Hi all,
I have a 1998 SeaRay Sundancer 250 w/a 2006-ish (maybe 2005-2007) mercruiser MPI 5.0L and a Bravo 3. I keep it in a saltwater marina.
My boat has a little flush port on the rear of the transom. I can hook up a hose, and this port ties right into my cooling system. Just a few questions:
1) Is this enough to flush the engine with fresh water? I have been hooking up a hose and turning the water on and running the engine for a few minutes, but in retrospect, I'm not sure if that's enough or if this is the proper way to flush my engine.
2) If I need to do more, is there a good kit that I can install? I've heard good things about the perko valve (https://www.westmarine.com/perko-flush-pro-system-1-1-4inch-hose-3704129.html), and also this quick flush valve (since it can also backflush the outdrive, if that matters): https://www.quickflushvalve.com/. Just not sure what's best. I would want to add that salt away feature eventually if I need to be flushing my engine a lot.
3) Do I even need to flush my engine if my boat is in a saltwater marina year round? I was reading through this thread and there seems to be a lot of agreement that for a boat that stays in the water, even saltwater, you don't need to flush it because the salt just stays in solution. I have no idea if that's true or not so I'm trying to recruit as many opinions as possible. Here's the thread (from ClubSeaRay): https://www.clubsearay.com/threads/in-water-engine-flush.5945/
4) I guess the last question is... that quickflushvalve just some brass fittings, or am I missing something? To me, it looks like I could just build this myself with brass fittings from Lowes. Has anyone just done this? Or is there something about it that I'm just too dumb or naive to see that makes it worth the $240+ that they charge for the valve?
Thanks!!
I have a 1998 SeaRay Sundancer 250 w/a 2006-ish (maybe 2005-2007) mercruiser MPI 5.0L and a Bravo 3. I keep it in a saltwater marina.
My boat has a little flush port on the rear of the transom. I can hook up a hose, and this port ties right into my cooling system. Just a few questions:
1) Is this enough to flush the engine with fresh water? I have been hooking up a hose and turning the water on and running the engine for a few minutes, but in retrospect, I'm not sure if that's enough or if this is the proper way to flush my engine.
2) If I need to do more, is there a good kit that I can install? I've heard good things about the perko valve (https://www.westmarine.com/perko-flush-pro-system-1-1-4inch-hose-3704129.html), and also this quick flush valve (since it can also backflush the outdrive, if that matters): https://www.quickflushvalve.com/. Just not sure what's best. I would want to add that salt away feature eventually if I need to be flushing my engine a lot.
3) Do I even need to flush my engine if my boat is in a saltwater marina year round? I was reading through this thread and there seems to be a lot of agreement that for a boat that stays in the water, even saltwater, you don't need to flush it because the salt just stays in solution. I have no idea if that's true or not so I'm trying to recruit as many opinions as possible. Here's the thread (from ClubSeaRay): https://www.clubsearay.com/threads/in-water-engine-flush.5945/
4) I guess the last question is... that quickflushvalve just some brass fittings, or am I missing something? To me, it looks like I could just build this myself with brass fittings from Lowes. Has anyone just done this? Or is there something about it that I'm just too dumb or naive to see that makes it worth the $240+ that they charge for the valve?
Thanks!!