Hardin Marine stainless steel replacement for Merc seawater pump

aero3113

YYZRC said:

Glad you're back in business!

Thanks @YYZRC !!

aero3113

Pat310 said:

@aero3113. I was at Jones Beach today and was pretty rough. Hope the ladies feel better

Thank you @Pat310

I grew up in Wantagh, that’s where I grew my boating roots. 

aero3113

So I pulled the starboard side pump to replace the impeller today. It had signs of it weeping!! I called Hardin and they are going to rebuild this one free of charge also. I hope this isn’t going to be repetitive every other season!!!!

YYZRC

Did they also offer to dent your pulley again at no extra charge?! 

aero3113

YYZRC said:

Did they also offer to dent your pulley again at no extra charge?! 

🙄🙄

aero3113

At least I’m not having to use the spare impeller kits I have.

aero3113

I also think replacing the impeller after two seasons is too soon. Both of my pumps, the impellers looked brand new and soft.

oscar1

I have to replace my starboard sea pump after only  7 hours of using the boat. 

boatman37

ugh. Pulled my pump last week before putting the boat away for the winter cause that pump has been on there since August 2018 (about 45-50 hours). I was considering the Hardin pump but after reading this I think I'll stick with the OEM.

One thing I would like to change is my pump does not have the blue drain plugs but does have a red hose with that quick disconnect. I had no idea what it was and we pulled the fitting out of the hose. Is it possible to put a quick disconnect on the other hose too? Mine is on the bottom hose that I'm pretty sure is the inlet?

Mine would take this one with no drain plugs > https://www.hardin-marine.com/p-14534-mercruiser-gen-4-lifetime-series-stainless-steel-sea-water-pump.aspx

aero3113

@oscar1 ‘s pump is OEM, only 7 hours!! Not good.

aero3113

@boatman37 , would be nice to have two quick connects but I don’t think it’s a good idea to have one on the other hose. The other hose is the pressure side, there’s a chance it can come undone during use. 

davidbrooks

@oscar1 That pump has a heavy coat of paint on it to make it look new but i would ask 7 hrs since what?  What failed on it?  If it is a brand new pump that had the seal go out in 7 hrs that is not good.  If it is a reman that went out then i wonder about the quality of the work for the reman.  @aero3113 i am going 3 yrs for my next impeller replacement. Just like you i did mine after 2 yrs on the Hardin Pumps and they looked brand new.  Now with that being said.  I put a total of about 50-75 hrs on these engines a year.  So I am not putting as much wear and tear on mine as others.  I am still happy i replaced the OEM with Hardin.  Very happy with the quality.  I don't expect things to be bullet proof but i do expect businesses to stand behind their products and after watching this thread it sounds like they are.  

Dream_Inn

I have one Gen7 plus Hardin and a rebuilt (this year) Hardin installed.  I have a 4 yr old Hardin rebuilt by LaRea as a spare (just install impeller and back). 

I'm not sure I'd go 3 years on the impeller mainly because that second winter just sitting there might be **** it.  It really has nothing to do with how many hours you have on it.  Of course, if you went to boat in mid winter and rotated the pulley 180 degrees, that may help it from setting.  I've just helped too many people try to find those impeller pieces and that is not fun.  Just my 2 cents...

davidbrooks

@Dream_Inn i hear you.  I had to do that with the OEM pumps that i replaced.  I just did the impellers this spring so i have a few years to think about.  You are probably right though but i did want to express that i had the same experience as aero. 

oscar1

The sea pump was a new pump install 10 month ago during the repair of my transom leak and prior to taking the boat out the water for the installation of the new hardtop. The 7 hour of used was done during normal routine of running the motor at home. the good news is that the pump still under warranty.

oscar1

I miss a lot MADE IN THE USA

aero3113

They were much quicker with the turn around this time, received it today. And no dents on the pulley!!

aero3113

I rebuilt both raw water pumps today. I was surprised to see big areas of pitting on the wear plates. If you zoom in, you can see how deep they are. Other than that, normal wear on the plates. Both are back together and ready to be installed. These were both at two seasons of use.

Dream_Inn

I replaced both impellers in February and my stbd started leaking two weeends ago.  LaRea now has it and doing a rebuild.  I’m glad I had the spare rebuild ready to go!  I reused the month old impeller.

Formulaben

Glassguy54 said:

There is a raw water pump conversion kit from a company that eliminates the horrible mercruiser design and makes it more like the the Volvo Penta design, which is mounted on the crank pulley and takes maybe 5 minutes to switch out the impellor. 

Does anyone have details they can share about this kit?  A quick search found some very good home fixits, but no commercial all-in-one conversion kit.