Hydrolock scare.......

[Inthrustwetrust]

Since I have no idea how much water flow was going through after I turned off the engine, lets just say it was semi-full blast (which is pretty doubtful) should I still be okay? I'm not so sure on how the water is routing through the rinse out port and I would really just like to make sure before I end up with issues. I feel like such a newbie (which I am)

Ya you are still fine. I asked my dealer what happens if I accidentally killed the engine before unhooking the hose as I am new to jet boats (my salesman was a boat mechanic for 20+ years before he moved to sales for health issues, and also a very good trustworthy guy) he said it’s not issue, as long as you get it out within 45-60 seconds. If you hydrolocked it would have already seized. If you are still that worried check the oil, if it’s milky it has water in it, which means in needs further actions need to be taken. Plenty of info here on this forum if that’s the case. I would say your odds of that are very very low.

 

[d_coyne1984]

You are fine. Before I was smart enough to read my manual I ran my hose on full for probably close to a min before I started the engine once or twice and then the same after shutting it off. I never had an issue. I shat my pants when I realized how close I probably was to screwing up my engine.

 

[bleudyno]

Thanks everyone for all your replies! I'm reassured that my boat is okay. It was a scare for me and couldn't sleep that night it happened since I had just bought the boat back in May. This forums is awesome!

 

[Bennett White]

I just did the same thing yesterday. I knew to start first and water second . I did that but engine stopped and was preoccupied with restarting and then realized to turn water off. Maybe a total time of 1-2 minutes went by before the water was off. Boat restarted no problem and ran for 10 minutes and changed out the oil. Took her in the lake for a few hours and it ran well. Anything to worry about?

 

[dzeppos]

I had something similar. on my 242, I accidentally started the wrong engine while flushing and let the hose run for 30 seconds before I realized the flushing engine was off. I had my mechanic stop by and check the spark plugs, but nothing was in there and other than it spitting out a ton of watter when firing it off, no issues. He also checked compression and it was all good.
Definitely a scare - but from what I hear, a flush hose (which I have on a smaller 3/8 hose) would need perhaps a 2-3 minutes or more to cause really flooding. (Not that I would ever take that change)

 

[HangOutdoors]

As an aside, wondering if there is a way we could eliminate the problem of hydrolocking our engines? What if we were to put valves on the water intake with selenoids that would open them when the engine is running and close them when they are not? With and alarm when they are not open and the engine is starting or running which will kill the engine.

I would think that between all of us modders here we could come up with something.

 

[Judge]

As an aside, wondering if there is a way we could eliminate the problem of hydrolocking our engines? What if we were to put valves on the water intake with selenoids that would open them when the engine is running and close them when they are not? With and alarm when they are not open and the engine is starting or running which will kill the engine.

I would think that between all of us modders here we could come up with something.

The answer to your question is "yes"..... something similar to what you ask can be done... and there are several options that are available.

This one is the simplest valve and would be automatic with no human intervention required. The valve is normally open when power is applied to it. If you can wire it so that power is applied when the engine is running, it will automatically be open. As soon as the engine stops and power is no longer applied to the valve, it would close. We would need to look at boat schematics and find a circuit suppling 12V only when the engine is running to have the valve alway open then close when it shuts off.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06WWR1FRK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

Here is a video showing how it works.

This valve is more fancy and can give you several options. It can be wired so that you can switch the valve open or closed. You can also wire an indicator light on the dashboard to let you know if it is open or closed. This one will give you peace of mind but requires you to remember to open or close the valve.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XCN8V6W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

Here is a video showing how it is setup and how it works.

The above valves are stainless steel but they also make UPVC and brass options. They also come in multiple sizes. Here is the website:

Motorized Ball Valves丨U.S. Solid

U.S. Solid Motorized Ball Valves are two-way(two ports or two openings) quarter-turn ball valves. The motorized ball valves here are not for regulating flow, they can be fully opened or fully closed automatically receiving a control signal. We also carry a variety of different types of wiring...

ussolid.com

My old SX192 would have been easy. I would really like to do it on my 275SD but it is tough to get to the water intake lines the way it is designed and you would need ot be a contortionist.... so I shelved the project.

I would have selected the auto-return valve because it is automatic.... engine is running, the valve opens. The engine shuts off, the valve is closed. I would think you could wire an indicator light into as well so it was on when 12V was being applied to keep the valve open.

I'm rack storing my boat and they flush the engines for me each time before the stow the boat. I have to rely that they will do it properly. I wrote detailed instructions and laminated them. I keep a set on the captain's seat when I leave and I built my own flush hose with shut-off valve and I attached another laminated copy of the instructions to it.

The yard guys should never make a mistake but we all know $hit happens. If I had the auto-return ball valve installed for each engine, it would be idiot proof.

This would also make towing the boat on the water safe and simple.


I have used these stainless steel electronic ball valves in my motorhome; one for draining the fresh water tank and one for filling the fresh water tank when I am hooked up to city water. I have mine wired so that I use a wireless switch with a small keyfob remote control to open and close the valves when I want to drain the water tank or fill it. In 4 years of use I have never had either valve fail or leak.

Here is the wireless switch I use:

Amazon.com

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Our main man @lazergeek did something along these lines, his system is manual.

https://jetboaters.net/threads/fsh-210-livewell-access.31133/

He uses his live well as a 26 gallon fresh water tank and has it set up so that he can flush his engines with fresh water whiled moored in salt water, and keep the salt water out until he’s ready to go out. A brilliant set up!

 

[lazergeek]

Our main man @lazergeek did something along these lines, his system is manual.

https://jetboaters.net/threads/fsh-210-livewell-access.31133/

He uses his live well as a 26 gallon fresh water tank and has it set up so that he can flush his engines with fresh water whiled moored in salt water, and keep the salt water out until he’s ready to go out. A brilliant set up!

Thanks @FSH 210 Sport . When I installed I was mostly just flushing at the ramp after pulling out as my storage does not have water, then also using as freshwater washdown on the boat. These days its just wash down only as the Marina I store in has water available now.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

Thanks @FSH 210 Sport . When I installed I was mostly just flushing at the ramp after pulling out as my storage does not have water, then also using as freshwater washdown on the boat. These days its just wash down only as the Marina I store in has water available now.

Right on… its still a brilliant set up and should have been on Modern Marvels LOL!

From the work I’ve done down in that aft bilge area I know its a lot of boat yoga getting in there and doing stuff.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

The answer to your question is "yes"..... something similar to what you ask can be done... and there are several options that are available.

This one is the simplest valve and would be automatic with no human intervention required. The valve is normally open when power is applied to it. If you can wire it so that power is applied when the engine is running, it will automatically be open. As soon as the engine stops and power is no longer applied to the valve, it would close. We would need to look at boat schematics and find a circuit suppling 12V only when the engine is running to have the valve alway open then close when it shuts off.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06WWR1FRK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

Here is a video showing how it works.

This valve is more fancy and can give you several options. It can be wired so that you can switch the valve open or closed. You can also wire an indicator light on the dashboard to let you know if it is open or closed. This one will give you peace of mind but requires you to remember to open or close the valve.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XCN8V6W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

Here is a video showing how it is setup and how it works.

The above valves are stainless steel but they also make UPVC and brass options. They also come in multiple sizes. Here is the website:

Motorized Ball Valves丨U.S. Solid

U.S. Solid Motorized Ball Valves are two-way(two ports or two openings) quarter-turn ball valves. The motorized ball valves here are not for regulating flow, they can be fully opened or fully closed automatically receiving a control signal. We also carry a variety of different types of wiring...

ussolid.com

My old SX192 would have been easy. I would really like to do it on my 275SD but it is tough to get to the water intake lines the way it is designed and you would need ot be a contortionist.... so I shelved the project.

I would have selected the auto-return valve because it is automatic.... engine is running, the valve opens. The engine shuts off, the valve is closed. I would think you could wire an indicator light into as well so it was on when 12V was being applied to keep the valve open.

I'm rack storing my boat and they flush the engines for me each time before the stow the boat. I have to rely that they will do it properly. I wrote detailed instructions and laminated them. I keep a set on the captain's seat when I leave and I built my own flush hose with shut-off valve and I attached another laminated copy of the instructions to it.

The yard guys should never make a mistake but we all know $hit happens. If I had the auto-return ball valve installed for each engine, it would be idiot proof.

This would also make towing the boat on the water safe and simple.


I have used these stainless steel electronic ball valves in my motorhome; one for draining the fresh water tank and one for filling the fresh water tank when I am hooked up to city water. I have mine wired so that I use a wireless switch with a small keyfob remote control to open and close the valves when I want to drain the water tank or fill it. In 4 years of use I have never had either valve fail or leak.

Here is the wireless switch I use:

Amazon.com

Pretty darn slick @Judge !!!