No telltale flow on DT85, where do I start?

[kiwi boatie]

Howdy guys,

New boatie here from New Zealand looking for help please: our 1992 DT85 two stroke isn't producing flow from telltale outlet.

Boat hasn't been used for a month and I was attempting to perform monthly preventative maintenance 3-4min run with outboard leg in a barrel to keep everything in running order. Immediately after starting I noticed lack of telltale, after it didn't appear for 20-30 seconds, motor was shut down & even tho water level was above intakes, more water added to barrel to be sure. Tried again and still no luck, oil lights are showing two out of three lights (or three out of four, I forget which) and no overheat light shown.

I tried pushing a soft & bendy wire about an inch into telltale outlet thinking as boat is stored outside perhaps some insect has decided to call this home - no luck.

As motor was running for a total of maybe 2-3mins without overheat warnings, I'm hoping maybe the motor is still being cooled and the telltale line is simply blocked.

Would the next step be disconnecting telltale line within motor and blow compressed air thru telltale outlet?

Have had boat about a year and maybe run a dozen times, everytime motor has run well (excluding newbie skippers overpriming bulb and flooding motor!) and everytime telltale flows.

Altho I'm mechanically minded, I've never tinkered with outboard motors before and am cautious of turning a small problem into a large one!

Any advice is very much appreciated!

[Murray]

For the codes

https://www.suzukioutboardforum.com/...agnostic-codes

I would suggest you get a genuine Suzuki manual, can be found online for $10 or so or paper copy, well worth the money. New boat to you so going through it is a good idea. My tell tail squirts water almost immediately. Would be prudent to change the entire water pump, Suzuki sells a kit that will have all the components you need. YouTube has videos on water pump replacements, give you an idea what your getting into. Watch for old stale fuel that will also cause you grief.

[kiwi boatie]

Thanks Murray!

Had found Suzuki outboards shop manual 2-225hp 88-03 on an online auction site for $100, so much appreciate getting similar online for less.

Will look into water pump kits, do you think replacing the waterpump would be challenging for a DIYer?.

Fuel is always kept fresh and of high octane, discarding any unused fuel more than two months old.

Thanks again

[Murray]

Get the manual specific to your engine if possible, your mechanically inclined, with the manual you will have no problem assuming you don’t run into rusted/corroded bolts. A lot is going to depend on previous owners maintenance.

[akareddog95]

Did you check your water pump impeller yet? I fried one last year and the housing, waiting for the water to come out. I learned never to use muffs.

[Murray]

Did you check your water pump impeller yet? I fried one last year and the housing, waiting for the water to come out. I learned never to use muffs.

I have never had any issues with muffs, mine are round and about 4” in diameter. On a Mercury 40HP that I previously owned they had a tendency to slip off so I would use a small bungee cord and secure the muffs on the lower unit since the lower unit was narrower than my Suzuki 90HP. For piece of mind I still employ a bungee cord though it’s not necessary. I also tie a longer lanyard to my kill switch lanyard so I can kill the engine without having to climb into the boat. I never leave the boat unattended while it’s running on the trailer with the muffs. I have learnt on this forum that all muffs aren’t created equal. Don’t discard your old fuel, syphon into a clean container and burn it in your car, lawnmower chainsaw...

[Solarman]

Kiwi, water in the barrel must be above the level of the water pump in the foot of your motor anytime motor is run, or you might burnout the impeller, it can never turn/run without water to lubricate it.

Kiwi, you should get some thick weed-eater type monofilament line and try to push farther up into the tell-tale tube. This should clear your tube all the way to the block.

Are you getting any water out of the exhaust port in middle of leg while running, and does it get warm while running? If yes, then it's a good chance tell-tale tube is blocked and the problem.

If you are not getting an overheat light, you should run motor a bit longer, and try pushing the monofilament line in the tell-tale at the same time, hopefully whatever is blocking the tell-tale will blow out while it's running.

Good luck, post back on what you find out.

[kiwi boatie]

Success!

Removed telltale line and found no blockage, Filled barrel again and this time with even more water and telltale reappeared!

I suspect while the fast idle was running during start up, enough water was thrown out of the barrel to stave the intakes.

Coincidentally my neighbour has the same motor on his boat, and said he uses muffs instead of a barrel. Strange, as I've never been able to get muffs working, even with fancy duel-feed models. He said he 'switches them around', perhaps single feed muffs might work afterall? Has anyone had success with DT85 and muffs?


telltale_resized.jpg

[Murray]

Could you borrow his muffs and try them on your engine? I find muffs are so much more convenient then the hassle of a barrel. Mine are the single feed type.

[Solarman]

If you look closely at the screens where the muffs cover, that cavity is open from one side to the other, both sides are the same cavity that feed the water pump impeller. So whether it is single feed muffs, or double feed, they still feed the same area. The main difference is water flow, and what water pressure your hose will provide. Another problem that I've seen, is if the muffs (too small, and too flimsy) don't cover both intakes well (this happens when the water fills the cavity, then tries to go higher, but the back pressure pushes the rubber cups back, or the cups slide down or off the intakes), with enough pressure, they can fall out of place. Once you start the motor re-check the muffs to make sure they are still covering both screens completely. Too much water & pressure, or not enough can affect how the muffs work on your motor. Some muffs are better than others.

Good luck.

[kiwi boatie]

Thanks guys, much appreciated!

[kiwi boatie]

Hi guys - thread dredge!

Our neighbour kindly tried his flush muffs with great success! I guess it's all in the shape of the cups and water flow pressure.

thanks everyone for your help