Winterizing . . . When is too late??

[BigManDan72]

I live in the Midwest and its starting to get chilly at night. Tonight we are supposed to see 28F and I haven't winterized yet. I haven't winterized because I'm still using the boat. We are heading to a local lake next weekend, for instance, and the temps are expected to be in the high 70's. Do I need to be concerned about 1 cold night? Should I open up the engine cooling "water reservoir" and close it up again before I go? Looking for some tips from you long time boat owners.

 

[Alumarine]

Assuming you have an I/O just drain any raw water items after each use. Block, manifolds etc.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Dangle a 100 watt incandescent bulb inside the engine compartment with the cover closed. It will keep the engine above freezing.

 

[roffey]

Your motor I believe is a 488 merc and it is a closed water cooling system. All you need to do is make sure your outdrive is all the way down to drain the water. Now for your motor there is a round tube on the right hand side. There will be two bolts. One will drain the antifreeze and the other will drain the fresh water. You want to keep the antifreeze so its the fresh water your after. Unscrew it, let it drain and your good as gold. It took me longer to write this than it will for you to drain the water from your boat, LOL.

 

[roffey]

oh, and once you know where the drain for the fresh water is you can do it right at the boat ramp every time you take the boat out. Boat right up to freeze up.

 

[BigManDan72]

Your motor I believe is a 488 merc and it is a closed water cooling system. All you need to do is make sure your outdrive is all the way down to drain the water. Now for your motor there is a round tube on the right hand side. There will be two bolts. One will drain the antifreeze and the other will drain the fresh water. You want to keep the antifreeze so its the fresh water your after. Unscrew it, let it drain and your good as gold. It took me longer to write this than it will for you to drain the water from your boat, LOL.

Do you recall off the top of your head whether the front or back bolt on the heat exchanger is the water port? I'm 95% sure it;s the one closest to the back of the boat but would love it if you could confirm.

 

[roffey]

you are correct and if antifreeze starts to come out the wrong hole, there's a joke in here some where.. LOL

 

[BigManDan72]

If I have antifreeze coming out of my hole . . . okay nevermind.

 

[alldodge]

Do what ever makes you feel safe, but it will take more then one night at 28 degrees to freeze solid enough to damage anything.

 

[roscoe]

Can you park the boat in a garage for the next few weeks?

Even if it doesn't fit all the way in, if you can close the door half way down, the inside of the garage will stay above freezing.

 

[smokeonthewater]

I don't let water sit inside my engine below about 35 deg.... even that makes me nervous..... have seen forecast for 35 end up being 20 more than once.

 

[roffey]

yup what smoke said, freeze your motor just once and you will wish you drained it. With the 488 motor it is just one bolt and 2 minutes out of your day. Once you know what to drain it takes no time and you can sleep at night. I was at the marina this year and there was a brand new Four Winns in the yard, less than a year old, it was in need of a new motor. The owner left the boat at his cottage with the intention of winterizing himself and he just never got to it so the boat sat for the winter with the block full of water. Up here in Canada it get rather cool in the winter.

 

[fishin98]

If you are not planning on using the boat again this year.....drain it down now!

 

[rallyart]

When is it too late? Well that's like asking how many concussions is to many or asking directions on the bus and you get told to just get off on the stop before the other guy gets off. You get lots of negative reinforcement when you do it too late. It does not help though as it's too late.
Drain what you can each time. If it's a cold night do something to mitigate the temperature, like a trouble light on and everything closed up so the cold does not get near anything that might freeze.

 

[smokeonthewater]

And pray your bulb doesn't burn out.... Or just drain it.

 

[JimS123]

Dangle a 100 watt incandescent bulb inside the engine compartment with the cover closed. It will keep the engine above freezing.

I just read a winterizing article where it said to NOT do that, and cited cases where the boat caught fire.

 

[Buh-Bye]

I just winterized here in SC. Probably didn't need to just yet but last night and the next couple nights supposed to get temps in the low to mid-30s and I figured I wouldn't be out again this year. In my humble opinion, I'd rather not push it / test my luck. Depends on the boat and the situation though. If you can store in a garage or barn or can drain the engine easily, then why not give it a couple more weeks.

 

[joetheis]

RV antifreeze is a LOT cheaper than a block!
Run it home after use, run some RV antifreeze through it and then sleep at night! ( I bought a cheap "fluid pump" at Harbor freight, a washer fill hose).
When is too late?
I always "winterize" when it drops to mid 30's here in N.E.Pa.!
Don't forget your lower unit oil too!
Again oil is cheaper than a lower unit!
Yeah, it may take a hour to do the engine and lower unit, but...............
Joe
Always take my advice with a can of beer er 2!

 

[RGrew176]

Not wanting to be facetious here but the answer to the OP's question as to when its to late to winterize is when the block is cracked. My boat is still in the water but I am planning to pull next week. It did get down to 28* last night but the water is still warmer than the air and I left the heat on set at 60* inside the boat so I feel I will be OK till I pull.

 

[Lou C]

Get a manual for your engine and just learn where all the drains are to be on the safe side. Anytime it's forecast to be lower than 35 I always drain mine. The forecasts are not accurate enough to say exactly how cold it will be where you are its just a general guideline.