Impeller

[Tom22]

I have a 50hp. Yamaha, 1992. How often should you change impellers.I still have a good water flow, but I'm curious as to how many hours one is generally good for.Thanks

[Terry/JNR]

There is'nt any set time to change an impeller. In most cases it does'nt get changed untill it quits working. If you're unsure, you can change it as often as you want, but my 150 is 5 yrs old, my 9.9 over 10 and my kids 50 at least 7yrs. One of my brothers has an '85 90hp and it's never been changed. A friend of mine has my dads old '52 Evenrude and it's been about 30 yrs on that one.

[River_eye]

are you talking about an a jet drive impeller or a propeller? It sounds like you are talking about propellers, whereas he was aking about impellers. Just isn't clear to me.

[Dave in Mpls]

I believe they are refering to water pump impellers.

[Tom22]

yes, water pump impellers

[Tony]

Last year I had my 93 yamaha 115 winterized by a small engines instructor from in town here and he told me I should replace it on a regular basis. I do not remember what that interval should be, but he replaced the water pump and after 5 years of use it did have considerable wear and I am glad I replaced it. The cost of the part was very minimal compared to the cost of it breaking when you need your boat the most.

[Bob Z]

My experience with a 35 HPP Merc was about 5 years and they failed. Did not seem to matter to much the hours on the engine. Primarily the years.

[Terry/JNR]

Water pump impellers.

[Terry/JNR]

I probally don't concern myself with it because I keep a close eye on the water outlet to be sure it's working literally every time I start the motor. There's no reason to do major damage to your motor if you pay attention. It's also no more than an inconvenience to me as I can change one in just a couple of hours no matter what size motor.

[WestCoaster]

Don't know about Yammies......but I kept my Merc 700 on a two year rotation. Even if it was squirting ok out of the witness hose. The lower unit is a snap to remove, the water pump housing and impeller easy to get to also. If you fail to change the impeller on a routine basis and allow the wear to continue,....you will be changing the housing insert or entire pump housing altogether. While not a catastrophic problem, it means a difference of $15 for an impeller versus about $70 for the housing kit. I've never been stranded due to cooling system probs using this maintenance schedule. I've had friends burn up powerheads due to lack of cooling water circulation. Cheap insurance to maintain it regularly! Good luck!

[Fallsman]

I change mine every 2 years on my OMC 115. My father-in-law blew a powerhead when his water pump failed while running at WOT, it doesn't take long for the motor to overheat when this happens. For the minimal cost involved consider it as part of your regular maintenance routine.