Unclogging Intake?

[beezer]

I got my first taste of jet power today as a owner, both the good and the bad. I launched my 05 Speedster 200 (rotax/370hp) today and was having a blast. Decided to go down to the "party beach" area, which is at the end of the lake going through a mile or two of no wake zone. Probably to due the lack of wake, and the current down there, it allows a lot of debris to be at the surface... branches, weeds, etc...

I did my best to avoid debris, but I apparently I sucked some up. I ran the ICS, did the reverse trick mentioned somewhere here, etc... but couldn't get it out. The left engine ran fine. The right one, however, had no power and reached high RPM very quickly and would make a terrible sound like it was vibrating, as it the engine was loose and unbalanced.

Got it back on one engine and brought it home. What I see is what looks like a birds nest of "river weeds" tangled in the impeller.

I see no problem with the the surrounding ring. I have the 3 tine ICS style grate. I assume I just remove the hex bolt that attached it to up/down arm to lower it and reach in there?

1) Any tips on getting stuff out? Do you take a knife to it, pliers, or anything that will work? Don't want to cause damage trying to remove it, so asking for tips first.

2) Is the symptoms I described sound typical? Why did the RPMs so readily run up like that giving it just a little gas? Is it because it was jammed so the clutch was slipping, so it was free spinning without resistance?

Sorry for the basic questions, just trying to get used to all of this. =)

 

[ScubaDoo]

Bezzer, It is typical that things will get stuck in the impeller area from time to time. There is no clutch as the seadoo jet unit is a direct drive. Start it up and it is going as it is a direct shaft out the rear of the engine and it's always turning the impeller when running. Use what ever is availiable to unclog the jet pump area. Just be carefull not to gouge the sourounding wear ring around the impeller. I recomend taking your time and just not damage anything in the process. The symptoms you described are typical. the impeller depends on water pressure to produce the thrust to move the speedster forward. With a blockage it won't have the water to push and will almost cavitate trying to get as much water through it as possible. A word of caution: If you are only running 1 engine be sure to clamp off the water cooling hose from the other engine, because the water will force it's way into the engine with it not running. The hose is the top one that runs from the top of the impeller tunnel inside the boat, to the rear of the cylinder head. It's the same principle as towing the boat. Never tow it over 15 mph and clamp off the hose. What happens is the water will enter the exhaust and flood the engine because the same water cools the exhaust and there is no back pressure from the engine not running. As far as dropping the ICS grate and trying reverse... the engine is going forward all the time. That would work if the engine would run in reverse direction, but it doesn't. The gate on the rear of the jet pump directs the flow to the front of the boat causing it to go backwards. Look at the reverse gate, and shift the gear forward and to reverse with it not running and you 'll see what I mean.It's a direction of flow. The ICs grate allows you to pull out the debris.

ScubaDoo

 

[beezer]

Yes, I knew it the impeller only runs one way, I must have misread the manual. I wasn't going it reverse and then killing the engine, just putting it in neutral.

Big question now I access the impeller when trailered. The trailer rails partially cover the grates. The screws that hold the access plate to the impeller (plate behind the grate) has screws that seem soft, along with the two screws that hold the grate on. I tried undoing them, but it started to strip so I stopped.

 

[Gunsrunner]

The joys of jet boating!!!
I have found that i can get my arm in with the tynes lowered while on the trailor, maybe not possible with your boat.
When i sucked a ski rope into the jets i found it easier to take the pump off the rear of the boat to reveal the drive shaft and then the rope just twisted straight off the end. Just undo your steering cable and forward/reverse cable then undo the 4 bolts holding the pump on then pull pump off complete.
It would be great if you could put the impellor in reverse for situations like this. But direct drive has its positives as well.
Maybe even a hose feed in from the rear might be able to dislodge it.