1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

[chiuan]

I have a 1990 Mercruiser Alpha One Inboard MCM 2.5L with transom S/N of OC745130 and drive S/N of OD341860 and a 120 hp rating. How do I get a simple instruction to use the drive control, e.g. starting, throttle, acceleration and proper tilting/triming for planing? How do I use the blower properly, e.g. at speed and at cruising? The engine is installed on a 1990 17.1 ft f/g Invader boat.<br /><br />Besides, the swim ladder appears to be submerged for about two inches. Is this normal?<br />When the boat is runing, the boat tilts to the left of the portside, is this normal (I have a slightly bend "keel" on the bottom of the out unit which will be repair later.<br /><br />Is it normal to have a little water at the bottom of the boat below the engine?<br /><br />Thanks

 

[moderator1]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Moving to I/O questions.

 

[cuzner]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hey Andrew, There are diferent configurations for remotes.I can guess what you have,but it may be wrong.Some things I can help you with though.The blower is a safety feature. It blows out gas fumes before you start your boat,you should turn it on for about 5 min BEFORE starting engine,and when are cruising at idle speed for long periods of time. Some water in the bilge is normal, alot of unexplained water is not. If you are trailering your boat you should remove the drain plug under the sterndrive whenever not in the water and DON'T forget to replace before putting it in the water.Any water that comes into your boat will end up there, rain splashing etc. I have no idea where your ladder should sit in the water,its hard to tell without a pic. Chances are you may have too much weight on the stern(people or gear). Your boat tilting is probably just a weight distribution issue, not the skeg. If it seems unsafe or realy bothers you try moving gear around to compensate,it will be tough to do on a boat this size if you are having a different # of people on all the time. Here is my guess on your remote,remember this may be wrong.to use throttle while not in gear(starting) pull lever to the left,towards driver,and push forward. To put in gear-bring lever back to origol position squeze button under handle and push forward, opposit fo rev.you should have a rocker switch ,or maybe one on each side for tilt and trim. the trim button moves the the sterndrive up-down slow and is used when motor is running. The tilt is faster and used ONLY to raise or lower motor when boat is not in gear. When you start driving,your sterndrive should be all the way down,when you come up to a plane raise is up in short bursts so your bow is not ploughing into the water, your rpm should raise until you reach optimum level. It does'nt take much adjustment.<br /><br /><br /> Jim

 

[chiuan]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hi Jim:<br /><br />Thank you so much for your valuable advice for my Merc and boat. My control has a squeezable button on the top of the handle, a bow-up and bow-down toggle switch below the handle top; below this toggle is a "trailer" square bottom which appears to do nothing when depress but makes a small winding noise; below the trailer button at the base of the control arm is the square "throttle" button. I guess when cold starting the motor, I can depress the "throttle" button and move the control arm forward a little to get more gas (at this stage, I guess I don't have to depress the switch at the top of the handle. If to move forward, I can bring the arm (handle) back to the middle (at this time the throttle buttom will raise. If I depress the switch and push the handle forward, it will go. I hope these are the right procedures. (The squeezable switch at the top of the handle is for driving (accelerating and decelerating) only, not for starting use, is this correct?<br /><br />My engine stalls at idle speed after a run, does this mean I need an engine tune-up?<br />Will I do any harm to the blower if I keep it on all the time when the boat is running?<br /><br />Thank you for much for your advice again.<br /><br />Andrew

 

[cuzner]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hey Andrew, the bow up-down buttons are trim buttons.Your bow up button raises sterndrive up opposite for down. Your trailer button is what I reffered to as your tilt button in earlier post.And should only be used when boat is not moving(trailering).Sounds like you have starting and shifting figured out.If your boat stalls at idle when warm it could be a choke issue.If you just bought the boat you should take it in for service, not just for a tune up,but to have someone look it over for other possible issue's. You can leave your blower motor on if the noise does'nt bother you , but it draws alot of juice so don't forget to turn it off.There realy is no reason to keep it on all the time though. I live near Windsor so I can't suggest a place to bring it to, if you want try posting here asking for a reputable boat mechanic.<br /><br /> happy boating<br /> Jim

 

[beezee28]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Andrew, It would be a good idea if you can take a class on Safe boating. AUX US Coast Guard usually gives them in the States but I am not sure if there is an equivalent in Canada. Now that you have all the throttle control figure out it is time for SAFE boating. There are many rules and regulations that you have to know. At least know the basic.<br /><br />Enjoy you time on the boat.

 

[chiuan]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Thank you guys for the many good suggestions and advice, especially to Jim. I use my boat in the Kawartha lakes region (east of Lake Simcoe) and I am planning to go to a Mercury dealer for service. I also will try to get a manual from a dealer.<br /><br />In Canada by 2009 every boat operator has to have a Canada Coat Guard approved (safety and regulation) license. I have got one already. I also have a conservation permit for fishing in Ontario and I work for the Environment.<br /><br />Thanks again and also thank iBoat.com for allowing me to post my help requests.<br /><br />Andrew

 

[seamegr]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Andrew, I will address the boarding ladder issue. My 2001 Four Winns Horizon 170 and all that model that I have seen, have the bottom part of the ladder in the water all the time. I don't like it, but it is normal for my boat. So it probably is for yours<br /><br />Get in touch with your local Canadian Power and Sail Squadron. You will learn SO much from taking the Safe Boating Course. I did it 2 years ago and it was time well spent.<br /><br /> http://www.cps-ecp.ca/ <br /><br />Greg

 

[chiuan]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

The fuel gauge shows only one quarter full after I filled it up full. Any idea waht may be causing this? Where is the water from the blower and the drain hole coming from? I didn't let any water to get in the boat from fishing use and there is no water sport yet?<br /><br />Thanks, Greg S for the info for the submerged back ladder. I guess I just have to get used to it.

 

[cuzner]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hey Andrew, The float on your tank could be shot,or stuck. Are you talking about the bilge pump, and not the blower? How much water are you getting in the boat?<br /><br /> Jim

 

[chiuan]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hi Jim:<br /><br />When I turned the blower (toggle switch) on, water from the hole near the air intake vent close to the stern was shooting out for about a minute or less. I don't know if the bilge pump and the blower are connected.<br /><br />It was some water from the from the drain hole, not so much in the hull bottom (the storage part connected to the engine compartment through a hole).<br /><br />How do I clear a stuck float in the gas tank or find out the short?<br /><br />Thanks again, Jim. Sound like I am an idiot with motors. This is the first time I own an inboard with no manual and no instructions. I learn a lot from people like you though.<br /><br />Andrew

 

[cuzner]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Hi Andrew, you should not have water coming out of your blower vents.And the bilge pump uses a seperate hose. You should to see if you can find where your blower motor is mounted .It will have what looks like drier vent hose attatched to it.If you keep your boat in the water all the time you should run your bilge pump before you run your blower motor.More than an inch or 2 of water in your bilge after a full day of boating(without rain,or waves into boat) may indicate a problem.I realy can't help much with fuel gauge problem. Thats one problem I have not had to deal with. Try a new post in the electrical problem section. If you can see the top of your gas tank,there should be a round section,with wires screwed into the top.That will be be the fuel gauge unit.<br /><br /> There are no idiots on this site, we are smart enough to ask for help when we need it..... <br /><br /> Jim

 

[Ralph 123]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Basically, when getting ready to get the boat on plane, put your drive all the way down and put your trim tabs all the way down. Advance to full throttle until the boat gets on plane. Once on plane adjust throttle to desired cruise speed. Put tabs up. Slowly adjust drive up (boat speed will increase at same throttle position) until the boat begins to porpoise (bounce). Then trim back down until it stops bouncing. Adjust right and left tabs to keep boat from leaning and also to make minor abjustments to the height of the bow. Takes longer to explain and sounds more complicated than it actually is. I took my cousin out last weekened on his new boat. He is a novice and picked it up quickly so much so that his wife complained to me yesterday that he is now "flying around!"<br /><br />Consider buying a couple of good books on I/O power boating. "Getting started in Power Boating" is a good start. There are also good videos put out by places like Bennet Marine Videos. Places like http://www.boatsafe.com also provide lots of great information.

 

[chiuan]

Re: 1990 Mercruiser alpha one control

Thanks for your valuable advice again, Jim and Ralph.<br /><br />Andrew