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I contacted Steve Leone, the Ebay seller of the pee-hole flusher, about my problem. Here was his response:

"You may have had too much salt build up prior to use. Either that or there was insufficient water pressure. I have a commercial client that has a Honda 50 and has only been using the flusher since new. After two years we pulled the stat cover and it was near pristine. You may need to change the thermostat and increase the water flow. When you turn the hose on make certain water is coming out from the water pick-up on the lower unit. This is an indication that the thermostat or poppet valve has been opened or not. Thanks, Steve."

It is possible there was buildup from the previous owner. I had said the motor was used by the PO in fresh water but that is not true, it was brackish. How brackish I do not know (Fort Belvoir, MD, near DC). So maybe there had been prior buildup.

My water pressure is good, and water does come out the lower unit, but maybe there was sufficient buildup that the thermostat couldn't open enough to flush the old buildup out. I never had any overheating problems.

I had talked to Steve Leone last year before I bought the flusher and he seemed like a pretty straight guy.

This year I plan to use the flusher primarily, with an elephant ears flush when convenient. Then I will check it at the end of the season.

The Honda manual recommends an annual check of the thermostat anyway.

I have a 50hp mercury and kept my boat in brackish water in slip in a bayou off lake Ponchartrain. I moved my boat to saltier water on the Miss. Gulf Coast. I have never flushed. Last year I was replacing my water pump impeller and noticed that the aluminum shaft seal had severe corrosion where water pooled when the motor was in the tilted up position. It cost a lot of money and time and almost caused me to buy another lower unit.

Needless to say, I now flush with muffs and at least once a month I travel in fresh water up a river.

Casey, You might want to get one of the flushers from Steve Leone (the Ebay guy). That way you can easily flush after every outing. It would still be good to do the elephant ears flush monthly as well.

I have a 2 yo merc 60 4stroke bigfoot. Flushing is done via the 'pee hole' using a standard 'male' hose fitting that screws over the 'pee hole'. Manual states that need to run at idle for at least 5 mins to open the thermostat. By this time the water running out the bottom is warm indicating it is going through the motor. I think the manual also states that the motor can be run at idle for flushing in the fully tilted position.

Cheers,

AJ

I've got the Yamaha 60 four stroke fuel injected. I was delighted to find out it had a secondary connection point for fresh water flushing. When flushing at home I use the rabbit ears. When on the water, I just hook up a hose to the secondary flushing line from my cabin fresh water. Motor does not need to be started - water comes out the pee hole by gravity. I guess it may not be a full flush, but at least it keeps the pee hole open.


Craig

One another thing to watch when using the 'hose adapter in pee hole' method - if you arent careful when screwing in the hose adapter the rubber hose in front of it (under the engine cowl) turns with it and it kinks up, blocking the water flow of course.

You should see a little seepage from the bottom of the lower unit, even with the thermostat closed. If you dont, pop the cowl and check the hose.

As above, it takes about 5 minutes at idle to fully open thermostat and flush engine per MERC manual.

Dont run above idle per manual.

Manual says to remove propellor,which is for liability only of course.

Well, back to square one. After reading all about the Guardian system, I decided to go ahead and order it. MST's website, http://www.mstguardian.com, states that they are in a dispute with an ex-partner who apparently left the company and started making his own "counterfeit" Guardian flushers. I called MST, and got a long message from the owner stating that they are currently "closed for reorganization."

I guess the pee-hole thing is better than nothing.

Here's a question... from what has been said here, the main complaint about that device is that the water just flows down the lower unit, flushing it, but not the powerhead. What if the water intakes were blocked? Would that create enough pressure to force some of the water up through the powerhead and down out of the normal exhaust/outtake?

--Mike

According to Steve Leone (the pee-hole flusher seller) regarding my Honda 50:

"the thermostat is rated from 7-10 lbs psi on that model I believe. Yes, if there is adequate water pressure at your spigot, it will dislodge the thermostat. I also believe there is a bypass hole, located next to the thermostat, that allows water to pass as a precaution to thermostat failure. Most outboards have this feature."

If this is true, then the powerhead would get flushed.

But I am wondering if the water passageway to the exhaust causes the water pressure to drop inside the engine, and thus the thermostat spring pressure would not be overcome.

I think I will do the elephant ears flush as often as is conveneirnt.