both motors shut down

[dale1]

greetings. 2002, 265 express with 2002 f225s with 600 hours. this weekend both motors started fine. left the dock at idle speed. 5 min in, one motor shut down. 5 seconds later the second motor shut down. Had 3/4 fuel in the main tank and 1 dot in aux. I was in the main position on both fuel selectors.

panic set in. second guessed the fuel selector switch. switched to aux. pumped bulb for a long time, maybe 20 times. never did get firm. restart and ran fine. repeated for other motor, ran fine. ran all day "4 hours" without any problems.

next day, started fine. ran for 5 min and lost both engines again. was in the channel at carbelle fl. ripping currents, ready to trailer the boat. I had already stowed the anchor in the locker for loading. on the boat by myself. after loosing power I drifted hard into a d@#m pole. went back fliped to aux tank, and pumped bulb again. got one engine running. other would not start. loaded boat, and came home. now i need to start troubleshooting. any advice welcome.

dale


this same problem was posted once before by smokey411, but no resolution was posted. If anyone knows him, I would like to ask him what was the cure. thanks, dale
Re: Pair of 225 yamahas
by smokey411 » Aug Sun 12, 2012 3:31 pm

Capt. Bill I thank you and seasick for your replies, I don't believe the vent hose were obstructed unless they became so when tanks were topped off. The primer bulbs didn't collapsed, but were soft. Seasick I was not running the engines while refueling, The port engine shut down while i was waiting to be refueled , By the way the generator never stopped running during both icidents of motors shutting down, And yes i was running the generator while refueling this day because of the heat. Wife can't tolerate but so much heat. Tanks were only app. 50 percent empty when I stopped to refuel. I topped off both tanks for next day's off shore trip. Still wondering what was the cause! smokey411

 

[Curmudgeon]

any advice welcome.

:uhm Don't continue the same actions and expect different outcomes, something made both engines quit. Twice! Start at the fuel tank(s) and work toward the engines. Check everything, don't assume anything ...

 

[onoahimahi]

You probably already did this - can you run one engine off the main tank and the second off the aux? Then maybe only one will quit and then you can take if from there. I had this happen once and it was because I had water in the main tank but the Aux was okay.

 

[dale1]

You probably already did this - can you run one engine off the main tank and the second off the aux? Then maybe only one will quit and then you can take if from there. I had this happen once and it was because I had water in the main tank but the Aux was okay.

OK, how did you determine that water was present in one, and not the other? or what's the best way to determine this? I changed the fuel sender in the main tank about a month ago. I used a flash light to look into the hole, but wasn't real sure what I was looking for? sorry for being dumb about this. just need the basics. it does have two canister type fuel filters on the aft bulkhead. they do not have the water separator on the bottoms.

 

[HBSteve]

Remove the water separator fuel filter and pour the contents into a clear container like a gatorade bottle. Water is heavier than fuel so it will settle to the bottom. If there is water, You'll see a clear separation.
You can carefully pour the gas back into the filter then dump the water. If there is very little gas, top off the filter with fuel then reattach the filter. Check both sides.

Also the forward part of your motors have a clear plastic thing about three inches long and an inch wide. It looks like a mini oil filter. There is a red o ring at the bottom. It looks like a large o ring that goes in garden hose connections. That ring will float on water but sink in fuel. If its off the bottom in any way, unscrew the plastic container, dump the contents and refill with new fuel.

I had a similar problem one time with one engine. After dumping the water from both the engine and fuel filter, it ran fine. Then I checked the filter after each use few the next few weeks. There was less and less water each time until it was consistently fuel. All good now.

 

[dale1]

HBSteve,

man thats a good post. i did not know that about the water seperator on the front of the motor. Ive stared at it several times without a clue. thanks again.

dale

 

[onoahimahi]

Do you run straight gas or E10?

 

[max366]

I had a similar problem when I ran my 2004 265 with F225s for the first time after I bought it. I had been sitting for about a year before I acquired it. Turns out the VST filter had fine white crap on it that caused the engines to shut down. I had changed the Racor filters before using the boat but it had the original filters in the engine along with the VST "filter". After they shut down, I let it sit for a while and the crap must have dropped off and the engines would start and run for a while until it got sucked back onto the filter and shut them down again. Replaced all engines filters incl the VST and cleaned it all out, changed to the large Yamaha separating filters and have not had a problem since.

 

[dale1]

thanks again for the replies. I just ordered all new filters, including vct filters. I will let you know how it works out. I've only owned the boat 6 months. been out 3 times. used marine fuel every time except this weekend. ethanol from a quick stop. :huh I know better. I intended to run it all out this weekend. "which didn't happen" lesson learned.

 

[HBSteve]

Thanks Dale,
Well just like most things, I learned that process over the phone from the mechanic after one of my engines stalled off the coast. It took about three outings of filter exams before there was no more water. I never even changed the filters since they were only about two months old. But now I check each filter monthly.

 

[fishin trip]

there is also a paste that is made that you can use to check for water in your tank.you can buy it at a place that wholesales fuel.You have to pull out your sending unit,put paste on a stick ,any water in tank will turn the stick red .If you have water in tank you can go to harbor freight an buy a hand pump for around $9.pump the water out while youhavo the sending unit out. also check and make shure the o ring is good on your fuel cap.if your fuel cap is sitting in a low place on the gunnel perko makes a part that will raise it ,people have had trouble with the ones where the vent is inside the fuel cap.