winterizing
 

Anybody use one of these for winterizing there boats. Local boat dealers cost have almost doubled this year to do a simple winterization. So I am thinking of going back and doing it myself.

I can't believe what the dealers charge to "winterize" here in UT. I have the PCM 343 and getting it ready for the winter is a breeze. Maybe 30 min and 2 gallons of RV antifreeze and it's done. I like that unit above, I use a bucket and ballast pump hooked up to my fresh water flush.

Is that like a fake lake or is it to fill with RV antifreeze to suck through the boat.

I made my own fake lake for a few dollars with a five gallon bucket and a few parts from the pluming section at Lowes.

I just unhook the raw water intake hose from the bottom of the boat then attach it to the bucket. Then put a garden hose in the buck and turn it on and wait until the water fills the buck half way then start the boat. I run the boat until it warms up this way then change the oil. Then I drain the water from the block and fill the bucket up with 5 gallons of RV antifreeze and crank the boat one last time for the year and let it suck the RV antifreeze out of the buck and I'm done.

I can take a picture of the set up tonight if you want.

^^^Pictures please. First boat for me so first winterization and debating on doing it myself.

Not sure on the boats that you all own but on my Tige I can remove the main thru hull hose where it attaches to the VDrive. I just put on a different piece of hose that I have that goes straight in to a bucket filled with the antifreeze. No more stupid fake a lake plunger under the boat. I made what you see below to attached to my hose. The piece on the left before the ball valve is what I put in the bucket.

The dealer I bought the boat from used something similar the winterize it when I bought it. basically you hook the garden hose to yellow section, hook the clear hose to the fake a lake fill the container with antifreeze. keep the valve closed to the antifreeze and run water through the boat till it is up to temp then quickly shut the valve off to the water and open the valve to the antifreeze and let the motor run the antifreeze through it. It seems simple enough I have just never have used one.

What boat and engine. I would do it your self, once you do it you'll never pay for somebody else to do it.

2013 MB Tomcat with the Indmar 350hp. I used to winterize my boats all the time, I figured $160 was cheap insurance if something happened to the motor over the winter. Now the dealer is getting $350 to just drain the block and heater and put fuel treatment in the fuel.

I have always been scared to use RV antifreeze just because it doesn't have rust inhibitors like automotive. Has anybody kept their boat and used the pink stuff long enough to know if there are any rust issues? I would rather use it b/c catching and disposing auto antifreeze is a royal PITA!

Well, there's a lot of us that simply drain their block and don't mess with the antifreeze at all.

1) remove all drain plugs
2) disconnect a couple key hoses
3) remove impeller
4) use air compressor to blow out remaining air from holes and hoses
5) reinstall plugs and impeller cover
6) go have a cold beverage of your choice.

I typically throw in an oil change while I'm at it. with everything drained, there's nothing to freeze. I'd say 1/2 the winterizations use this method.

I have used the pink stuff on both boat I have had for 9 year. One was a 95 supersport with the PMC and the boat I have now is a 2006 24V supra. I have never seen a problem with the pink stuff. If you really worried you can drain it twice. Run it changed the oil, drain it, fill it with RV, then drain it again. That would only take another 10 mins. And then I would have RV in there and most of the water is drained.

+1 on drain block, no anti-freeze.

I've never added antifreeze to my boat for winter. I open and drain everything then just drive the trailer around for a while to shake out any water pooled anywhere.
Too much work for me to use a compressor or shop vac but those should work fairly well to do the same thing. If there is no water, there is nothing to freeze.
Mind you, I'm in Canada so maybe my boat has been acclimatized to winter. Never had any kind of issue.

The rest of winterizing is changing the oil before you pull it out for the season and adding fuel stabilizer to the tank in time to get it run through the injectors.

.....worried about RV antifreeze because it doesn't have rust inhibitors...when you're putting it into a system that circulates straight water the rest of the time?? Am I missing something here? Really not trying to be a smartass...but it seems as though you would be worried about rusting from the water in it as well.

Good point

I forgot to take a picture of my bucket the other day. I'll make sure to do it tonight.

Haha I realize it sounds like a stupid worry because you are 100% right... but I have always figured if I can prevent it for 6 months of the year while it sits I am still better off. Just my opinion.

Just curious, when I go to winterize, I use the rear flush kit that I have on my Boat (MC X23). Its the same setup as my old X45 but it required me to use a pump to force the anti freeze into the flush kit. I tried holding the bucket high but that did not work. I hooked a sump pump into it and it worked just fine.

Anyone else experience this?

Understandable I guess!

Just out of curiosity, why does everyone insist on using the pink anti freeze. Why not drain the block and lines and be done. I winterize & de-winterize several hundred boats a year and I've never put antifreeze in one of them. Never had a customers engine freeze and break that we winterized. As long as when you pull the plugs out of the block and manifolds, you take a pick and run up in the hole and scrape away rust and water starts running out, you'll never have a problem. Pink antifreeze will slush up when diluted too much. Why even take that chance. Again, I'm just curious. I'm not dogging anyone. I just want to know yalls rationale behind it.

Tyler, they like to spend extra money. It's a cult thing.

To limit internal rust formation...

A block full of RV antifreeze will corrode less than a block that has been drained.

My winterize this year was a breeze; drained block, folded down tower, backed into heated garage. Viola

I run the engine on a fake a lake til it gets to temp. Then change the oil/filter, add fuel stabilizer, change tranny fluid (using engine oil like Indmar suggests, and I only do this part every other season), then run to temp again, drain block, run with a tsunami pump sucking undiluted -50 degree RV antifreeze out of a bucket going into the fake a lake, and then drain block again, ensuring any pockets of fluid left in the lines is MOSTLY antifreeze. Then pull the impeller and let her hibernate for the winter. Then in the spring all I have to do is put a new impeller in and go.

I've heard that RV antifreeze has anticorrosion properties, so for me it's worth it to take a little more time to do it this way. If for no other reason than peace of mind. No chance of freezing and at least there is the possibility of corrosion protection that the AF allegedly provides.

A quick lesson my buddy learned the hard way. When you change the oil filter, be absolutely certain the gasket comes off with the filter before you put the new one on. It seems like a silly thing to check, but his somehow stayed on and when he put the new filter on, the double gaskets prevented it from sealing and when he went to run it the next spring, he had oil everywhere. A few months and a new long block later and his boat was running like new again but I guarantee that him and all his friends that own a boat will double check their oil filter every year now!

I use a 5 gal bucket, hole cut in bottom and pipe coupler threaded and epoxied in the hole. Connect a radiator/coolant hose to the trans cooler, put it on a stool or some blocks of wood, and fill with antifreeze. I drain the block, manifolds, and blow out the heater core, then replace plugs, reconnect heater core, and suck 6 gals of RV antifreeze in. Then drain it all out and blow out heater core. I'm paranoid about water not completely draining and this is cheap to do once a year.

Before I got fancy with the bucket I just used a RV antifreeze jug with bottom cut off as a funnel and hose clamped it to the trans cooler. Pro tip: Have the funnel supported very rigidly and have all your jugs of antifreeze lined up caps off. You'll need to pour two at a time to keep the pump fed and impeller wet.

My method is very similar to the above, but I simply hook a hose to a fake a lake and then put the other end in a 5 gallon bucket of antifreeze. I prefer automotive, as the green stuff is easier to see coming out of the block than the pink stuff. I drain the block after filling with antifreeze, so I'm not polluting the lake. After I'm done draining, I grab my shop vac and hook it up to each hose and plug hole. This gets out any residue.

I know it alittle late but I finally got around to winterizing my boat. This is the 5 gallon buck set up I talked about above. Ignore the dirt bilge.

Can't turn them the right way from my iPhone. This is how I run the garden hose in to the buck. I turn the water on full and wait until it almost fills the buck then crank the boat. I ran my boat for over 30 mins this weekend to warm up the oil before I changed it. And never have a problem. Then I fill the bucket with 5 gallons of RV antifreeze crank the boat and let it suck it through the engine.

Last one this how I attach it directly to the raw water intake hose. I've got about 10 buck into it and I've been using it for years.