Potential Damage from Starting Boat Out of Water

[Atticus]

Hi All,

I recently looked at a Air Nautique 206 with ZR6 and closed cooling owned by an eccentric buyer. He decided to start the boat while I was looking around to show me that it ran. He promptly turned it off after starting and told me I shouldn't do that very often as it would damage the impellar (which I already knew). This guy really takes care of his stuff, so he doesn't seem like the careless type. Is there any damage that could have occurred when he did this?

Any feedback is appreciated!

[NautiDave07]

Just change the impeller and press on.

[east tx skier]

Whether it was 2 seconds, which probably didn't bother much, or 10 seconds, which might burn up the impeller, change the impeller anyway.

[TRDon]

Impeller replacement is cheap and a non-issue, especially if you got a good vibe on the boat and seller. He didnt do it long enough to overheat the motor, the only potential damage would be to the impeller. I say buy it and get riding, or sking or whatever it is you love to do with your potential new toy

[shag]

I have done this for years just to check to be sure it fires before dunking the boat. Never had any issues. A few seconds will not affect the impeller, IMO.

[DanielC]

This too is an opinion.
Do not start your boat without supplying water to the raw water pump impeller. After you take the raw water pump apart, and replace your first impeller, you will see that the impeller is a tight fit in the housing. If there is not a constant flow of water past the impeller, it heats up very fast and starts to destroy itself. The tips of the impeller blades are critical to it sealing good, and drawing water up into the pump.

While it is true you can start your boat and run it for about 5 seconds, and it will draw water out of the hoses, oil cooler, water strainer, and v-drive, the next time you start your boat, all these places now have air in them, and that is when the impeller damage is likely to happen.

You will not notice if your impeller is working properly, until you have ran the boat for a few minutes, just long enough for you to get away from the dock, and then have an over heated engine, with out a working raw water pump.

Just because you have gotten away with this bad practice does not mean you should recommend it to others who may not be ready to change the raw water impeller in an emergency situation.

My advise is this. ALWAYS SUPPLY WATER TO THE RAW WATER PUMP TO START YOUR BOAT.

[shag]

I am sorry if that came across as a recommendation. I don't think I said that I recommend it, but I have done this for over 22 years in any boat I have had, not real often, so I just have the opinion that it has never caused me any issues in that amount of time with probably 8-10 different inboard boats.

[jmo]

Was the boat in a "winterized" state? If not and the owner runs it frequently there was probably still water in the RWP so running it for a few seconds won't hurt it given the impeller is still wet.

[WakeSlayer]

Not going to hurt anything..... I am sure he just wanted to show you it starts.

You should always keep a spare impeller and a wrench to fit in the boat. You should also change them every 2-3 years. I do not feel that changing it out annually is necessary, but it is cheap insurance. I have never had a bad one come out when I check them.

[Atticus]

Thanks to all for the opinions and advice! I decided to go ahead with the purchase and should pick it up soon.

[SkiSafe]

SkiSafe Insurance -- Impeller Issues

Sounds like you've done your diligence and got some helpful feedback from the folks. If a water hose is connected to the engine you can likely run it in this scenario without too much risk. Otherwise, the impeller will likely melt if the engine is run dry for even under a minute. Once you know exactly what the risks are and how to address them its a much safer proposition and you can weigh all your options.

-Jon