Why is my boat motor not peeing?

First and foremost, what do I mean by “peeing”?

Most motors include a cooling system that uses external water. External water is routed through cooling tunnels before exiting the engine through the “pee hole.”

You have witnessed it! The motor appears to be whizzing around everywhere it goes. This keeps the motor cool and prevents it from overheating.

But if it stopped peeing, when a motor is not peeing, why is it risky? An outboard motor may overheat and stop working, leaving you stuck with no way out.

When your motor is not peeing, utilize these readily available home objects. They are small, cheap, and might save your fishing vacation one day.

A failure to take the marsh carefully and to prepare can spell tragedy for an inshore angler.

Do not be so gullible! I want you to have fun when you go fishing, and being prepared nearly guarantees that.

I went out on my boat in saltwater two months ago. When I returned, the starting motor had quit.

Because I was not able to do a pull-start, I was not able to flush it with fresh water for two months.

That is how long it took to identify the problem and replace the starter. I have always been pretty excellent at flushing after usage up to this point.

Yesterday midnight, I put on the earphones and connected the hose. It was dark, and I was thinking about a lot of things.

I started the engine, but I never looked to see if it was peeing at all. It may have been or it could not have been.

I decided to put my skills to the test on WOT. I did so, turned my head, and saw no water flowing out.

The WOT appears to have caused the hose to slip off the engine. It is conceivable I ran it at WOT for 10 to 15 seconds with no water.

I turned it off and waited a few minutes. I did not detect any fragrances or smoke.

I am curious about one of two things:

Is it possible that it never peed because of blocked lines? Perhaps from not flushing for two months. When I last ran two weeks ago, it was peeing heavily.

Is there a possibility it was peeing and I burned up the propeller in those 10 to 15 seconds?

My plan is to start the nozzle again today for a few seconds to ensure that the water flow issue was not a fluke. Perhaps a full day of sitting will have an effect.

If it does not pee, I did look for plugged lines next.  The only thing I can do is take some wire and place it about 15 inches up the exit pipe.

I did then remove the bottom unit and inspect it for propeller damage.

What bothers me is this:

If the pipes were blocked, I would have expected to see at least a small leak or spray after reinserting the pipe after the WOT.

To entirely clog, the salt accumulation would have to be rather severe. It was only one instance of not flushing.

It might be debris caught in there, but I am not sure how unless the propeller blades have broken off.

If it is a burned-out propeller. After 2-4 minutes, the engine appears to have become too hot to touch.

Also, if it was never peeing in the first place, I ran the engine on idle for around 4 minutes, then half throttle for 2 minutes, then WOT for 15 seconds.

That looks like an excessive amount of time to not have burnt the engine. So, when the motor restarts and sounds normal, I would expect it to be this way if there had been no water for the whole 6+ minutes.

What is the best way to fix a motor that is not peeing?

There are two issues:

  • Clear the intake of water
  • Clean the poop hole

Cleaning the water intake is simple: just trim the motor, examine the intake, and remove any dirt that is clogging its performance.

Running through tall grass is a certain way to jam the water inlet on your bottom unit.

The clog seen above is readily removed with your hand.

When your motor is not peeing, sometimes that is all it needs. If it does not work, you will need to clean the pee hole.

Why not simply avoid dense grass?

There is a simple way to avoid a circumstance in which your motor is not peeing. Most of Mississippi’s marsh is perfect for inshore fishing, and I mean the greatest can be found near aquatic grass.

This grass offers food sources and cover for evolving small fish and other types of bait, such as crab, and others. Yes, the grass mats serve as a feast for one of my favorite inshore genera: the mighty, drag-pulling redfish!

Conclusion

Therefore, my boat motor is not peeing (also find out how to tell if motor boat is locked up) because of the following reasons;

  • When the tubes and pipes were blocked.
  • The cooling water pilot hole may simply be clogged.
  • When there is a burned-out propeller.
  • When there is an entire clog and the salt accumulation.

When going on a fishing trip in Mississippi’s marsh, you take numerous risks, and one of them is having a circumstance where your motor is not peeing.

Appropriate planning and preparation are excellent ways to reduce these risks and make your fishing trips more pleasurable.

As long as you maintain your outboard and keep these items on hand, you will be able to clear clogs even when your engine is not peeing.

Chears!