marine equipment retailers. This contraption consists of two rubber seals connected to a solid metal clamp. To use these flushing earmuffs, start by attacking the rubber seals to your engine’s water intakes. These are usually located along its sides.

 

Next, attach a water pump such as a garden hose to the contraption and turn on your boat engine and set the throttle in neutral. Now you can turn on the water through the hose and start the flushing procedure while ensuring good water flow. Allow this process to run for a few minutes before turning the water off and detaching the rubber caps. You can also use a small piece of wire to scrape any visible particles loose from the flow tube

 

If you own an outboard motor that was designed and manufactured in the last decade, chances are it contains a built-in garden hose attachment. Such engines are designed to be flushed while the engine is off. You simply need to attach a garden hose to the port and turn on the water. Allow the water to flush your engine for 10 minutes before turning it off.

 

2.     Disconnecting the Fuel Line

Disconnecting your fuel line is more of a healthy practice than a maintenance activity. You should aim to do this when you intend to put your boat in storage at the end of the boating season. However, some people also do it at the end of each outing.

 

This practice is useful because it reduces the chances of any fuel leaks from impacting your motor. Leaving fuel in your tank and fuel line can also cause particle deposits to build up. Fuels containing ethanol are especially prone to creating problems because ethanol dissolves particles built up in your engine and transfers them to the fuse line. These deposits can partially or completely block your fuel line, leaving your motor unable to start up.

 

You can perform this maintenance activity by first disconnecting the fuel hose and closing the vent on the tank while the motor is running. The motor will eventually burn through fuel and stop itself.

 

Once this is done, you can use the opportunity to clean out your fuel tank. Cleaning your fuel tank gets rid of any particles that may have accumulated in it. It’s a good idea to perform this cleaning activity one or twice a year.

 

You should then remember to reconnect the fuel line and add some fresh fuel to the tank before taking your boat for your next outing.

 

3.     Replacing the Spark Plugs

Your boat’s spark plugs play the vital role of igniting the air and fuel mixture in your outboard motor and putting its pistons in motion. If these components aren’t working, your boat won’t start.

 

Your spark plugs are actually the outboard component you will need to replace most frequently. These components are exposed to high heat conditions with explosive forces. This leads to them being worn out.

 

Some people may consider simply cleaning their spark plugs with some cleaning fluid and a brush, but it is better to replace them entirely. You should swap out your spark plugs for new ones at the end of each year. Alternatively, you should replace them after every 100 hours of use.

 

Changing your spark plugs is a simple task. You should start by identifying the type of spark plugs used in your outboard motor. You can do this by removing the component and then looking for any marking that indicates what type it is. Alternatively, you can consult your outboard motor’s user manual to determine the plug type.

 

Once you have purchased the correct replacement spark plugs, you can disconnect the wire from top of your existing spark plug by first removing its cap. You can then use a wrench to unscrew the plug from its socket. You can now place your new spark plugs in the socket and tighten them according to the torque specifications listed on the packaging. It is vital to tighten the spark plugs to the right torque amount to prevent gas leakage and ensure efficient heat transfer.

 

4.     Impeller Maintenance

Your boat’s impeller is the water pump component that pumps cold water to the engine and keeps it cool. This prevents the engine from overheating during lengthy outings.

 

The water pump impeller itself consists of numerous rubber vanes arranged around a central hub. These vanes naturally wear out over time due to contact with particles in the water. If you take your boat onto a lake with muddy water, you may end up wearing out your impeller vanes relatively quickly.

 

There’s no boat engine maintenance task that will allow you to keep your impeller in good condition. Instead, you will need to inspect your impeller regularly and determine when you need to replace specific parts or the entire mechanism with a new one.

 

If your impeller’s parts need to be replaced, you can start by first unscrewing the lower unit. You can then slide it down and remove it from your outboard. Next, you can remove the bolts on the water pump housing and pop it loose using a screwdriver. You should now be able to access the impeller’s components such as the base-plate, vanes, and bottom gasket. Once you have replaced the parts that require changing, you can place the housing back on.

 

Finally, you can lube the lower unit’s bolts before placing it back on and tightening the bolts.

 

5.     Propeller Maintenance

Your outboard motor’s propeller is the component that does the most work when you drive your boat. Your propeller’s blades are designed to handle massive forces as they overcome the water’s natural inertia. However, they can still get damaged easily.

 

If you drive your boat in shallow conditions, your propeller could come in direct contact with the lake bed or sea bed. This can cause minor nicks that could develop into large cracks over time. For this reason, it is vital to inspect your propeller blades regularly.

 

In addition to this, you should also aim to clean and lube your prop after each use. You should first rinse this component using freshwater combined with a bit of detergent. You should then wait for the blades to dry before wiping them down with a water repelling lubricant. This lubricant is useful because it will help stave off corrosion effects if you drive your boat in salt water conditions regularly.

 

6.     Changing the Gearbox Oil

Your gearbox contains oil that must be replaced once every 100 hours of use. You can perform this process by first placing a catch pan under your motor. Next, loosen the drain screws and then tilt the outboard down.

 

Now you can remove the drain screws completely and empty the old gear case oil into the catch pan. Finally, you can fill the gearbox with new gear case oil and place the screws back in place.

 

7.     Filter Replacement

Modern outboard motors have many types of filters. This includes a primary on-engine filter, a vapor separator tank filter, an inline filter, and fuel injector screen. You will need to clean or replace these filters periodically.

 

The primary on-engine oil filter and in-line filter should be changed after each 100 hours of usage. The vapor separator tank filter should be changed after each 300 hours of usage.

 

You can perform each of these replacements yourself. However, you should ensure the replacement filter is the type that matches the old one.

 

Why Choose Westshore Marine

As you can see, there are plenty of outboard engine maintenance tasks to keep up with. It may help to create and follow a checklist to ensure you keep up with each of the tasks described above.

 

If you’re interested in purchasing a high quality outboard motor for your boat, consider checking out the selection we offer at Westshore Marine.

 

At Westshore Marine, we pride ourselves on offering outboard motors from premier manufacturers. Please visit our website to see our full selection or contact us if you need assistance with choosing the right outboard motor for your boat.