Mercury Black Max 150-HP Alarm - Moderated Discussion Areas

  ContinuousWave
  Whaler
  Moderated Discussion Areas
  ContinuousWave: Whaler Repairs/Mods
  Mercury Black Max 150-HP Alarm

search | FAQ | profile | register | author help

Author Topic:   Mercury Black Max 150-HP Alarm

lingcodkiller posted 08-27-2014 11:20 AM ET (US)
Help! I have a 1993 Mercury Black Max 150-HP two-cycle outboard engine. I took the boat out this weekend and [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max] ran fine for a half hour. I started trolling. After 20 minutes an aural alarm started beeping. I shut off [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max], brought in all my gear, started the [Mercury 150-HP Black Max], and gave it some throttle. The alarm stopped. I stopped the engine, let it sit, started it again, started trolling again, [and in] just a couple minutes the alarm started again. This time I shut it down, let it sit, and started it. The alarm started beeping constantly, and [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max] lost most of its power---cylinders, I think. I checked the coolant line and it is spraying water; I don't think [the cause of the alarm is] overheating. I also checked the oil reservoir on top of the motor, and it is full. When I take the [engine] out of gear and rev the engine, it seems to rev up, but a little rough, and it smokes like it is getting plenty of oil. I ended up running the motor with very little power back to the boat launch, with the alarm beeping the whole time. This is so frustrating. [Have others] experience with this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Lingcodkiller
jimh posted 08-28-2014 08:35 AM ET (US)
Many older, less sophisticated, simple outboard engines provide only an aural alert warning as an alarm signal. The aural alarm signal can be caused by several conditions. The operator must interpret the meaning of the aural alarm signal in order to determine what is causing the alarm. Generally the method for interpretation of the aural alarm signal is by noting the cadence of the alarm and the circumstances in which the alarm has occurred. Usually the operator's guide for the outboard engine will provide details about how to interpret the meaning of the aural alarm signal. Check the operator's guide to see if the manufacturer provided any guidance for understanding the meaning of the aural alarm signal.
On some very simple and not very sophisticated older outboard engines there is only one sensor that can initiate an aural alarm, so there is no ambiguity about what is causing the alarm to sound.
Review the operator's guide for advice on how to interpret the meaning of the aural alarm.
jimh posted 08-28-2014 08:40 AM ET (US)
Review the REFERENCE section article on the oil mixing system of your engine at
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/mercuryOilInjection.html
The article explains how the oil mixing system can sound an alarm.
jimh posted 08-28-2014 08:43 AM ET (US)
It is a rather common experience for the operator of a Mercury two-stroke outboard engine to have an aural alarm sound with a BEEP BEEP BEEP. Review the many threads related to having the aural alarm of a Mercury two-cycle outboard engine begin sounding as found by this search:
http://continuouswave.com/cgi-bin/sw.pl?Search=Mercury+BEEP+BEEP+BEEP
jimh posted 08-28-2014 08:51 AM ET (US)
The experience you describe as the engine losing its power may be due to a protective system in the engine actuating to prevent the engine from being operated at a high power level. Consult the owner's guide for your engine to learn about the engine's protective systems. The manufacturer should have provided information in the owner's guide explaining any protective systems in the engine that may limit the power level the engine can produce when there is a serious malfunction occurring.
I say this with complete sincerity: read the owner's guide for your outboard engine carefully. Learn the details of its aural alarm system and protective systems. The manufacturer usually explains the alarm system and protective system in detail in the operator's guide.
If you do not have the operator's guide for your outboard engine, you can often obtain an electronic copy on-line at no charge. I have written a short article explaining how to locate free on-line copies of operator's guides for several brands of outboard engines. See
http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/ownersManuals.html
lingcodkiller posted 08-28-2014 11:59 AM ET (US)
Jim, Thank you for all the information! I bought the boat last fall, it was a one owner boat. It is a 1993 with 460 hrs. I think that is relatively low for a boat that is 21 years old. As far as the BEEP,BEEP,BEEP,BEEP,BEEP, goes, I took the boat out on a lake near my house last night. I pulled off the cowling and ran it for about 1 hour. In the first 5 minutes the beeping started but only for maybe 10 seconds and the engine acted like it was cutting out but then it stopped beeping and the motor ran fine for the remaining 55 min. trolling speed for 30 min, followed by full throttle (5500 rpms) up and down the lake a few times. then back to trolling speed with never a single beep. today I'm going back out but leaving the cowling in place to see if it might be heat related? I did get some manuals with the boat and I will check for an engine operator's guide. If you have any other words of wisdom please pass it on to me. You can't have too much knowledge when it comes to boats and motors. Thanks again, Darryl (lingcodkiller)

Hop to:

Contact Us | RETURN to ContinuousWave Top Page

Powered by: Ultimate Bulletin Board, Freeware Version 2000
Purchase our Licensed Version- which adds many more features!
© Infopop Corporation (formerly Madrona Park, Inc.), 1998 - 2000.

Author	Topic: Mercury Black Max 150-HP Alarm
lingcodkiller	posted 08-27-2014 11:20 AM ET (US) Help! I have a 1993 Mercury Black Max 150-HP two-cycle outboard engine. I took the boat out this weekend and [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max] ran fine for a half hour. I started trolling. After 20 minutes an aural alarm started beeping. I shut off [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max], brought in all my gear, started the [Mercury 150-HP Black Max], and gave it some throttle. The alarm stopped. I stopped the engine, let it sit, started it again, started trolling again, [and in] just a couple minutes the alarm started again. This time I shut it down, let it sit, and started it. The alarm started beeping constantly, and [the Mercury 150-HP Black Max] lost most of its power---cylinders, I think. I checked the coolant line and it is spraying water; I don't think [the cause of the alarm is] overheating. I also checked the oil reservoir on top of the motor, and it is full. When I take the [engine] out of gear and rev the engine, it seems to rev up, but a little rough, and it smokes like it is getting plenty of oil. I ended up running the motor with very little power back to the boat launch, with the alarm beeping the whole time. This is so frustrating. [Have others] experience with this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Lingcodkiller
jimh	posted 08-28-2014 08:35 AM ET (US) Many older, less sophisticated, simple outboard engines provide only an aural alert warning as an alarm signal. The aural alarm signal can be caused by several conditions. The operator must interpret the meaning of the aural alarm signal in order to determine what is causing the alarm. Generally the method for interpretation of the aural alarm signal is by noting the cadence of the alarm and the circumstances in which the alarm has occurred. Usually the operator's guide for the outboard engine will provide details about how to interpret the meaning of the aural alarm signal. Check the operator's guide to see if the manufacturer provided any guidance for understanding the meaning of the aural alarm signal. On some very simple and not very sophisticated older outboard engines there is only one sensor that can initiate an aural alarm, so there is no ambiguity about what is causing the alarm to sound. Review the operator's guide for advice on how to interpret the meaning of the aural alarm.
jimh	posted 08-28-2014 08:40 AM ET (US) Review the REFERENCE section article on the oil mixing system of your engine at http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/mercuryOilInjection.html The article explains how the oil mixing system can sound an alarm.
jimh	posted 08-28-2014 08:43 AM ET (US) It is a rather common experience for the operator of a Mercury two-stroke outboard engine to have an aural alarm sound with a BEEP BEEP BEEP. Review the many threads related to having the aural alarm of a Mercury two-cycle outboard engine begin sounding as found by this search: http://continuouswave.com/cgi-bin/sw.pl?Search=Mercury+BEEP+BEEP+BEEP
jimh	posted 08-28-2014 08:51 AM ET (US) The experience you describe as the engine losing its power may be due to a protective system in the engine actuating to prevent the engine from being operated at a high power level. Consult the owner's guide for your engine to learn about the engine's protective systems. The manufacturer should have provided information in the owner's guide explaining any protective systems in the engine that may limit the power level the engine can produce when there is a serious malfunction occurring. I say this with complete sincerity: read the owner's guide for your outboard engine carefully. Learn the details of its aural alarm system and protective systems. The manufacturer usually explains the alarm system and protective system in detail in the operator's guide. If you do not have the operator's guide for your outboard engine, you can often obtain an electronic copy on-line at no charge. I have written a short article explaining how to locate free on-line copies of operator's guides for several brands of outboard engines. See http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/ownersManuals.html
lingcodkiller	posted 08-28-2014 11:59 AM ET (US) Jim, Thank you for all the information! I bought the boat last fall, it was a one owner boat. It is a 1993 with 460 hrs. I think that is relatively low for a boat that is 21 years old. As far as the BEEP,BEEP,BEEP,BEEP,BEEP, goes, I took the boat out on a lake near my house last night. I pulled off the cowling and ran it for about 1 hour. In the first 5 minutes the beeping started but only for maybe 10 seconds and the engine acted like it was cutting out but then it stopped beeping and the motor ran fine for the remaining 55 min. trolling speed for 30 min, followed by full throttle (5500 rpms) up and down the lake a few times. then back to trolling speed with never a single beep. today I'm going back out but leaving the cowling in place to see if it might be heat related? I did get some manuals with the boat and I will check for an engine operator's guide. If you have any other words of wisdom please pass it on to me. You can't have too much knowledge when it comes to boats and motors. Thanks again, Darryl (lingcodkiller)