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HELP!
I just tried to get my 1994 25hp Merc, going (she sits on my 1972 13'Whaler). It's been a few years since it was started. Got fresh fuel, cleaned old fuel from tank and fuel line & sight bowl, cleaned screen in sight bowl and tried to crank her. She was very hard to start, choked and primed, but finally she fired up. Rough at first but when I raised the fast idle lever she smoothed a bit. W/O moving the fast idle lever again she really revved up and then began to die, restarted with just a little coaxing. However, I could never get her to continue at a low idle. She would excelerate and but not stay running in a slow idle.
Do I need to rebuild carbs or is there a slow idle adjustment.
I know the great minds on this sight can help me.

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I'd add some "Sea Foam" ($10 auto store) to the fuel mix first to clean out any gummy deposits left over, see how it run's after that.

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Seafoam is very good start, but use a high concentration like double or triple in a 3 gal tank and go out with it once you are confident it will start an run. I think can is good for 21 gallons...

That may clean it... If not a carb rebuild and cleaning may be in your future...:-(

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Also don't forget to take a look at the plugs. If they're a bit black with carbon (which can happen as it burns off the fogging oil) that can contribute to a poor idle too. After I get it running first time in the season and am sure all the fogging oil is burned off, I always clean the plugs before heading out. So it's worth pulling and cleaning them up, regap, and reinstall. Will eliminate that variable for you. Keep us posted on how it's going.

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I did that with mine this year. Idle was more than rough, it was cutting out. I cleaned and regapped my plugs, mixed a whole can with 6 gallons of gas, ran it in neutral for what seemed like a half hour, then took it out and ran it until I burned about 4 gallons of fuel. I then mixed another 4 gallons of gas in which made close to a recommended mix, and it's been purring like a kitten since.

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I'd imagine it's important to let the seafoam mix sit in the carbs for at least an overnight (vs burning the whole tank in one run/day)?

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Thanks for all the input. I'll get SeaFoam in the morning and start working again. I'll let you all know how it goes.

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It's important to "Fog & Flush" before you put the motor away for the season, makes start up a LOT easier. Since I've been using Evinrude/Johnson "Carbon Guard" and "Sea Foam" in my fuel mix (about 2 season's) my engine has been running GREAT ! I have a new set of plugs (I change out every July) but, I don't want to touch anything cause, she's running so well. I changed out my plug's last year and they were really clean.

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Well, I'll have to wait until the first of the week to get back at the motor. A little thing called My 2nd Job at the Funeral Home is getting in the way of the fun stuff.
Again thanks for the input.

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I did let it sit before I took it out. I idled it a long time to get it warmed up run a bunch through. And I ate and farted around before I took it out and ran it, but that wasn't more than an hour.

I didn't do the traditional "pour it in,choke it out ,let it sit" cleaning, I was leery of doing more harm than good. I plan on running another can through on occasion as a course of routine maintenance. But you are right, Derwd, I probably should have paid more attention to soak time both while cleaning the motor and while making my post.

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GREAT JOB.

The Seafoam did the trick. I doubled the recommended amount and fired her up and let her run for a good long time. I then let her sit for several hours and then took her to a nearby lake for a trial run. We had no trouble starting and once on open water it accelled well and plained out quick. We motored around ofr about a hour or so going to a slow idle speed in the "no wake" areas and then accelled up with no hesitation.

I am SOLD on SEAFOAM.

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"SEA FOAM" Works ! I use it all the time, I mix just a "Little bit" EVERY time I add Fuel to keep the "Engine" running "Clean". I'm NOT big on "Snake Oil's" but, this stuff really WORKS !

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That's great news Robin, thanks for the update! And as Matt says, it may not be a bad idea to use some every time for a bit to keep the cleaning process going. Glad it worked out for you!