Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos

Posted by shooter102 on 07/22/09 - 11:26 AM

Hey Everyone-

I put in my first post to WhalerCentral the other day and I was so pleased with the quick responses from everybody. Anyways I have another question for you great people. I have a tempo fuel tank and a brand new Honda 4- stroke 90hp engine. I have the standard fuel line connection that clips into the tank. I have been having issues with the fuel not getting into the engine or it seems that the fuel flows back into the tank. The Moeller priming bubble does not seem to get hard at times either. For instance the other day I took the boat out in the harbor and the motor seem to be sputtering like it was not getting fuel and the priming bulb was not getting hard after squeezing it. I took the boat back to the dock and turned it off. When I tried to re start the motor again it took many attempts and once it started I had to rev up the engine to keep it going.
I was told that there is a piece called a back flow valve made by Moeller that bypasses the standard fuel connection into the tank. It goes right into the tank and the fuel hose goes right into that. Does anybody have any idea what the problem might be or have heard of such thing as a back flow valve.

Thank You
Brian

Posted by Joe Kriz on 07/22/09 - 11:35 AM

I have heard of an Anti-Syphon valve but these are only needed for special applications.

It sounds like you are having problems with your fuel bulb.
This fuel bulb should only allow fuel to go one direction. It should not allow fuel to flow back into the tank.

Try a new fuel valve but don't buy a Tempo or Moeller...
Does Honda have their own brand of fuel bulb? If so, that is what I would buy.

I own OMC engines and I will only use OMC fuel bulbs.

Posted by shooter102 on 07/22/09 - 11:56 AM

Hey Joe-
Thank you so much for your help. I am not sure if Honda has there on bulb or not. I have bought two Moelller bulbs form west marine and they both cracked on me around the hose bib. They are junk. West Marine was giving me the run around about returning them because they said its a haz mat issus because they smelled like fuel. Anyways I will contact Honda and see what they say. Its a bummer when you spend so much on a brand new motor and it does not run well.
Thank You
Brian

Posted by Derwd24 on 07/22/09 - 12:00 PM

Second what Joe says. There are two small check valves, one at each end of the primer bulb. The one at the tank end closes and the one at the engine end opens when you squeeze the bulb allowing fuel to go to the engine but not back to the tank, and the opposite happens when you let go of the bulb and it expands to take in more fuel but only from the tank end. On the aftermarket lines, these valves are suprisingly poorly made. Get a good quality OEM bulb and that may well solve your issue.

Posted by shooter102 on 07/22/09 - 12:48 PM

Dave and Joe-

Thank you for your help. I just looked up to see if Honda had bulbs and I saw he same thing. I have been trying to troubleshoot this issue for sometime now. Those aftermarket bulbs are junk to say the least. Yesterday I put the original bulb back on and I seemed to have the same problem. However when I bypassed the fuel/water seperater the bulb got hard right away and the motor ran great. I didn't run it for long like that but i had no problems. Im wondering if my seperater might be bad. Its a brand new filter however the componet itself is quite old. There seems to be no air leaks either at the hose connections. I took a wire brush and cleaned up alot of gunk around the sperater at the bottom and put the filter back on. What do you guys think about that? Is it possible that the fuel/water seperater can be bad and giving me issues?
Thank You
Brian

Posted by shooter102 on 07/22/09 - 12:50 PM

Tom-

Thank you for your reply. It s funny you mentioned that because that was the first thing the mechanic mentioned to me. Yes the bulb is pointing up. For sometime it was more in a diagonal position but I extended the fuel line to be able to make it fit so it points upward.

Thank You
Brian

Posted by Joe Kriz on 07/22/09 - 12:59 PM

If I bought a new engine, these are some of the things I would also buy new.

1. New fuel line and bulb
2. New fuel/water separator filter.
You seem to be having a problem with the fuel/water separator as a unit.
I would replace the entire unit then.

Honda shows the Racor fuel/water separator and the fuel line and fuel bulb.

To protect your investment on the new engine, I would certainly buy the new parts listed above. That way everything is new when you start out.

My .02 cents.

Posted by shooter102 on 07/22/09 - 1:21 PM

#10

Joe-
I agree with you all the way. I replaced the fuel line and ordered a new bulb. I will pick up the racor setup as u advised me to do so. How long are those fuel/water separators good for? Do they usually go bad after sometime? The ocean air as such a impact on all parts of a bad u seem to think that it does some decent damage. Hopefully putting in these new parts will do the trick.
Kinda of the subject about engines but i will ask since you know alot about these boats. What is the best way to remove the green oxidation on the metal parts. I believe that the fittings that connect the rails are polished brass/chrome. They looked teriible with that green crap but i don't want to damage the chrome by trying to wire brush it or something. Is there any cleaning product or way to get rid of that junk?
Thank You
Brian

Posted by Joe Kriz on 07/22/09 - 1:27 PM

#11

The fuel/water separator filter should be changed at the start of every season.

Use Chrome Polish on those fittings.
If the chrome is gone, then you either need to get them re-chromed or buy new ones. You might have to settle for Stainless Steel if you can't find chrome ones.