winterizing my outboard

[teamstromer]

hello fellow boaters, i am preparring to winterize my 30/04 merc 90 2 stoke. i am aware of the process for winterizing it, but i vaguely remember the dealer telling me to add anti-freeze to the engine and or lower unit, unfortunately i forgot the process. can some one help?<br />thanks

 

[Forktail]

Re: winterizing my outboard

You're not going to want to "add anti-freeze" to anything. Drain and refill the lower unit (and crankcase /filter on 4-strokes). Fog engine (2-strokes), stabilize remaining fuel, and drain carbs (drain vapor seperator on EFI 4's). Remove plugs and squirt a little 2-stroke oil in each cylinder and turn engine over a few times (2-stroke). Grease all fittings and steering, spray silicone on engine, linkages, and electrical connections. Clean and spray a little silicone on the hydraulic rams and run them all the way in. Remove and re-grease the prop splines. Change fuel filter. Remove battery. It'll be ready next season. I live where it gets extremely cold, and I've never used anti-freeze.

 

[teamstromer]

Re: winterizing my outboard

thanks for the input forktail.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: winterizing my outboard

Read the IBoats Winterizing FAQ - both pages. Good info and step by step winterizing.<br /><br /> IBoats Winterizing FAQ <br /><br />Like the above poster said, there's no antifreeze involved with a two stroke outboard.<br /><br />I do have friendly disagreement with the draining the carbs part of his advice - there are two schools of thought and I happen to agree with reasoning put forward by both authors in the above FAQ - that it's best not to drain the carbs, but rather stabilize the fuel and run stabilized fuel into the carbs. Just an opinion though. Read the FAQ and decide for yourself. Good luck.

 

[Forktail]

Re: winterizing my outboard

Yes, there are lots of ways to do the carbs. Stabilizing the fuel also works well. The owner's manual for many of my 2-strokes recommend running the carbs dry by idling the engine. I figure this can't be that great with the oil issue and all, so I just drain them instead.