Re: Winterizing in Texas
To answer a winterizing question one must look at what "winterizing" actually consists of. For outboards, it is nothing more than draining and refilling the lower unit, stabilizing the fuel, running the engine long enough to suck up the mixture and get it into the fuel system and if storage is longer than 90 days, perhaps fogging the engine. Put a smart charger on the battery and put it to bed. For I/Os the process is the same but the engine and manifolds must be drained. Since lower unit service should be done each year, why not do it just before you hit the cold season where you live. The reason for changing lower unit lub is to see if there is any water in it and to get it repaired if necessary. It's the water that freezes and breaks lower units, not the lub. If that's done the unit can sit outside at below freezing temps with no problems as long as no water is present. Outboards are self draining so you can simply put it to bed and pull it out on nice warm days if desired. Be sure to check for water again before retiring it again. For I/O's if you have just a few days of cold weather, put a small light bulb in the engine bay to keep the temp above 32 degrees and there will be no need to drain anything. When I had an I/O we used to boat many nice pre-winter days but nights could get very cold. I installed a block heater just like the one for a car. They fit in one of the core plug holes. Plug it in if temps are expected to be below zero. As for when the season ends, that depends on you. Up here in the tundra we have boated into November some years. Some years it ends in late September early October. The season ends when YOU say it ends. You need to determine if your end of the season corresponds with the onset of cold weather and you need to take appropriate measures at that time.
