impeller on 2000 5.7 merc bravo 3

[SWEET DEAL]

where do  i find the impeller ?is it easy to access to for visual checking?
how often do you change it (i avoid sand dunes)
is it a job for pros?
anxious for boating i have 4 ft of snow on my front lawn
tks guys
happy/safe boating
SWEET DEAL

[Capt Ron]

The impeller is usually mounted down low in the front of the engine and driven by the drive belt. Just follow the belt and you will find the pump. There will be two large hoses from the outdrive (the back of the boat) connected to the back of the pump. However, only disconnect those hoses when your boat is out of the water because the pump is usually below the water line on your boat. Removing it is not a big deal. There is no way to visually inspect it short of removing the pump and opening it. If you are going that far you might as well changed it.  The impeller should be changed religiously every third season regardless. If you just bought the boat and you don't know when it was changed, I would recommend you change it now. If the impeller is still good, use it for a spare.
Cheers,
Ron

[RowdyRon]

I'm having the same problem in my 232 trying to identify where the impeller is actually located.  Very little room in front of the motor and can't see where it is much less changing it out.  I can see hoses that come to a T connector but not much else.  Anyone have pictures?  That would help.

[dazeoff]

I replaced my seawater impeller twice , i had it let go  while on plane and it cooked my risers and white smoke billowed out of the compartment .. I didnt damage the motor but it scared the hell out of me ..I have 27fv  350 mpi . bravo 3 ..it is $60  part and less than an hours work .. located on the lower starboard side of the motor , it is not hard to do .just  get some instructions as the bolts are hard to see ..when the pump is off you remove the screws and split the pump . the impeller just comes off and the new one goes on ..They recommend it get replaced every 2 years , I now carry a spare , and monitor  my water temp. carefully .. $60  is cheaper than a motor re-build ...One problem this pump has is that way the water intake hose is connected , you can never get all the water out of the pump and winter freeze up freezes the rubber impeller and damages it ..  ..I now as part of winterizing disconnect the input hose before storage ....John....

[Babyboomer]

Here's what it looks like


http://www.cpperformance.com/images/525-4672775.jpg

http://www.outdriveshop.com/rebuild_bravo_raw_waterpump.html

[dazeoff]

The grief that little pump can cause is more than you want to ever happen ...great picture ...you can see why the water lays on the bottom and doesnt completely drain.. and for us northeners that is bad news ...How do you import these great images ??? anyway...

[Babyboomer]

The grief that little pump can cause is more than you want to ever happen ...great picture ...you can see why the water lays on the bottom and doesnt completely drain.. and for us northeners that is bad news ...How do you import these great images ??? anyway...

I know what your saying about water in the bottom I've thougt about tapping a drain plug in the bottom.

First find the picture you want then right click on the picture click properties highlight the ulr address (http etc)
copy then go here and look for the little picture in the second row toolbar on the posting page it says insert image when you click it will look like this between the 2 bracks [img] here [img] paste the picture
I think this will only work on a jpeg image. Talon correct me if I'm wrong

[dazeoff]

again i learn .so thats what that row of icons is for ....duh ......I wouldnt tap that pump .. i just loosen the clamp on the hose and pull the hose .. I always get a  bunch of water out and i leave it off all winter ...

[Capt Ron]

The new pumps are easiler to winterize. They have two drain plugs (those little blue plastic ones) that are on the side of the pump. You just remove them and all the water will drain out of the outdrive and the pump. The only thing Merc tells you to do is to crank the engine over without starting to remove any remaining water around the impeller. After doing this I fill the engine and entire system with pink stuff that has rust inhibitors and keep it in the engine over the winter. The antifreeze will settle into areas that may still have water. Most of the pink stuff will slowly work it's way out through the outdrive over the winter. I did the same thing on my older boat with the exception of removing the water hoses to drain the pump. The pink will displace any remaining water.
Cheers,
Ron

[Babyboomer]

again i learn .so thats what that row of icons is for ....duh ......I wouldnt tap that pump .. i just loosen the clamp on the hose and pull the hose .. I always get a  bunch of water out and i leave it off all winter ...

I winterize on a lift and run coolent through the engine but I still think a drain on the housing would be a good idea.

[Capt Ron]

Boomer, where would you put the drain ..? Merc puts two drains on the side of the pump... sort of a upper drain and a lower one...

[dazeoff]

my 27  has those two drain plugs and i did remove them ....but any water in the system will gravitate to the pump and the lowest blue plug does not totally remove  all the water .. i read somewhere that Merc. is actually doing some thing to change this problem ...the answer is to antifreeze as you do  . But in my case
 i have winterized all my boats for 20years by removing all water and  leaving dry .. However i agree using antifreeze does solve any issues .....great thread ...

[Capt Ron]

my 27  has those two drain plugs and i did remove them ....but any water in the system will gravitate to the pump and the lowest blue plug does not totally remove  all the water .. i read somewhere that Merc. is actually doing some thing to change this problem ...the answer is to antifreeze as you do  . But in my case
 i have winterized all my boats for 20years by removing all water and  leaving dry .. However i agree using antifreeze does solve any issues .....great thread ...

I usually leave the blue plugs out while I fill up the block with pink. When I see the water stop and pink take over I put that plug in and keep filling until it comes out of the pump. Then I put all the plugs back in and keep filling it until it comes out of the outdrive. The quick easy way to do it is to run the engine with a 5 gallon of pink and muffs, shutting the engine down when pink comes out of the exhaust. Some how doing my way usually uses more antifreeze.. I'm usually alone when doing it so I'm going to keep doing it the same way because I never had any issues.

[Babyboomer]

Boomer, where would you put the drain ..? Merc puts two drains on the side of the pump... sort of a upper drain and a lower one...

Haven't seen ons yet but sounds good to me. I'd tap the bottom though