Salt Water Use, Honda Carboratedb 90

A

alanc

New member
The sticker on the cowling clearly states:

"Flush with fresh water after each use" .

For the folks that keep thier boats in the salty sea, do ALL of you follow this advise, and if so ( or not) what have been your corrosion issues over say, the past 4 years?

I mean, if the lable is right on the engine, and I am too lazy to follow the instruction, am I not asking for premature corrosion and other issues?. Or do saline folks just not like Hondas. The plan for us to to baby the sucker for a season or so, and see how far we get. Anything remotley resembling repowering is not in the plan in the forseeable few seasons.

My 40 HP twp cycle Mariner was in all salt water all season, every season for 10 years. Routine annual service and winterisation done every year (No NOT a daily flush) and we NEVER missed a day on the water due to mechanical falure....OH, yeah...we would replace the impeller very other season. whether it showed signs of wear or not.

Looking forward to opinions, love letters, advise and admonitions.
 
I flush my BF 150 every time I use it. It is just too easy to do it so I do not skip this step. I have never replaced my impellor, engine is five years old and the pump still works great!
 
I flush my Honda 40's every time the boat comes out of the water. If we are out for a cruise of a few weeks they do not get flushed until we return but I always flush them. I use Salt-Away about every 2nd or 3rd flush. The engines are six years old with nearly 1000 hours and work perfectly. I have replaced impellers on both.
 
I once asked a Honda factory rep about this years ago; his response: "That is the factory recommendation. There are plenty of commercial operators here who don't do that. The ramp on your island is one of the few with a fresh water washdown, so you know most people who run their boat off a trailer don't do that, either. That said, flushing is the factory recommendation." Then he leaned in a bit closer and said, "Don't make yourself crazy over this."

I flush the motor with fresh water when we are home, because I can. We have been out cruising for months at a time where a fresh water flush isn't available.

Just for fun, pull the thermostat out and see if there is a salt build-up around that; that'll give you an idea.

I have seen Hondas that have rusted through on the lower cowlings. Besides flushing the motor, I also give it a good rinse on the exterior after each use, when possible.

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
I don't keep the SleepyC in salt water, but That is where it run it, well all except one weekend so far out of 6 years. It gets flushed when it gets pulled out after each trip. Most ramps here have freshwater rinse facilities. The few that don't find me headed for a place that does ASAP after getting her tied down on the trailer.

So far, no corrosion issues and along with the freshwater rinse (15 minutes at least), the outside if the engine and the boat get hosed too.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

IMGP6695.thumb.jpg
 
Me,every time! And I pressure wash the boat.

But then again I know a fellow Brat who tells me he never flushes his motors-2 BF 90s-and doesn’t seem to have any issues after like 7 years.
 
I ask this in the first place because upon telling ( gloating) to a pal that I had just purchased a pretty damn nice CD, he asked me what kind of outboard I had. When I told him I had a 2004 Honda 90, he kinda wrinkled his brow, and said " Too bad ya didnt get a Yamaha..those Hondas are notrious fo salt water corrosion". He himself has a merc, and dont know where he gets this knowledge, be I felt compelled to ask anyway.

Honestly, and let's face it...given enough time, salt water eats everything, and its just a fact of life.
 
breausaw":39xbttkz said:
Me,every time! And I pressure wash the boat.

But then again I know a fellow Brat who tells me he never flushes his motors-2 BF 90s-and doesn’t seem to have any issues after like 7 years.
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I'm with you, Jay. Honda makes great engines, and even though older models may, or may not have had corrosion issues, it is best to follow the manufacturer's directions, and flush the motor after every use, which is what I'm doing. And Honda makes it so easy to do so. Other issues include, I think, such things as where one keeps one's boat. Large, shallow bays, for example, have higher saline content due to evaporation, which may leave higher concentrations of salt within the engine. If the boat is kept in a mooring or slip, is the lower unit completely out of the water? If the motor is used heavily in salt, are the zincs replaced as appropriate? Finally, how often is the engine used? If the engine were to sit, unflushed, for long periods of time, perhaps this could lead to higher corrosion. I've read, too, that there have been reports that Honda outboards look beat-up through year's of use. Is it year's of use, or year's of neglect? We all know that if we don't garage our cars, and don't use good polish regularly, even a Mercedes will look beat up after year's of neglect.

Rich
 
I think places where the temps are warmer seem to have a higher salinity in general. A lot of the talk about what corrodes faster is info out Florida which I think is pretty high salinity which equals faster corrosion. It can't hurt to be a little obsessive about flushing your motor no matter where you live.. Does not cost much to do. We have an electric water pump for our sink in the galley and I have added a T from it to a cockpit faucet. When I pull the boat I just hook a water hose to the faucet and flush the motor and spray the boat and the wheels and brakes. I empty the twenty gallon water tank to lighten the boat for the ride home. I give it a second longer flush when I get home plus a complete fresh water wash with dish soap. The factory really wants the motor to last. Cheating the quality of care you give your equipment is fine as long as you don't blame the failures as a result of negligence on the brand. IMHO. :)
 
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