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Posts: 432
Location: Eagan, MN | I have a 2010 150 Opti. I normally troll anywhere from 2.5 - 4.5 mph. After about 30 minutes it stalls, and won't start again unless I pump the bulb in the fuel line. I've noticed that the bulb will be completely empty at this time, so I guess it's stalling because it's not getting gas. Is there anything I can do to fix this? If not, am I hurting anything by running this way? |
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Posts: 1142
Location: NorthCentral WI | Pump the bulb once in a while when trolling, as far as hurting anything, you're just running out of gas.
Somebody correct me if I'm wrong but it should be that simple. |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | When is the last time you replaced your fuel filter? |
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Posts: 432
Location: Eagan, MN | dtaijo174 - 5/11/2011 6:48 PM
When is the last time you replaced your fuel filter?
Never, motor was brand new last spring. |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | cast10K - 5/11/2011 9:11 PM
dtaijo174 - 5/11/2011 6:48 PM
When is the last time you replaced your fuel filter?
Never, motor was brand new last spring.
I'm no mechanic, but super easy to replace. Never know, maybe you got some crap in the gas and the filter is causing a little pressure drop. I dunno... Just my $.02 |
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Posts: 7036
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | I have a 2006 150 opti so they might be a bit different....but my mechanic warns me to NEVER troll w/ it. Its made for speed, not trolling. |
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Posts: 791
Location: North Central IL USA | Slamr - 5/11/2011 10:37 PM
I have a 2006 150 opti so they might be a bit different....but my mechanic warns me to NEVER troll w/ it. Its made for speed, not trolling.
My neighbor has a 200 opti...he's been advised the same. |
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Posts: 1087
Location: Hayward, WI | Sounds like a fuel supply issue. I would recommend a vacuum test done on the fuel supply to check for restrictions. Common causes are bad antisiphon valve, bad primer bulb, plugged fuel tank vent or restricted fuel line. |
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Posts: 432
Location: Eagan, MN | gregk9 - 5/12/2011 11:26 AM
Slamr - 5/11/2011 10:37 PM
I have a 2006 150 opti so they might be a bit different....but my mechanic warns me to NEVER troll w/ it. Its made for speed, not trolling.
My neighbor has a 200 opti...he's been advised the same.
Did either of you ask exactly what is supposed to be harmed by it? |
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Location: Des Moines IA | 2 Strokes at low RPMs load up. In other words, they don't burn all the oil mixed injected in to the cylinder, thus fouling the plugs prematurely. |
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Posts: 112
Location: Nielsen's Fly-In Lodge, on Rowan Lake | I have the same motor and troll for hours for lake trout i have never had an issue with mine soory can't help you out |
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Posts: 432
Location: Eagan, MN | MuskieMike - 5/12/2011 4:34 PM
2 Strokes at low RPMs load up. In other words, they don't burn all the oil mixed injected in to the cylinder, thus fouling the plugs prematurely.
Ok, so that ruins the plugs which I understand, but what damage does it do to the motor? |
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Posts: 305
| go ahead and troll with it. carry spare plug set and change them when performance drops. not aware of other damage trolling causes two strokes. others may educate us, though. |
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Posts: 1087
Location: Hayward, WI | If trolling with an Opti I would recommend running Quickleen in your gas, this will help the plugs not foul out. Also a good idea to have a Smartcraft gauge so you can watch your engines temp, you want to make sure that it is warming up to the proper temp and not running to cold. |
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Posts: 665
Location: Twin Cities, MN | Not to take away from the concern over plugs getting fouled, but I would look into the fuel supply issue, as you should not be losing pressure like that.
Pal |
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Location: Des Moines IA | If your 2010 is anything like Slamr's 06', good luck doing the plugs by yourself. I figured "no problem, I'll change em for ya". Not even a chance, they're buried. Even his mechanic complained about doing it. |
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| I re-powered a 1998 boat with a 2008 150 Opti and after about a year started having a similar problem. At trolling speed, the motor would just die. I'd prime the fuel bulb and it would start right up and run fine. This would happen sporadically and I did not worry about it too much. it started happening more frequently and started happening while on plane. I had talked to a mechanic about it and he told me to replace the fuel lines. I did not do this, thinking there must be a bigger problem. I called Mercury and they told me to replace the fuel lines, but I thought it sounded like a more complicated problem. I finally took it to the mechanic and they did a full motor inspection, found that everything was fine with the motor, but ethanol gas had eaten up the internal liner of the fuel lines. So, I wound up paying $100 to have $10 worth of fuel lines put in. This solved the problem and it never happened again. Replace your fuel lines if you haven't already. Apparently when the inner liner gets eaten up from ethanol, the lines weaken and get sucked together and don't let enough fuel get pulled through. |
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Posts: 7036
Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | esoxlucifer - 5/13/2011 12:22 AM
go ahead and troll with it. carry spare plug set and change them when performance drops. not aware of other damage trolling causes two strokes. others may educate us, though.
Regardless of the fact that changing the plugs ISNT as simple as popping the hood off and spending 5 minutes with a plug wrench (see MuskieMike's thoughts on my boat) they're also $20/per.
If you have a 150 opti and want to troll, get a kicker or 4 batteries for your trolling motor. |
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Posts: 791
Location: North Central IL USA | BullMooseBait - 5/18/2011 2:03 PM
ethanol gas had eaten up the internal liner of the fuel lines.
Wow! That shouldn't happen on a 2008 engine! |
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Posts: 1169
Location: New Hope MN | gregk9 - 5/18/2011 2:35 PM
BullMooseBait - 5/18/2011 2:03 PM
ethanol gas had eaten up the internal liner of the fuel lines.
Wow! That shouldn't happen on a 2008 engine!
wow is right... |
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Posts: 32885
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | The fuel line is not the engine; he said the engine checked out fine. It's a fuel line. Some cities use gasoline additives even worse than ethanol for fuel lines and systems, and if that's all you burn, you can expect to replace standard marine gas lines and bulb a couple times over the years, especially if the hoses are not SAE.
http://www.iboats.com/basics/ethanol_fuels.html
From Mercury Marine:
My engine keeps stalling at idle, and I find the primer bulb soft. Why?
Several basic items should be checked. First, is the fuel tank full of fuel and vent open? Second, is the fuel line pinched from a heavy object sitting on the line, or is a tight connection restricting flow? Are there cracks in the line or connections, allowing air to leak into the fuel system? Finally, due to the changes in fuel composition, have your local Mercury authorized dealer inspect the fuel pump check valves for cupping and replace the primer bulb with the latest style.
From another forum:
I recently had an issue with my Yamaha's, my starboard motor started to sputter intermitantly, I changed all the filters, everything seemed ok.
Took the boat back out ran great all day, then on the way in it started again, hmmmmm..... Do I have a clogged filter? Do I have bad fuel? Is my fuel pump going???
I had my mechanic check it out, he was as stumped as I was. I decided to drain a few gallons of fuel off the main fuel tank, disconnected the line from the ball, pumped out 10 gallons, fule looked great. Hmmmm.
Went to hook it back up and looked inside the line and the wall inside had delaminated and was collapsing, ETHANOL had eaten it up.
I called my mecanic, he showed up with 2 new fuel lines, replaced them, put the boat in the water and we ran her up and down the bay. NO MORE PROBLEMS!!! More power and my fuel economy improved...
OH HAPPY DAY!!!
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Posts: 432
Location: Eagan, MN | Looks like I'll be swapping out the fuel line. I'll let everyone know how it goes. Thanks!! |
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Posts: 32885
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Hope that cures the issues! |
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