Before you go pulling the carbs off, use your small fuel tank and put in about 2 oz or so of Sea Foam. http://www.seafoamsales.com/how-to-use-sea-foam-motor-treatment.html
We use an ultrasonic cleaner, which just has a water solution in it. I never soak them in anything stronger than water. Others do, but you still have to make sure all the passages are clean. In order to do this, you have to know where they are and what they do...thus a good carb manual.
Just got a boat in that someone tried to clean the carbs, but missed the important passages by a mile. Then they did not set the idle mixtures correct and even put the muffler on wrong. On top of that, they left the remnants of the intake manifold gasket laying in the lower motor cover. What a hack!
Anyway...off my soapbox....if you are getting any flow through the clogged passages, the sea foam should help. If they are totally clogged, then it probably will not work...but worth a try.
Don't forget the carb balancing and valve clearances. The balancing can work wonders for a bad idle.
Mike
We use an ultrasonic cleaner, which just has a water solution in it. I never soak them in anything stronger than water. Others do, but you still have to make sure all the passages are clean. In order to do this, you have to know where they are and what they do...thus a good carb manual.
Just got a boat in that someone tried to clean the carbs, but missed the important passages by a mile. Then they did not set the idle mixtures correct and even put the muffler on wrong. On top of that, they left the remnants of the intake manifold gasket laying in the lower motor cover. What a hack!
Anyway...off my soapbox....if you are getting any flow through the clogged passages, the sea foam should help. If they are totally clogged, then it probably will not work...but worth a try.
Don't forget the carb balancing and valve clearances. The balancing can work wonders for a bad idle.
Mike