Regular flushing with fresh water is key to maintaining your Marine Engine when used in saltwater.    

1. Remember to never start an outboard motor without a water supply.
2. Consult your owner's manual for specific instructions related to your brand or model.
3. Utilize your built-in flush connection (if available).
4. Use a flush muff to fit over the cooling water intake with a garden hose.
5. Apply a flushing bag or bucket, fitted with a garden hose.
6. After flushing, ensure all the fresh water is drained from the motor.

Remember to never start your engine without water being turned on!

Flushing your engine for 10 minutes with freshwater is the industry standard to properly remove any salt water / salt build up in the cooling system.  

Some Newer engines have flush ports on the side / front / back of the engine.   These can easily be used to flush the cooling system.  However, it is not recommended that you start your engine while using the flush port as it can damage the Water Pump Impeller.

Flush Muffs or Flush Cups are recommended whenever a flush port is not accessible or available.  

1. After attaching the cups to the gearcase and starting the water flow, the motor is started and allowed to idle in neutral—so that the propeller does not start turning, which would be dangerous—to circulate the fresh water through the motor.
2. When the motor starts you should see water flowing out of the “tell-tale” that indicates that water is being pumped through the motor.
3. Let the motor idle in neutral for about 10 minutes as fresh water is pumped through the motor.
4. Don’t leave the boat unattended while the flushing process is underway. If the muffs fall off or don’t have a tight seal on the gearcase the motor should be shut down immediately or the water pump impeller will be damaged.
5. Turn the motor off before turning off the water supply. Not all outboards can be flushed with muffs. Some have multiple water inlet locations and those not covered by the muff will need to be to be sealed with duct tape. Others may have inlets that cannot be covered with the muffs.
6. Again, check the owner’s manual for specific instructions. Some require that the propeller is removed when using flushing muffs.

While flushing your engine with fresh water is recommended, using a salt removal solution such as Salt Terminator can vastly help with the removal of any salt residue left in the engines cooling system.   

Pro Marine Sells a wide assortment of Salt Terminator products including gallons, Quarts, and Mixers that hook directly. up to your hose.   Click the picture below to see what we carry!

Click below to see our wide variety of Flushing Tools and Components