Info for winterizing a boat

[guest]

Looking for good source of information (steps and what to do) on how to winterize a boat. I have a 25' C/C.

[Little Dandy]

Where are you located? How cold do you expect it to get? Are you storing indoors (heated or not) or outdoors? Gas or Diesel?

[guest]

Winterizing

Mike:

Moderate temperature. Virginia Beach, VA. Outside. Single gas.

Thanks

[Little Dandy]

Last year was my first year with this boat so take these instructions for what it is worth. I'm sure others will chime in. Basically you have your engine/drive system, electrical system, and your plumbing to worry about. It also is nice to wash the boat well and put on a coat of good wax before layup. I remove all my personal, fishing, safety gear, rain gear... from the boat to make cleaning easier. Go over the stuff in January and see what needs replacing, upgrading, flare dates... Take notes on what you do and how much supplies you use to make preps for next year easier. If you want a copy of the MS Word document I used, PM me. I'm refining it for this year based on last years experience.

Fuel System: You want to add some fuel stabilizer (I use Stabil) to your fuel tanks in the appropriate ratio. I use two bottles that each treat 80 gallons, one for each fuel tank. Then top off the tanks with fuel. Run the engine long enough to get the treated fuel through the carb or injection system. Last year I took the boat out for about an hour cruise to run off about 15 gallons to leave a little room in the tanks for expansion. I store indoors and it isn't a good thing to have fuel overflow in the building.

While the engine is still hot change the oil & oil filter. Change your fuel filter/water seperator. Change your spark plugs and fog each cylinder while doing so. Replace the gear lube in your lower unit. Definatly pull your props, wipe the shaft and props clean and then apply fresh grease to the shaft. I've seen some guys up here pull the drive for work & storage then put them back on in the spring. Replace the impeller in the engine's raw water pump. Check for spots that might need some touch up paint to avoid rust. You want to get all water out of the engine. Mine is closed cooling. I installed a Groco fitting on engine's raw water seacock. This allows fill a 5 gallon bucket with RV antifreeze and run the engine with a garden hose in the bucked. This sucks the antifreeze through the engine. Don't let the antifreeze bucket run dry. Keep it full until a.f. comes out the exhaust. I run a few xtra gallons just to be safe. Then shut down the engine.

I pull my any electronics with LCD display for storage in the house. LCD's don't like cold. I also hit my fuse panels and any exposed wiring with Boeshield T9 spray. I also pull my batteries at the end of the season for indoor storage. I made a pigtail with a cigarette lighter plug on one end and a pair of big battery clips on the other. I use this after the batteries are removed from the engine compartment. Just plug the into the outlet on the helm console and hook to a battery, then use the regular switch to lower the engine room hatch. Then just take the batteries home.

I also installed a Groco fitting on the seacock that supplies raw water for the washdown, head and livewell. I use the same hose that I used for the engine and run the livewell until is is spitting pink antifreeze and the same with the washdown. Pump out the holding tank and rinse it a couple times. Pour some RV antifreeze into the head and pump into the holding tank. Then pump the a.f. out of the holding tank (you want a.f. in the overboard plumbing too). Now pump some antifreeze all the way from the 5 gallon bucket thru the head and into the holding tank. For all the situations where you're pumping a.f. from the bucket, it helps to have someone continously topping up the bucket while you busy. Otherwise you will be running back and forth a lot.

My boat is covered with a disposable plastic sheeting before final storage for the season. This keep bird **** and diesel soot from the fork lifts off it and it is ready for action in the spring.

[guest]

Winterizing

Mike:

Many thanks for your insight. Not only is your experience and recommendations a help to me but I am sure it will also be valuable to others on this site.

[Graceland]

I'm in the same area. You won't need to winterize until probably up in January. I fish mine year round so I never totally winterize it. I lay up the fresh and saltwater washdown as mentioned above. I lay up the engine the same way after each use. If you have power available you can put a heater in the engine compartment and not have to worry about it. If it gets really cold you'll need to add a heater in the first deck hatch where your seacocks are. The Grocos are awesome for helping you get the water systes laid up. If you do lay up and fog your cylinders I would wait until after recommisioning in the spring to add new spark plugs. run the engine a bit on the old ones and then install new ones or you may foul up a brand new set. Also don;t forget to go over your engine and outdrive zincs, along with checking all your hoses for nicks and wear.