What’s the right way to tow a disabled jet ski?
Towing a disabled jet ski behind another vessel isn’t as simple of attaching a line and pointing for homeJust like boats, sometimes a jet ski will break down on the water. However, you can’t just attach a tow rope and drag them back inshore.
Do it wrong, and you run the risk of severely damaging the ski’s engine, and even potentially swamping it.
Read through the owners’ manual and there will be clear rules on how fast you can tow a disabled personal watercraft before you’re likely to cause damage to it and void your warranty. The short summary is, it’s going to be a long, slow trip back in.
The problem for owners is that the jet ski engine’s exhaust system ties in with the cooling system, which uses the engine’s exhaust to blow the water out. When you tow a disabled jet ski quickly, water pressure can force water back through the exhaust system, flooding the engine and potentially even the compartment it sits in.
Complicating this is the fact that if your engine was running before it stopped, the exhaust system will already be partially flooded with water, meaning it won’t take much effort for the back-pressure to build up.
How fast you can tow a broken-down jet ski depends on the brand. Kawasaki recommends that a disabled jet ski should not be towed faster than 5km/h, or the equivalent of a fast walking pace. Yamaha, meanwhile, recommends a top speed of 8km/h.
Sea-Doo’s owner’s manual will allow a disabled jet ski to be towed at speeds of up to 21km/h, but read the wording carefully and this is only after the water supply pipe has been clamped to block it off. Sea-Doo sells the clamps as an accessory, so if you don’t have one, tow very slowly.
There’s an easy, cheap fix to this problem; the next time you have the jet ski serviced, ask the technicians to fit a seacock valve to the water supply pipe. This way, if the jet ski ever breaks down, you just pop open the engine cover, shut off the valve (wrapping your safety lanyard around it as a reminder to reopen it once you’re back on dry land) and hook up to the tow vessel.
Jet ski towing tips
- Use a run of at least six metres of tow rope if you’re towing slowly. Use a floating tow rope so there is less risk of the line being sucked into the tow vessel’s exhaust or intake grate
- On a slow tow, make sure someone sits on the disabled jet ski to keep it balanced. Without a rider onboard, it will tend to be nose-heavy and could tend to pitch-pole in wake and waves
- If you’re towing faster, use a much longer tow rope. This will allow the jet ski to ride in the smooth part of the tow vessel’s wake
- You might be better off not sitting on a disabled jet ski being towed at a faster speed. The jet ski will have no steering or brakes, so you will have little control over it. You are probably better off becoming an observer on the tow vessel
- If you’re using a clamp instead of a seacock, mark the water intake pipe with bright-coloured tape so you can locate the right hose quickly in all conditions
- If you're using a seacock, wrap your kill switch lanyard around it when it is shut. It will remind you to re-open it before starting the engine next time
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