I am the second owner of a 1997 Nitro 896. I bought the boat in Feb of 1998, and have had it the last 26 years. I repowered the boat from the 1997 Merc 150EFI to a 2019 Suzuki 175 four stroke.
I have an issue and a concern. Shortly after repowering the boat, not sure if coincidence or not, I started to get water in the bilge. I would have to run the bilge pump occasionally. Before, I would rarely get water in the bilge. It also seems that the problem is worse when running the livewell pumps all day, but still get water if I don't.
I know there is some wood in these transoms. There are no cracks in the gel coat on the back of the transom. I removed part of the u-shaped black plastic trim that wraps over the top of the transom, going from the rear of the boat over the top and into the splash well. When I did that I see a crack on the top of the transom, directly over where the left motor mound bolt is in the splash well. I would think if I had a major transom problem, I would see cracks in the gel coat from flexing, etc., but maybe I'm wrong. I also noticed the small black plastic pieces that line the splash well drain holes don't seem to fit anymore. They appear to have separated, somehow. Again, not sure if that has anything to do with this. Is there a sure-fire way to tell if I have a major transom issue?
Next, I would like to inspect the live well plumbing and pumps. I have a suspicion that my water in the bilge issue is related to this. My "open / closed" valve and my "recirculate / pumpout" controls at the helm are froze up and don't do anything. When the boat is in the water, water flows into the livewell by gravity, I can't close them off, also can't pump them out. Does the 55 gal fuel tank have to be removed to get to the livewell stuff?
Sorry for the long post, but I know there are some experts here with the answers! Rob
I have an issue and a concern. Shortly after repowering the boat, not sure if coincidence or not, I started to get water in the bilge. I would have to run the bilge pump occasionally. Before, I would rarely get water in the bilge. It also seems that the problem is worse when running the livewell pumps all day, but still get water if I don't.
I know there is some wood in these transoms. There are no cracks in the gel coat on the back of the transom. I removed part of the u-shaped black plastic trim that wraps over the top of the transom, going from the rear of the boat over the top and into the splash well. When I did that I see a crack on the top of the transom, directly over where the left motor mound bolt is in the splash well. I would think if I had a major transom problem, I would see cracks in the gel coat from flexing, etc., but maybe I'm wrong. I also noticed the small black plastic pieces that line the splash well drain holes don't seem to fit anymore. They appear to have separated, somehow. Again, not sure if that has anything to do with this. Is there a sure-fire way to tell if I have a major transom issue?
Next, I would like to inspect the live well plumbing and pumps. I have a suspicion that my water in the bilge issue is related to this. My "open / closed" valve and my "recirculate / pumpout" controls at the helm are froze up and don't do anything. When the boat is in the water, water flows into the livewell by gravity, I can't close them off, also can't pump them out. Does the 55 gal fuel tank have to be removed to get to the livewell stuff?
Sorry for the long post, but I know there are some experts here with the answers! Rob
