wont restart, bogged and tell tale concern

[naturenut]

merc 150 hp 4 stroke efi serial: 1B953475 year 2013

few weeks ago I went out to do some trolling and my main motor wouldn't go fast. it kept bogging down. So I took my time getting out deep and trolled 5hrs and used the kicker after getting out there. Periodically I would turn on the main for a few min. After 5 hrs of trolling I turned off the kicker and turned on the main. It worked no problem, no bogging got up to 40mph (on way out would only go 9mph at most). Now yesterday after a 12hr day on the lake (and driving 3hrs to get there) my dumb tired @ss didn't put the throttle in neutral all the way when I turned off the ignition as I got to the dock. Well, I tried to restart it right there and only heard a click sound, tried again and another click, again this time no sounds. Anyone else do this to their motor and know what damage they may have done or if this is a simple fix? I also noticed the tell tale took 20 seconds to come out of the hole so that's concerning me now too. I just got the kicker this feb, wish I got it yrs ago then the main wouldn't be having bog downs and tell tale concerns.

[naturenut]

i am a knucklehead! the kill switch was someho flipped when I stood up as I approached the dock. That solves the motor not starting issue. I have added merc quickleen hoping maybe its some fuel injectors being gummed up causing the bog down. And I will now start using only the highest octane to see if it bogs again this year. If it does then I will just take it in to get checked. Though last year I did take it in, they did compression tests and said everything looked good? But I have since lost trust in that dealer (they didn't put a gasket back on the drain screw for the lower end gear fluid and I found water in there when I changed it myself, and few months before that they caused my boat to have a gouge in a line t at the bow and the stern, you could easily see the line if you stood back and looked at the boat. I almost sliced my finger open jumping in the boat on day when I felt the sharp aluminum. This unfortunately was discovered 3 weeks after I picked the boat up, so I didn't think I could easily approach them on this). so I will take it to a new dealer to look at.

[EuropeanAM]

DO NOT "use the highest octane". Use the CORRECT octane (87 Octane using the R+M/2 Method, or 95 RON Octane, from a NAME BRAND, High-Traffic, Top-Tier fuel station). The last consideration is ethanol (up to 10% is acceptable).

[leonreno]

When was the last time the annual or other maintenance was done like spark plugs, fuel filter etc? Battery checked? Alternator checked? Does the kicker run off the same battery? Could it be charging the battery for the main motor? Alternators are a common issue with the 150hp. Also the trim sensor can fail and tell the motor it’s tilted up to high and this will limit rpms. Not as common but happens.

[naturenut]

alternator was replaced 2 yrs ago. Kicker has its own batter which is hooked up with an automatic charging relay (it bogged down once last year, the kicker was installed this year). Spark plugs were changed at 300hr maintenance schedule. Oil and lower gear done every 100hrs. The impeller should not need changing for over 100 more hrs maybe longer. I don’t fish in any sand bottoms or anything that could cause abrasives to wear it down fast. When it was replaced the first time it was completely fine after 300hrs, no wear down at all.

[EuropeanAM]

alternator was replaced 2 yrs ago. Kicker has its own batter which is hooked up with an automatic charging relay (it bogged down once last year, the kicker was installed this year). Spark plugs were changed at 300hr maintenance schedule. Oil and lower gear done every 100hrs. The impeller should not need changing for over 100 more hrs maybe longer. I don’t fish in any sand bottoms or anything that could cause abrasives to wear it down fast. When it was replaced the first time it was completely fine after 300hrs, no wear down at all.

Impeller is REQUIRED at 300 hrs, along with other 300hr items listed in the 4-Stroke Maintenance Post (in the FAQ Section of this forum).

[naturenut]

Impeller is REQUIRED at 300 hrs, along with other 300hr items listed in the 4-Stroke Maintenance Post (in the FAQ Section of this forum).

My reply may be confusing or written wrong. I did do the impeller at 300, even though it did not look like it needed it. But I did it anyhow, I am less than 100hr away from it again. But will probably do it before then. Also can you please clarify "(87 Octane using the R+M/2 Method, or 95 RON Octane, from a NAME BRAND, High-Traffic, Top-Tier fuel station)" The R+M method, or 95 RON Octane? I am not sure what the R+M method means? I will have to look closer at the gas pumps around here, all I know is we got 3 levels and I always used the cheapest for yrs. Regular. I never use marina gas either always just fill up at gas stations I take my truck to.

[EuropeanAM]

You'll have to look at the pumps where you are at. RON (or "Research Octane Number") ratings are used in many countries, whereas the United States (and perhaps much of Canada) use the R+M/2 method.

Keep in mind with these "hours" maintenance periods: 100 Hours or 364.99 days (whichever happens FIRST) / 300 Hours or 1094.99 days (whichever happens FIRST).

For many folks, it runs by the calendar YEAR rather than engine hours accumulated, if they're not on the water a LOT.

[SilverFox579]

For many folks, it runs by the calendar YEAR rather than engine hours accumulated, if they're not on the water a LOT.

Very true! I'm a prime example of never reaching 100hrs in a calendar year so my engine is serviced every September.

[naturenut]

You'll have to look at the pumps where you are at. RON (or "Research Octane Number") ratings are used in many countries, whereas the United States (and perhaps much of Canada) use the R+M/2 method.

Keep in mind with these "hours" maintenance periods: 100 Hours or 364.99 days (whichever happens FIRST) / 300 Hours or 1094.99 days (whichever happens FIRST).

For many folks, it runs by the calendar YEAR rather than engine hours accumulated, if they're not on the water a LOT.

thank you!