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Mer-Sea
31-05-2010, 08:51 PM
Hi, I wondering if any of you out there have experienced the following. I run a Suzuki DF115 had it for nearly 2 years and have clocked up over 200 hrs without any problems (touch wood). But ever since I renewed to this motor from a yamaha 115 2 stroke I have noticed that when I remove the cowl after each trip to check / clean and maintain there is a noticeable salt build up on the motor. when I say salt build up I mean that you could scrape it up and collect a reasonable amount of crystalized salt. I appears that salt spray is entering in through the air intake vents on top of the cowl something that I didnt experience with the old yammie. I emailed our local dealer but am still waiting for a reply. I have concerns what effects this is going to eventually have down the track and would like tp know if any other Suzuki owners have had the same issues. I had thought about installing some sort of Filter material inside the vents but I don't want to risk my warrantee. any ideas?

alcam2001
31-05-2010, 09:57 PM
In general it is likely you are getting spray into the cowl intake - possibly your old motor was setup differently and did not generate spray to that location. In any case, you can use lots of chemicals under the cowel and on the powerhead (consider lanotec or similar - but not near the air intakes....) to keep the salt from penetrating further. To get the salt off - you can also use lots of chemicals - but I just get a few buckets of very hot water and throw over the powerhead - instantly dissolves the salt and washes it off at the same time. Then I let dry a bit and reapply lanotec.

I have a V4 jonno - so a bit different arrangement to yours - hopefully someone may have direct expereince with your model motor.

cormorant
01-06-2010, 09:00 AM
At your normal cycle of speed ranges and trim get someone to helm and go have a look at the spray around the motor and determin if it is coming from a jet of water off a tranducer, pitot, live bait pickup, trim tab or front of cav plate or misting from strakes etc. Could be as simple as a motor height issue.

All motors suck in salty air and if there is already saly deposits on the motor they accumulate faster as the old dried salt rehydrated and seems to attract more faster. They should be minimal like you had with the Yammi so you do have a issue

One thing I would look closely at is the seals around the cowl and lower cowls are the way they should be. Yours wouldn't be the first motor ever to have them missing or not seated from the factory or predelivery

The other thing to look at is the running temp of the motor. A motor running hot will crystalise a lot more salt so have the dealer run it in the tank under load and prove it is at correct temps at all recv ranges with a thermometer .Bback of your hand with the cowl off is teh other way so you learn what approx correct running temp is.

Last one- check under the cowl as a nick in a water pressure hose can put out a fine spray ( mist) inside the cowl and creates the sort of salt build up you are referring to. If you feel safe doing it run the motor with the cowl off on muffs , at ramp or on the water and see if there is a misty spray from a loose hose clamp or cut hose as you move them about. It may be very very fine so have a girls look as teh finer the mist the more salt build up

Some of the sprays some dealers use under the cowl on their display motors seem to attrach a lot more crystals than ones left alone.

Be interested to hear what the solution is

Vitamin Sea
01-06-2010, 10:25 AM
G'Day

Have a bit of a read

http://www.ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthread.php?t=120166&highlight=salt+in+optimax

Cheers

Bill

krill
01-06-2010, 07:49 PM
The top side vents on zukes are sealed to the cowling in a pretty bogus way. This allows salt water to pool inside the vent enclosures, then drip onto your powerhead. I pulled them off and coated the sealing surfaces with silicone rubber and re-fitted. Problem solved, no more salt.

Mer-Sea
01-06-2010, 09:52 PM
Thanks you mob for all your feed back I ready appreciate all the replies as it great to see a problem through someone elsas eyes. I think that the Suzuki being heavier than the old motor makes the back side on the boat (520 signature) sits lower in the water and therefore the swim boards may put up more spray (I'll take more notice of this next time out). Also some of the trips out to the reef from here are 3 hrs (70nm) one way so with a full load of fuel and the fish coming home the boat get a good long bath there and back.
Krill I have often looked a the vents and thought that they may be the problem so I will attack that front first. Thanks all I will let you know how I go. Cheers

cormorant
01-06-2010, 11:14 PM
If you are "overloaded"or bum heavy and trimming up to try and keep the nose up is can create a lot of spray around the motor from strakes .

A small hull extension to get a smooth flow of water to cav plate and possibly a permatrim to give more lift can make a big difference in how much mist a motor gets

Take a couple of photos over the stern at different speeds and loads and someone on here with a sistership will quickly see how it is running or a side shot if you go out with another boat.

Motors too deep often are the first place to look.