Rubber Impeler, how hard is it to fix?

Our boat mechnaic said that we need to change our rubber impeller, he said it was 2 hours labor and $45 for the part. Does this sound right and is it something thats easy to do where i could try to repair it myself?


THanks

No it’s super easy and a good idea to change them at least every other year. Go buy the part, make sure you by a replacement gasket for around the cover plate. Also make sure you put it in exactly as the old one comes out. Should be easy, at least it is on my X-Star. If you can change the oil in your boat you should have no problem changing the impeller.

I am pretty sure you should be able to do in about an hour if you have never changed one out before. $45 for the part sounds about right though.

its super easy... like 15 min swap.. but at this point i've got it down to a science

I am with you Nick. I forget to take mine out during the winter and they always get messed up if you do that.

If it's already broken up you may need to make sure that pieces aren't clogging the thermostat.

If it is an old 351 by PCM it isn't nearly as easy as it is on the crafts. They used a different water pump. 2 hours might be an overstatement, but swapping the older "key" impellers can take a longer time.

I've got a VLX which is a Vdrive where the housing faces (and is very close to) the stern making it hard to get to since you're laying on the motor and can't really see it. I do it myself though in about 20 minutes, the key being a rubber impeller puller sold by Jabsco I believe. Without out that - forget it. (AFAIC)

I purchased my impeller (03 supra with Indmar) this year at www.skidim.com for $29.99. Use the code "USA" and you get like another 10% or 20% discount.

Do it yourself? An impeller almost always fails on first startup of the day becuase that is when the water pump is the most dry... I always have a spare impeller and the tools to replace it in my boat. Nothing sucks more than putting the boat in and finding out that your impeller went bad... I can change mine in 30 minutes; saves the day every time.

I also always lift engine cover and place my hands on the water/exhaust manifolds on the first startup of the day.. You can almost immediately feel if the impeller is pushing water thru or not: you can feel the water and the condensation build. If its not pumping water, you will not be able to keep your hands on the manifold because of the heat after just a minute...

Thanks,

Ken Land
Bullet Lines
www.bulletlines.com
www.wakeboarding-winch.com

For my 350 merc it takes an hour or so, and the impeller is $25. Also a couple of companies make impeller that can run dry up to 15 mins (supposedly). I know one is a blue color, look into getting one of those. They are made of a synthetic rubber of sorts.

Hey Ken explain to me how you can feel the water and the condensation build? I would like to check mine. I did have one go out a few months back and clog the water flow so nothing was going through the boat. (This happened in the driveway, not the lake). Thanks

Our boat (Nautique GT-40)
to take out a destroyed one, get the chunks out, replace and ride = 25 min.
it happened about a week ago... the total time including driving in short spurts (because of overheating) to shore -- driving to the dealer, buying part coming home, installing = 1 hour

its easy... really straight-forward, just remember how everthing was when you started (take a pic or something) because some parts look like they could go on either way

Depending on the location of your ballast pump, but mine was easy on a Supreme. It took about 40 mins to complete. I swapped my black rubber impellers out for the yellow ones. It's much softer and they never get stuck. I hate the factory black ones, they almost always got jammed/stuck after my 1st season. Now with the yellow impellers, I have not had any problems. During installation, I highly recommend using marine lube on the impellers while your in there. My 2 cents.

Try using 2 paint can openers to pull the old impeller out. 2 needle nose pliers works good too. I now keep a spare impeller (and gasket) on the boat.

nice tip on the paint can opener. gonna try that one!

I used a mirror to help me change the one in my vlx, as it is very hard to see what you are doing.

I would say this is a great reason to not take your boat to that mechanic anymore. 2hr labor for something you can do in 15 minutes without any "mechanical training" sounds like that guy is trying to rip you off. I did the one in our boat in 15 minutes with 1 screw driver.

The impeller is usually pretty easy on most boats. It shouldn't take any mechanic 2 hours to change.

DD's are a breeze. Vdrives a little more difficult, but damn sure not a 2 hr job. Thats a good tip on the paint can openers.

first of each season for me. and keep a spare on the boat

they are all right one thing i do when i winterize mine or install the knew one is drench it in Vaseline!! its oil based so when you got to start it the first time its spins with no problem. its a must to maximize your impeller.

We use hand soap on the impeller when changed as Vaseline is a petroleum based product and shouldn't be used with rubber.

On a black scorpion motor is it up on the front of the motor behind the serp. pulley?? I bought one from the dealer to have as extra but being new to the vdrive thing i don't even know where to install the bad boy....

Its not back under the seat where the walter vdrive is is it????

no stupid questions, just stupid people who ask questions!!

5 minutes on a direct drive, longer on a v drive. Make sure you have a good pair of pliers to pull it out.

soap is not a bad way to go with the install but someone put it to me in a way that made sense...what happens to dried soap it? it becomes very sticky and will pin your impeller to casing. no petroleum is not so good with rubber but you are changing it in 2 years...or 2 dry starts. the petroleum will not dry and wash out the rest of the year. there is a 100 ways to do it but this is just one they are all good, but i have had good luck with my impeller lasting a easy 3 years. just thoughts

as far as finding it just fallow your raw water intake to the first pulley that is your water pump. 2 hoses connect to it water in water out. the impeller is in that casing.

On my Black Scorpion V-Drive, if you are standing on the swim platform looking at the engine the pulley and pump are on the bottom left corner of the engine.

Thanks fellas

CHiliDog did you find it?

yeah i have, just gotta get motivated to get it out of there

I have a 1999 Mastercraft Sportstar and mine went bad last week. Being a DD, when you open the motor cover it is directly behind the ski pole. I took the cover off it and it pulled right out just using my hand. I didn't even need pliers. I might have just got lucky though. Mine was chewed all to pieces so I've got to get all the rubber out before I go back out. Good luck!

ChilliDog,
On the MerCruiser it is best to remove the whole pump as a unit. Then remove the impeller. And it does take some time to remove the pump. My first time 2 hours. The fuel lines went thru my pump. But once it is out 10 minutes to change. I used vaseline on the impeller before assembly. I did remove the side of the engine covers and V-drive hatch as well. Good time to change the fuel filter( water seperater ) as well.

Here is a link to one of the pictures of the parts list for the Black Scorpion Mercruiser raw water sea pump assembly. Note the impeller, and the seal for the cover. When I changed mine, I found a bolt that had been sheared off by whoever changed it last. Considering that only a service professional had worked on my boat before, I wasn't too happy. Now I prefer to service these types of components myself.

http://www.mercruiserparts.com/Show_Pictures3.asp?dnbr=835003003&ivar=images/COMMON/18342.png&inbr=10108&bnbr=195&bdesc=Sea+Water+Pump +Assembly

You can get an idea of what it looks like. Note that you should get your Engine serial number, and begin your search from the beginning. Note that the Black Scorpion engines are listed under the SKI engine category.

http://www.mercruiserparts.com/selectModels3.asp?type_id=SKI
http://www.mercruiserparts.com/SelectModelType3.asp?class_id=1

One other thing. You will find that almost every part that goes on these engines has had a part number that supercedes it. So patience and accuracy are key.

A previous poster said that you need to make sure it goes in in the right direction. If they are talking about the veins, then this is not true. The veins push against the housing rather hard, so it's a bit of a chore to get the round object into the even smaller oblong hole. You can cram the veins into the housing in either direction. Turning the pulley will flip them over in the correct direction, as will starting the engine once it's re-mounted. You can hear them resetting if you turn the pulley by hand.