Salt Water Running
 

Hi All,

We run our FS18 in fresh water but see a day when we might trailer to the Florida coast for vacation.

Is there anything I need to do with the power unit other than flush well before returning home? Are there special salt water "options" for Mercury power units running in salt water?

Cheers,

Y

Re: Salt Water Running
 

We boat quite a bit in the salt water and I would always have a fresh water cooling system on a boat I used in salt water. This is a closed cooling system that circulates coolant through the engine and only allows the sea water to be pumped from the outdrive through the heat exchanger and discharge through the exhaust.

I just finished installing one one mine, and it ran about 1000 bucks by the time I was done.

Some say dont bother since the life expectancy on the block isnt worth the cost and hassle, but I disagree and would preffer to keep it as good as possible and as long as possible.

One more note though, flush the system with fresh water hose and run through outdrive muffs after pulling the boat out of salt water every time. This will reduce any negetive effect from the salt water.

And make sure your zinc's are in good shape since they are the sacrificial anode to keep the outdrive from being attacked.