HΕLP!! Water in Boat Fuel Lines

[Brer Ben]

1½ weeks ago I finally got my boat out and running good. It had been sitting up in our front yard since Hurricane Katrina, and the hull was FULL of water (it took 2 hours worth of draining to completely empty it). I bought a new battery, new spark plugs, and ½ of a tank's worth of gas. Needless to say, when I launched it, it cranked and ran as smooth as silk. I didn't want to waste any gas so I put it back in our boat lift.

The next day I had my GF over, and we decided to go to Mobile Middle Bay Lighthouse (coordinates 30°26'14.49" N 88°0'41.18" W) to take pictures. Well, I put another 5 gallons of gas in just to be safe, and off we went.

A week later (yesterday) when I went to put more gas in, I noticed the gas cap was already off...which means that I forgot to put it back on last weekend after putting that last 5 gallons in! Not to mention that it rained the last two days before, so the gas tank was full of water!

I try to crank it, and reluctantly it came around. However, it sputters and kicks and will not go over idle speed without conking out!

I have a '94 Wellcraft 190CCF with an (almost) brand-new Yamaha 130 outboard engine.

Things I have already tried in order to get it running again:

1. Run the bilge pump some more - made no difference.
2. Take off the propellor to see if something was wrapped around it - nothing.
3. Let it idle for 2 hours - made no difference.
4. Drained the Water Separater (see fig. 3) over and over again - made the engine sputter and kick even more .
5. Drained 4 engine chambers (see fig. 4) - made no difference.
6. Put an extra 5 gallons of gas in - made no difference.

Fig. 1


Fig. 2 (Stern)


Fig. 3 (Water Separator)


Fig. 4 (Engine Chambers Drainage Screws)


In conclusion, how can I get the water out of my engine short of taking it to the boat repair place and spending $$$? As I type this, I am letting the engine sit and idle to hopefully burn out all of the water. However, it has been doing this for the last 3 hours and still will not go over idle speed. Should I just keep doing this until all the water is drained, and put some fresh gas in it? Or is there anything else you guys know that I can try in order to fix it?

Thanks for your help.

[fitnessman]

Nice Boat.

I would drain all gas. refill and add some additive. Call the local Marine shop and see what they think.

[Geno]

Drain every ounce of fuel from tank, all lines and engine. Refill and treat new gas with heet. Replace spark plugs again because they are now fouled from being run with bad fuel. If this does not work, take to the mechanic.

[Chipman]

Drain every ounce of fuel from tank, all lines and engine. Refill and treat new gas with heet. Replace spark plugs again because they are now fouled from being run with bad fuel. If this does not work, take to the mechanic.

Ditto on the plug thing.

[Nainoa]

Drain every ounce of fuel from tank, all lines and engine. Refill and treat new gas with heet. Replace spark plugs again because they are now fouled from being run with bad fuel. If this does not work, take to the mechanic.

^^^^

Yep, My buddy did the same thing last summer with his boat and we had to take the same steps.