Fresh water tank winterizing

[AdamB]

Hi, just purchased a new used boat and the previous owner stated it was winterized. Yesterday I was on board (in my back yard) and was looking it over (playing with buttons and such) and discovered that there is still water that pumps out of the fresh water tank. I'm assuming I just pump this all out, but then how do I ensure that it won't freeze in the pumps or? I thought about antifreeze but that probably wouldn't taste so good in the spring.

Thanks, I tried the search function but after reading pages and pages of unrelated stuff I couldn't find anything specific on waste and fresh water tanks.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

if you can get access to the pump remove the hose and drain it. if you ran the engine, the engine now need to be rewinterized. i think i would do it anyway, he forgot the freshwater tank, what esle did he forget.

 

[Boatin Bob]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Don't know how big your boat is or if you have multiple facets and sinks but most people once they get as much of the water out as they can then put some of the pink plumbing Anit Freeze in and pump that through the system, takes a few flushes in the spring to get it out, also do you have a water heater in there?

 

[Don S]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

I've always just drained the water tank and the water heater, then just blow the lines out with air, you can disconnect the lines to and from the pump and run the pump for a second or two to get any water out of it, Then you don't have to worry about flushing the AF out of the system.

When draining the tank, some times you can drain the tank by removing a hose, some times it's just easier to pump it out with the pump before you drain the lines. Just make sure the outlet from the tank is at the lowest spot. The little thin layer of water left in the tank will freeze, but it's not inclosed and can't break anything, so it's not a problem.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Ayuh,...... Believe or Not,..d.....

I believe in the Dry System Winter storage for Freshwater Systems on Boats,+ in Buildings,.......
As well as Engine Blocks.............

Thou I will admit to using Anti-Freeze in the Drain Traps,+ Toliet Bowls where applicable.........8)

I go thru,+ Open all the Faucets,+ Drain All the Tanks,... Holding, Hot Water, etc....
Then a trip thru with a portable Airtank,+ a Valve Stem from a Car Tire,...
I Blow back thru each Faucet,..... That'll Clear any low lying Lines,+ Fittings......
In the Spring,...... Close Everything,+ Turn On the Water.......

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

It's a bravo outdrive. I pulled the line from the stern of the boat and held it low and green antifreeze came out. I also pulled the hoses on the exhaust manifolds and green stuff came out.

This 454 is a little different then the SBC's I"m used to and didn't see a specific drain **** on the block. However, I do see a bolt I'm assuming is the one...

I'll pump the water out and go from there. There is a electric pump to pump the water in, and another pump to pump the water out. Interesting. It also looks like the waste water from the sink just goes overboard through a fitting in the hull... THe flush toilet looks winterized, although who knows. At least no water comes to it when I attempt to flush...

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Oh, and the guy I bought it off of owns a auto mechanic shop. THe first thing I noticed is the Holley 750 double pumper looks suspiciously like an auto one. I took that into consideration when paying...

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Oh and Happy Thanksgiving, now off to the turkey!

 

[Don S]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

You might want to pull the drain plugs out of the block and see if there was also antifreeze in the block. Hate to find out he ran the engine with a raw water cooing system and didn't get the AF to the block. You could be back in the spring asking how water got into your oil so fast :%

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Is the sink drain supposed to drain overboard or into a holding tank? Right now it is set to pump out the front of the boat through a fitting.

 

[Don S]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Is the sink drain supposed to drain overboard or into a holding tank?

Overboard is normal on MOST boats, but how your boat is plumbed may not be normal, or was changed by a previous owner due to the location of the boat.
Best thing you can do is trace out all of your boats systems, and make diagrams so you know exactly how everything works, where shut off valves are for water intakes, etc.
And you have all winter to do that too.
Would be handy to locate all the fuses for pumps, lights, blowers and any other electrical item on your boat.
Learn where everything is and what it does. It prevents a lot of questions and panic when you are out on the boat and something breaks.

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Don S,

yes, thanks for the advice I plan on looking things over. I never had a fresh water holding tank before so it's new. In fact, never had a flush toilet either on a boat.

There is a hose that goes to a valve that exits through the bottom of the boat near the engine. The previous owner said that is for the water for the flush toilet? Is this correct?

I will hopefully get a chance this weekend to look her over again, and maybe get a head # and block # for you guys to check out.

I am thinking of pulling the motor in the spring to check her all out and possibly stroke to a 496 while I'm at it. I have thru hull exhaust so maybe will play with cam and heads too.

 

[Don S]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

There is a hose that goes to a valve that exits through the bottom of the boat near the engine. The previous owner said that is for the water for the flush toilet? Is this correct?

Like I said before, trace it out.
So far you haven't said what kind of boat it is, what year it is, what Make, Model, Spec, engine and drive combination it is, or anything.
So how can you expect people to give you information on what a specific hose does or doesn't do.

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

It's a 1989 Celebrity Andretti, that originally had a 502 Mercruiser. The previous owner blew that one up and had the 454 installed as a cheaper replacement motor. It was a used mercruiser 454 so all marine inside. The previous owner just bought the short block (I guess you call it) and transferred everything else from the 502. I think the 454 is a 1991 motor. It also has a bravo one outdrive, the motor has upgrades like aluminum intake, MSD distributor and coil and ignition, had captain's choice exhaust through hull. It has fresh water system and flush toilet, refrigerator and microwave, Bennet trim tabs, etc.

I will post pics of some of the stuff later. Thanks again.

 

[AdamB]

Re: Fresh water tank winterizing

Oh, 26' long