Outboards, Freshwater only ??

[Rangerbill]

I am now attempting to choose a motor for my Montego 19. Lenght 19.5 weight 1550) the old manuals I can find that were reproduced state 7.5 maximum HP. however, I would like a 9.9 due to the fact that I may want to move up. even if I need to beef up the Engine mounting bracket. I see a Mercury 9.9 sail power big foot a 2002 model and the seller has it advertised as a "Freshwater Motor" Is there really a difference? I am confused.

Thanks

[GordMay]

Seller means, used in freshwater (not salt). Generally much less corrosion issues with freshwater engines.

[Tetepare]

To expand on what GordMay said:

Outboards run water through them for cooling. Outboards are made of metal. If the water running through the engine is salt water, it will eventually corrode and destroy the engine. Fresh water has no such ill effect.

Some saltwater outboard owners flush the engine with fresh water after use. This preserves the quality of the engine and gives longer life.

I ran my freshwater 1964 Johnson 9.5 from ~1980 until 2012. I don't think you'd get that from an engine run in saltwater.

[svHannabel]

Also, there are some outboards made specifically for saltwater use that have some less corrosive parts, in some cases different paint, and dedicated flushing ports.

[thomm225]

As far as size, I have a 5hp 4 stroke extra long shaft Mercury Outboard on my 6600 lb Bristol 27.

It works well in most situations, and I sail where the bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. This boat though is the first sailboat I've had with an engine

If you have found an engine that was used in fresh water only that's great.

I bought my engine new in 2011. I may have flushed it once per year since then due to where it's mounted on my boat. I do try to run it though at least once every two weeks all year

I have had 6-8 other outboards over the years though and none disintegrated due to salt water........but I didn't own them that long

[rognvald]

Your Ranger is a beautiful boat with unlimited possibilities for weekending or Summer vacations. It is a good sailing boat that can carry a spinnaker and the swing keel gives you access to shallow protected bays. There is a difference between saltwater/freshwater engines but if the engine is flushed after every use(as would be the case with a daysailor)-- the difference is, perhaps, moot. If it were my boat, I would look for a used electric trolling motor(under $200.00) that can push it during days where the wind dies and save your big bucks for your next bigger boat. After all, it is a sailboat and the Ranger sails well. Good luck and safe sailing.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by rognvald

Your Ranger is a beautiful boat with unlimited possibilities for weekending or Summer vacations. It is a good sailing boat that can carry a spinnaker and the swing keel gives you access to shallow protected bays. There is a difference between saltwater/freshwater engines but if the engine is flushed after every use(as would be the case with a daysailor)-- the difference is, perhaps, moot. If it were my boat, I would look for a used electric trolling motor(under $200.00) that can push it during days where the wind dies and save your big bucks for your next bigger boat. After all, it is a sailboat and the Ranger sails well. Good luck and safe sailing.

Do folks really flush after every use?

I thought it was "if yellow be mellow, if it's brown flush it down!"

Same with outboards, I've flushed mine I believe 8X in 6 years.

The other 6-8 outboards I had rarely got flushed.....

Do you think cruisers flush their dinghy engines after every use?

[hobopacket]

Really depends on how often you are using it. If the water in the system gets used daily or often it's less of an issue. Although still not as good as flushing after every use. But really it's not practical for cruisers to flush after every time they use the dingy. Takes a lot of water.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by hobopacket

But really it's not practical for cruisers to flush after every time they use the dingy. Takes a lot of water.

That was my point.

My 2011 Mercury 5 hp Outboard has been flush maybe 8X in 6 years and I use it a lot because it's the main engine on my sailboat. (My slip is a bit tight so I need an engine to get out)

But I was thinking since I have a sailboat the engine isn't that important

[Suijin]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Do folks really flush after every use?

Depends. I had a Parker 18 with a Yammie 115 on it and I flushed it religiously after every use, with earmuffs on a trailer, for years. But it would sit for weeks unused.

I have a Yammie 8 two stroke for my dinghy now and I've never flushed it. Too much trouble.

Grew up on a salt marsh and we had aging outboards that we used constantly. Never flushed them, never had an engine die from it.

Of course, replacing the 115 would have been financially painful. That's really why I flushed it.

[valhalla360]

On the last boat had a 25hp merc.


We didn't flush after every use but maybe once a week when at a dock. It's simple to reach over the back, hook up the muffs and let it flush for a bit.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Suijin

Depends. I had a Parker 18 with a Yammie 115 on it and I flushed it religiously after every use, with earmuffs on a trailer, for years. But it would sit for weeks unused.

I have a Yammie 8 two stroke for my dinghy now and I've never flushed it. Too much trouble.

Grew up on a salt marsh and we had aging outboards that we used constantly. Never flushed them, never had an engine die from it.

Of course, replacing the 115 would have been financially painful. That's really why I flushed it.

Yep, I'd flush the outboards occasionally on my power boats also because they were on a trailer. We had a couple 55 gallon drums we used.

If my boat was really starting to smell from old bait or a lost dead fish left onboard for a few days, I'd rinse the boat good and flush the engine in the barrel while I was at it

I used those outboards on both bayside and seaside. The Atlantic is very salty up here.

Crabbing was still very big on the bay when I was a teen, and my friends that were crabbers/watermen and their dads rarely if ever flushed their outboards but they did use them a lot

It's the same with my sailboat. The outboard rarely gets flushed because of where it's mounted. No problems so far though after 6 years.

[rognvald]

Do you think cruisers flush their dinghy engines after every use?" thomm225


I don't think anyone on this Forum would consider a Montego 19 a cruising sailboat. Therefore, if you use it as a daysailor or weekender in saltwater and return home at day's end, the logical maintenance would be to flush it with fresh water. If you return to a slip, flush it. If you gunkhole for a week, flush it when you return home. A saltwater engine will far outlive its usage on most boats with good maintenance. When you are cruising on a larger vessel and living on the hook, this will not be possible unless when reprovisioning/repairs, etc., you return to a slip when you will be able to flush it. Our last outboard for our dink was over 25 years old with perfect compression and had no destruction from saltwater either externally or internally. When at the dock it was flushed after every use and when on the hook, flushed whenever the opportunity existed. There is no substitute for proper maintenance on anything mechanical. Hope this helps.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by rognvald

Do you think cruisers flush their dinghy engines after every use?" thomm225


I don't think anyone on this Forum would consider a Montego 19 a cruising sailboat. Therefore, if you use it as a daysailor or weekender in saltwater and return home at day's end, the logical maintenance would be to flush it with fresh water. If you return to a slip, flush it. If you gunkhole for a week, flush it when you return home. A saltwater engine will far outlive its usage on most boats with good maintenance. When you are cruising on a larger vessel and living on the hook, this will not be possible unless when reprovisioning/repairs, etc., you return to a slip when you will be able to flush it. Our last outboard for our dink was over 25 years old with perfect compression and had no destruction from saltwater either externally or internally. When at the dock it was flushed after every use and when on the hook, flushed whenever the opportunity existed. There is no substitute for proper maintenance on anything mechanical. Hope this helps.

Sure if that is what you want to spend your time doing, but it's a PITA to flush every time when it's mounted on the stern, but then again, some guys would rather do maintenance than sail their boats......

It's been my experience that the folks that take the best care of their outboards that are mounted on sailboats (as in flushing etc) and do all the recommended post op maintenance steps are the ones that rarely use their boats

Their boats are really clean, lines coiled up just so on the dock, cover on the outboard etc but they rarely use the boat

I've had probably 9 outboards and none have rusted through yet and they were treat pretty rough because with most I had as a teenager or in my 20's.

On the one I have now, I change the crankcase oil once a year and gear oil once a year. I just replaced the fuel filter after 6 years. I've also replaced the impeller one time in 6 years other than that I treat the fuel that sits in the tank(s) over the winter and run the engine at least once every two weeks all year. And I have been flushing once a year but not so far this year

All the others were two stroke and I did maintenance when the thing failed to run

[rognvald]

"It's been my experience that the folks that take the best care of their outboards that are mounted on sailboats (as in flushing etc) and do all the recommended post op maintenance steps are the ones that rarely use their boats

Their boats are really clean, lines coiled up just so on the dock, cover on the outboard etc but they rarely use the boat" thomm225


Thomm, is this a personal observation or is this based on facts gathered in an independent study? Since I am not aware of any such study, perhaps you can share it with our readers. . . I'm waiting . . .so, since we are sharing personal experiences and not a factual study, I would say that our cruising experiences over the last 30 years have proven that the boats that sail the most miles are always the boats that are well-maintained--both visually and mechanically and that it is the dirty, ill-maintained boat that rarely leaves the dock/anchorage and when they do, never make it out of the bay. Your description above describes our boat with the exception that we have sailed over 18,000 logged sea miles in the Great Lakes, Florida and the Caribbean. Maintenance of a boat is a necessary element to successful cruising. Good luck and safe sailing. P.S. a dirty boat is symptomatic of a personality type: dirty house, dirty car, etc., etc. Have you ever sailed aboard a commercial ship or a Navy ship? Dirty? Poorly-maintained? Not in this world.