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1998 Evinrude 5hp E5REC Water Pump Question

S

StephenM

New member
I have very little experience with outboard motors but I have done some small engine work. So I cleaned the carburetor on the 5hp since it was sitting about 15 years to get it running. I also noticed the water pump exhaust tube sticking down was clogged with dirt so I removed the tube and cleaned it out. Now first mistake was not testing the motor at home in a bucket. I can’t use those clamp on water hose flusher things as this outboard appears to suck water in front port in the bottom? So at the lake test today the pump did not immediately pump water but it did start pumping a slow stream of water after 10 second or so. So we drove to a spot and fished a little then I started the motor back up and there was no water coming out at all. Just what appeared to be a little steam vapor coming out. So I immediately shut the motor down and used the trolling motor the rest of the day.

From what I have read online online it appears the water pump has failed or is very weak. Just out of curiosity these water pumps don’t have to be primed right? They should prime after the outboard is lowered and the engine starts, hints the slight delay in water coming out? The water pump kit is cheap so I going to replace it no matter what. I’m also going to try and blow air through water exhaust port and see if I can fee it at the intake to see if there is a clog somewhere else. Maybe another bug made a dirt clog somewhere else too.

Any opinions?
 
Good morning,

sounds like your on the right track with the water impeller being weak I’d change it out and make sure the base plate is in good shape I know the bigger motors have them I would think those would have them I’ve never missed with anything smaller then a 48 hp lol
 
I installed the new water pump impeller, gasket, and plate but still not pumping water. Is it possible the impeller fins bent/turned the wrong way during installation? I also blew through the water exit tube under the motor and it didn’t feel clogged. Any ideas? Also this motor does not have a thermostat.
 
It doesn't matter which way the impeller vanes are turned. They'll straighten out to the correct position as soon as the engine starts rotating.

Is the water level "above" the water pump by a couple inches? If so... double check your water pump work and also check the compression to see if the head gasket might be leaking the combustion into the water passage area which would cause a stalemate.
 
When I install a new impeller myself I’ll take Vaseline thin film around impeller and the housing that sits around it and I’ll turn the shaft clockwise until the housing is all the way around the impeller. My dad told me that it’s supposed to go clockwise and I’ve never had any problems with my impellers I’ve installed along with the impellers he’s installed. I’m not saying that joereeves is wrong I’ve just always done it this way. You can do a compression check if you build up a even psi on the cylinders and it’s not leaking down at all like let it sit with pressure for 30 mins if it leaked more then 10 psi then your cylinder head gasket you might wanna change cause I had a evinrude 115 do that to me.
 
StephenM said:
I installed the new water pump impeller, gasket, and plate but still not pumping water. Is it possible the impeller fins bent/turned the wrong way during installation? I also blew through the water exit tube under the motor and it didn’t feel clogged. Any ideas? Also this motor does not have a thermostat.
Click to expand...

I have the same model. I got from a family member who probably never used it. At first it 'spit' (dribbled ) water so I too replaced the impeller and gaskets. I can see that the water feed tube is in place at the top and when I remove the exhaust drain plug and blow air through the feed tube from the lower unit air rushes out of that BUT it is still not come out of the "pisser" tube. I've scraped, reamed and sprayed cleaner around like crazy and still nada. This morning I was looking around to see if the motor has a thermostat but as you mention it does not appear to. One thing I noted last night (with safety no place in the area) is that I can feel exhaust bubles being blown out the water intake port on the lower unit. Have you had any luck with this? Thanks!
 
To follow up on this I got mine to work but now not so much. I flipped it on the cowling and sprayed PB Blaster into it and let it sit over night. That worked but a funny thing then happened. I replaced the impeller 5030188 (Stamped 98502) and all was good. I used it a few times and then let it sit for a few months and the next time I used it it spit water very well at idle but when I accelerate the flow went to zero even if I backed off the rpb. The impeller key is in place and the impeller looks just fine. no wear and no spun hub. What I suspect is that the vanes fold over as the impeller is actually made for a suzuki and they are not stiff enough or the evinrude OEM is 1.75" wide and the suzuki is a slightly smaller metric equivalent. Or something like that. Sound Plausible? I'm trying to locate a new one that is not made for a different engine.
 
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