Flush with Salt-Away seemed to work

R

rgoff

Member III
On my last trip with my 35 year old Atomic 4, my engine temperature was getting over 180 degrees after 1-1/2 hours or so of motoring.

I'd never flushed the engine in the 25 years I'd owned the boat and didn't want to use muriatic acid, due to its caustic nature.

I got a product called Salt-Away at West Marine. Mixed some in a small bucket with fresh water and sucked it into the engine (via the hose to the water pump). Turned off the engine and let it sit for 15 minutes. Filled the bucket with fresh water and flushed the engine. Did this 3 times.

I went out this week and motored for 3 hours at cruising speed. Temperature got up to around 165 deg. Looks like it definitely helped.

I have no connection to Salt-Away, but here's the website:
http://www.saltawayproducts.com/
 
B

Bill Sanborn

Member III
Water pump wear

How long since you looked inside the water pump?

When I had an overheating problem on my A4 it turned out to be water pump.
A new impeller made no difference. Turned out that inside the water pump is
a "camming surface" that is located between the inlet and outlet ports. Over
time they wear down and reduce the capacity of the pump.

I ended up replacing it with Moyers redesigned pump. Works great and much
easier to maintain.
 
ChrisS

ChrisS

Member III
Did you remove the t-stat?

I've flushed my A-4 with a weak solution of muriatic acid twice. By removing the thermostat and clamping off the bypass hose, I got the acid to run through the cooling passages and maximize the flush of salts and crud. I was able to lower the temperature from 180 to 145 degrees. If you don't take out the t-stat and clamp that bypass hose, much of the block won't get flushed.

Overheating and oil starvation are the death knell of these engines, and it pays to keep an eye on both. One of my future projects is to install sound alarms for both oil pressure and temperature.
 
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