First time owner & I sank my ski (what to do, and do it right away)

[RookieTY]

Update: I changed the fuse and hooked up cables to the hot wire for the starter. Blew out all of the water. (What a mess, thank the heavens you all warned me to put a towel down). Today I am going to do it once more just to ensure everything is out. I still wasn't able to get the starter to crank at all. I did buy a test light and the hot wire to the starter does light up buts a bit more dull than the others. So I am guessing this one is probably going to need to be replaced?? And as I said before I still can't get the starter to turn over on its own...

[nmpeter]

You need to deal with the electric box yes it's a lot of 10mm bolts do that asap

details as to why?

Electricity flows thru water you can have unpleasant work in there if it is allowed to fester besides you will need access to troubleshoot

[K447]

Update: I changed the fuse and hooked up cables to the hot wire for the starter. Blew out all of the water. (What a mess, thank the heavens you all warned me to put a towel down).

Today I am going to do it once more just to ensure everything is out. I still wasn't able to get the starter to crank at all. I did buy a test light and the hot wire to the starter does light up buts a bit more dull than the others. So I am guessing this one is probably going to need to be replaced?? And as I said before I still can't get the starter to turn over on its own...

Terminology: There is a starter motor attached to the engine, mounted down low in the hull, with a heavy cable feeding it.

On the handlebar is a Start Button. That button energizes the start solenoid (sometimes called the start relay), which in turn feeds battery power to the starter motor.

When the engine is rotating from the efforts of the starter motor, that is called 'cranking' the engine.

If there is spark at the spark plugs, the engine is igniting fuel (ignition) and attempting to run. That is called 'firing'. With a wet engine, it may only fire one cylinder at first, which ever one is driest and also has a burnable mixture of gasoline present in the cylinder.

If the engine actually is running (roughly or smoothly) and continues to run after you release the Start button, that would be 'fired up'.

At this point it sounds like the Start button does not have any effect, but jumper cables to the heavy starter motor feed does crank the engine and you have now pumped a majority of the water out. Is this the case?

When you opened the access cap on the electrical box, was it wet or dry inside?

[K447]

You need to deal with the electric box yes it's a lot of 10mm bolts do that asap

details as to why?

Electricity flows thru water you can have unpleasant work in there if it is allowed to fester besides you will need access to troubleshoot

Disconnect the battery negative cable from the battery - post before you open/attack the electrical box. Safer to work on the electrical box with it de-energized.

Depending on whether you find water in there, you can use a hair dryer to accelerate the drying out process. Low-medium heat, high air flow

[RookieTY]

K447- thank you for that! Yes that is exactly the case. Also, it was dry inside when I opened the fuse cap.

[K447]

K447- thank you for that! Yes that is exactly the case. Also, it was dry inside when I opened the fuse cap.

Do you have an electrical test meter, a multimeter?

I am wondering if the installed battery is actually good. And connected correctly.

Was there one fuse or two inside the electrical box?
What fuse rating did you install, if you installed a new fuse?

[RookieTY]

I do not have a multimeter but a guy friend of mine does and he tested it Sunday and it was good. He was actually the one who had the polarities backwards to begin with but then he corrected it. There were two fuses: 10a which was labeled "main" that is the one I changed. There is another one that is a 3a labeled "clock" but I didn't change that one... Does this one need to be changed as well? The display doesn't work as is so I didn't think that one was important? (Of course I very well could be wrong lol)

[K447]

I do not have a multimeter but a guy friend of mine does and he tested it Sunday and it was good. He was actually the one who had the polarities backwards to begin with but then he corrected it.

There were two fuses: 10a which was labeled "main" that is the one I changed. There is another one that is a 3a labeled "clock" but I didn't change that one... Does this one need to be changed as well? The display doesn't work as is so I didn't think that one was important? (Of course I very well could be wrong lol)

Well then, he has some responsibility to help get the electrical problems resolved! Once connected backwards, the problem has been caused. Simply swapping the reversed battery cables to the correct polarity does not in itself 'correct' the problem.

I do not know what exactly that 3 amp fuse is connected to (beyond what the label says), but replacing it seems easy enough. And if it solves the problem, then easy fix.

[RookieTY]

Yes I will replace it today. Definitely won't hurt anything. I will open the electrical box as well and make sure it is all dried out. I was also told that there is a way I can check my coils by touching the end of the plug to metal? Do you know how this works? Thank you again for all of your help... This has literally carried me through this!

[K447]

... I was also told that there is a way I can check my coils by touching the end of the plug to metal? Do you know how this works? ...

The catch is after you get your engine working and are back on the water riding, we want you stick around here, become part of the community

Until you get the engine cranking properly with the Start button, nothing to check with spark plugs.

Checking for spark is useful if the engine is cranking smartly and SHOULD be able to fire and run, but it is just cranking and cranking with no signs of ignition.

In your case since there is water inside, not firing could just be water contaminating the spark plug tips, or the electrical system might not be actually sending the required high voltage pulses to the spark plugs.

To check for spark, remove one spark plug from the engine. Leave the other spark plug(s) installed and wires connected.

Make sure you have not confused which wires go to which spark plugs.

Connect loose spark plug to it's wire.

Put on heavy gloves, rubber or leather. You do not want to electrically shock yourself. Find an exposed metal bolt head somewhere on the engine. Hold the threaded metal shell of the spark plug firmly against the bare metal on the engine.

Position the spark plug so you can clearly see the small gap between the plug tip and the adjacent ground lug, which curves from the side to near the tip. The actual plug gap is tiny, barely wider than a fingernail thickness.

Watch the plug gap while holding the plug firmly against the engine metal, and press the Start button. The engine will crank. If the ignition is working properly you should see a bright blue/white spark pulsing across the plug gap. Spark will be visible in sunlight, but much easier to see in some shade.