Proud (and humbled) new Sea Ray owner

[robbo8199]

Hello to all. First I want to say thanks, I have been looming around the forum for about a month while I was searching for a boat and found lots of info on here.

I have a lot to cover so I will start with the good....

After much searching my wife and I settled on a 1995 Sea Ray 175 5 series. It is in great condition and had low hours (274). This is our first boat so we took our time and really wanted something we felt would be reliable. I read about the Mercruiser 3.0 and they seem to be fairly easy to maintain and work on.

We took it out on the lake this Saturday and it ran like a champ. Had a great time with friends and were very happy with the purchase.

My original plan was to take it out with my wife and brother again on Sunday and take some good pictures to post on here during my first post. Wanted to ask all of the newbie questions that would be great to know:

- What general and preventative maintenance does everyone do on their boat and trailer to keep it running
- What would a solid tune up on this boat include

While I don't have much experience working on a boat I feel pretty confident doing these thing should be no problem once I know what should be done......we can come back to this later :smt001

Then we went out on Sunday... yikes! I knew someday this would probably happen I just didn't think it would be on the second time out...... we forgot to put the plug in. :huh:

We have taken it pretty well as it could have been much worse I'm sure. But talk about feeling like and Idiot haha :smt021

We got it quickly back to the dock and on the trailer. As we were about 10 feet from the trailer the motor stalled and did not start again. From what I could tell water got high enough to reach the bottom of the engine but not all the way up to the dip stick. The gas line runds pretty low and there is a slight chance (I doubt it) that it got to that point. We ran the bilge and drained everything for about 30min then put it back into the water to see if it would start. It sounded like it wanted to start but just barely not turning over.

I aired everything out over the last few days and I am ready to try and get it running again in hopes that it just needed to dry out. So my new questions are now what should I do from this point. I would like to just turn it over and see if it starts, but we live about 30min from the lake so I cant' just drop it in real quick to check. I know they sell some sort of device that hooks up to the hose so that I can run it in my driveway (any help on what kind or where to get this would help). Open to any other thoughts or ideas from this point as well.

The one thing I can say...... this will not happen to me again thats for sure!!

Thanks in advance for the help! Pictures will follow soon I promise:thumbsup:

 

[Summer Fun II]

Congrats on the new ride & Welcome to CSR. :smt001

Sorry about the troubles you're having with it. :smt021

 

[mwph]

Like Wayne said, Welcome & sorry. But hang out here long enough & these guys will lead you in the right direction. The more specific your questions, the better they are at answering them. As far as running the engne in your driveway, something like this may be what you are looking for.... http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...01&storeId=11151&partNumber=8536955&langId=-1

 

[uptimejeff]

I forgot the plug once - never again... thats how you learn

I'm always surprised at the marine section at Walmart... (at least in FL, I'm not sure if it's the same in other parts of the country)

This is an example of what you need.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/SeaSense-Dual-Flow-Motor-Flusher/10086721?findingMethod=rr

In my area, they sell the standard (not dual-flow) model, either is fine.

If not walmart, any marine store will have it.

 

[OldSkool]

Welcome aboard. We have all gone plug diving at one time or another. Now that you know to put the plug in, buy another and throw it in the dash compartment just in case. Nothing like dropping it in the drink while trying to install it with nothing to replace it with.

 

[Dick270da]

From the school of hard knocks, I have one of the inexpensive flushers that I do not use anymore. While I was flushing the engine it slid down and no longer covered the intake holes. I discovered this when the alarm went off. Too late, I burned up the impeller. I now use one made by Mercury that has a pin that goes all the way through the outdrive.

http://www.mercurypartsexpress.com/us/flushing-attachment-p5134.html

 

[SevenTeas]

Get a set of muffs, less than 10 at most Wally worlds, hook to garden hose and try and start it.

I would change the oil first also, just in case.

I think most of us have forgotten the plug in our lives. Luckily I wasn't off the trailer when I realized I did it so not too much water.

Welcome aboard, it gets better....

 

[fwebster]

From your description, we cannot tell if the starter is spinning at its regular speed and there is a problem with ignition or fuel, or if the starter isn't working as it should. My guess is that it is the latter.

When a boat filles with water, the starter usually gets affected because it is mounted low on the engine. If it is a freshwater submersion, then you should be able to remove the starter and take it apart and dry all the components, lubricate what needs lubrication and re-assemble it. If the battery was submerged, it may be a goner or you might save it by removing the excess electrolyte and recharging it.

Before doing anything else, however, check the oil and see if there are signs of water in the engine's oil pan. If the pan to block gasket was under water, it is very likely that the engine is full of water. If it is, then drain the oil and change the oil filter. Remove then clean, dry and reset the spark plugs, refill with fresh oil and try to get it started on a hose with muffs like the ones shown in the above link. If it starts and runs, let it come up to operating temperature, shut it down and change the oil again. Don't omit this step since moisture will be trapped in the engine and running the motor up to temp will get the moisture mixed with the engine oil. Changing it the 2nd time will remove it.

Good luck with it...................

 

[rcknecht]

Welcome... We started with the same boat, same year too... I noticed at a marina I was at, that they put blue tape on the boat if the plug is out, and remove the tape when the put it in. You might want to have some way that you can remember to put it in... Once is a mistake, twice is a shame...

 

[Redhook98]

Yep, sounds like the starter got wet and possibly is now bad... Try to dry it out and see what happens. You can also try Electrical Contat cleaner and it to get any salt or water residue out of it.

 

[rusobr2]

welcome aboard ! ya- we have all done the little forget's,i did mine 30 yrs. ago--but about five yrs ago--i blew a mnfd. hose,and didn't notice it till the engine showed a little warm-almost 210 . it never gets above 180--opened up the hatch,and it was a mess--kept it running till i got over to shore--i took it home ,and took out the spark plugs--then ran the starter while blowing it with air . then added elec. cleaner,and continued to blow it with air--it made it a couple yrs. then changed it due to solinoid problem anyway-if you make it to this point make sure you replace it with marine starter--they are different then auto--you don't want a fire to talk about on the forum !!

steven