Penta 50 Fuel Problem

"I removed my boat from storag

"I removed my boat from storage, it started right up for a couple minutes and then died. Has spark, but I removed fuel line at carb, cranked it and no fuel out of line. I can't believe the fuel pump went bad in storage. Any ideas's, is there something I am missing. Plenty of gas in the tank, could there be some wierd vapor lock of some sorts.I take it that it is mechnical pump since no wires to it. There is a screw on top of the bowl, could I somehow pour fuel into that and at least see if it fires. Your help would be appreciated. Thanks"

Four questions: 1)is the v

Four questions: 1)is the valve in the tank open?; 2) is the pick-up tube in the tank in good condition?; 3) is the fuel line broken between the tank and the fuel pump?; and 4) do you have a clogged fuel filter in the suction line?

"Well the same folks have wint

"Well the same folks have winterized for the last five years and I have never had to open a valve after winterization but i will try that,,,where ever the valve is, must be under the tank access panel. New filter was put on with winterizing but I will check everything that you mentioned at first light tomorrow.
Thanks"

Stuck anti-siphon valve????

Stuck anti-siphon valve????

"Boat Doc, now my ignorance is

"Boat Doc, now my ignorance is showing through,,, where/what is the anti-siphon valve?
Thanks"

"Dave, On many, most, boats th

"Dave, On many, most, boats the fitting that the rubber line connects to at the TANK is a anti-siphon valve. It looks just like a hose barb but inside it has a spring/check valve and I have seen many of these over the years fail and stick closed. It's a CG reg and needs to be there in case a fuel line failure down the line. You can take it out replace it with a normal barb to TEST but either fix it or change it out if this proves to be the prob. It's the first thing I check on fuel delivery probs in my shop."

"Boat Doc and El, I am just ab

"Boat Doc and El, I am just about ready to throw in the towel. Checked the anti siphon valve.Removed it. When I blow into it(with all my lung strength, very hard) it opens. Should the spring be that high a pressure? But anyways I could blow through it. So I take it that it is good.

Sidebar, when I removed the hose from the anti siphon valve I had an old faithful geyser of fuel out of the tank. Like the tank was under pressure.I know that it is not full. I quickly jumped off the boat and opened the fuel tank filler cap and it stopped. Now I have always had a hard time filling the tank up but when I did fill it up this spring fuel did come out of the vent on the side of the boat so I take it that it is 'breathing'.

But anyways.......
All hoses are good, new fuel filter, removed filter, there was a little fuel in it. I filled the fuel filter up with gas, screwed it back on and turned the engine over. Nothing out of the line. All hoses/lines are good. Sooooo two questions: what is the orange plastic line coming out of the fuel pump? If the pump is bad should there be fuel in this line? Any other ideas? I just can't believe the pump is bad.
If it is the pump, it looks pretty straight foward, remove the oil sending unit to get it out of the way, two bolts from the pump and the two lines. Easy... famous last words.
Oh one last question, I am doing all this testing with the fuel line disconnected from the carb. Fuel should still pump out if everything was working correct, it doesn't have to be a 'closed' system? Well anyways, there must be something I am missing, I keep hoping.

Thanks for all your help.... I told the kids they would be tubing this weekend (maybe it will rain)"

"There are a few things you ca

"There are a few things you can do.

First (and only for test purposes) replace the anti-siphon valve with a barbed threaded fitting of the same size. If it now works, then you know the anti-siphon valve is the problem.

Second, attach the hose from a jerrycan full of gas to the fuel pump suction side. If it works, you know the problem is between the fuel pump and the fuel tank.

Third, I would make sure (really sure) that both the fuel vent at the boat side and the vent line are clear. You should not get any pressure even if the fuel tank is full.

The plastic line between the fuel pump and the carb is to divert to the carb any fuel leaking due to a pump diaphraghm rupture. If there is fuel in it, the pump is NG.

Yes, there should be fuel pumping through the fuel line to the carb when you crank the engine, even if the line is disconnected from the carb."

"Alleluiaaaaaaaaa, problem fix

"Alleluiaaaaaaaaa, problem fixed. It WAS the anti-siphon valve after all. I disconnected the fuel line at the filter, ran a hose into a coffee can of gas and that engine started up after only a couple cranks. (I had reconnected the fuel line before testing.... thinking positive...why do fuel lines come off so easy but take, in my case, an hour to get back on, oh well).

So even though I could blow through the siphon valve all be it with all my might, it must have been bad somehow. Got a new one and I got fuel.

One final question on this thread. Honestly, how long can you run a marine engine out of water since that is where mine is? I think we are talking seconds but can damage to the water pump impeller happen that quick or are there other potential issues,other than overheating?

Thanks for all your help Boat Doc and El.You saved me about $250 in a service call.

I do have one other problem that I am going to post on a new thread. (Throttle control ok in nuetral but when I push in the button in order to start it at a higher RPM it won't crank..some safety switch or something. I will post the details tomorrow.)
At least the kids will be tubing this weekend.
Thanks again... when it comes together it is actually kind of fun to work on the problems...when they finally get fixed.}}"

I won't let my customers r

I won't let my customers run their boat at all with out water. Put the muffs on it and run it all day if you want but put the volvo in gear to put oil up to the top bearing. Glad the tubing is on for this weekend.