To Winterize or Not?

[KCFinesse]

I'm taking my boat in for gelcoat work in a couple weeks in the Kansas City area, I'm on the repair schedule for one week, however I'm assuming it will be at the shop for two weeks, during which time there will be intermittent outside storage.

 

KC is blessed with having open water just about year round, and as such, I've never winterized my boats previously. Weather can be variable, and i wouldn't be surprised if the boat saw temperatures in the low-teens for a few hours if it were to sit-out overnight. The fiberglass shop does not do winterizing onsite, I've asked them if they thought it was an issue a few times, and I've gotten responses ranging from "it's no issue at all" to "we'll just tilt your motor down to make sure its drained of water" to "we don't take responsibility for it, but if you're good with it, we're good with it."

 

Am I better off just going for a partial winterization (change lower unit oil, make sure water side is drained)? Should I go through a full winterization (I'm a bit leery that I can get this scheduled in time)? Or is this likely a non issue? The engine is an '05 Opti 150 if that makes any difference.

 

Thanks!

-Jared Koliha

[A-Jay]

Perhaps just do it anyway ~ call it routine annual maintenance. 

Draining water in cold weather is Never a bad idea.  

Also if you're using gas treated with ethanol, treating it for storage may be in order; especially if you may not be running it for a while.   Sta-Bil 360 is a good product (double dose for storage), as is the regular Sta-Bil (red label).

Best of Luck with your fiberglass work.

btw - I have a 2016 200 Opti - just for reference, are you the original owner of the 05 Opti and how many hours on that bad boy ?

A-Jay

 

 

 

 

 

[MickD]

56 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Draining water in cold weather is Never a bad idea.  

I have never heard of a procedure for draining water from an outboard other than putting the engine into a vertical position.  Using that procedure on a Suzuki 50 for 18 years never resulting in any problem whatsoever.  

 

I'm sure someone will "correct me," but my point is that if there is no water in the engine, there is no problem with cold temperatures.  And I'm sure all manufacturers design to the same criterion, i.e. no water when vertical.

[KCFinesse]

1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

 

btw - I have a 2016 200 Opti - just for reference, are you the original owner of the 05 Opti and how many hours on that bad boy ?

A-Jay

I just got the boat and motor earlier this fall- I'm the 3rd owner and the opti has 800 hours on it. I've previously been an Evinrude guy, but I like the set up quite a bit on a 185vs ranger. (I think I'll be a lot more comfortable one I can get some of the gelcoat work cleaned up!)

 

58 minutes ago, MickD said:

I have never heard of a procedure for draining water from an outboard other than putting the engine into a vertical position.  Using that procedure on a Suzuki 50 for 18 years never resulting in any problem whatsoever.  

 

I'm sure someone will "correct me," but my point is that if there is no water in the engine, there is no problem with cold temperatures.  And I'm sure all manufacturers design to the same criterion, i.e. no water when vertical.

I spoke with a Merc dealer/certified mechanic, and there is supposedly nothing internal that posses a freeze damage (ie no low points that consistently retain water in the circ line). I'm still a bit skeptical, but I'm  concerned more about freeze damage and less about storage. If the boat is ready by New Years- I'll be on the water.

 

-Jared

[A-Jay]

1 hour ago, MickD said:

I have never heard of a procedure for draining water from an outboard other than putting the engine into a vertical position.  Using that procedure on a Suzuki 50 for 18 years never resulting in any problem whatsoever.  

 

I'm sure someone will "correct me," but my point is that if there is no water in the engine, there is no problem with cold temperatures.  And I'm sure all manufacturers design to the same criterion, i.e. no water when vertical.

That's all I was really getting at.

A-Jay

[WRB]

800 engine running hours......you should be asking rebuild or not!

Tom

[MickD]

Man, if Mercs require rebuild after only 800 hours, I'm really going to miss my Suzuki.  Seems strange since Merc doesn't even recommend plug changes until 300.  So less than 3 plug changes the engine might need rebuild?  

[KCFinesse]

1 hour ago, WRB said:

800 engine running hours......you should be asking rebuild or not!

Tom

Whoops! 300 hours I blame fat fingers for that one. 

 

At one point I was comparing the Opti vs a higher hour Yami and settled on the Merc on the basis of parts and service availability. Plus other factors in the boat itself.

[WRB]

A high end high HP OB with 500 hrs running time is like a car engine with 100,000 miles. Like any engine longevity depends on how the engine is operated and maintained. Bass boaters like to run WOT which stresses equipment.

Tom

[Ben Miller]

7 hours ago, MickD said:

I have never heard of a procedure for draining water from an outboard other than putting the engine into a vertical position.  Using that procedure on a Suzuki 50 for 18 years never resulting in any problem whatsoever.  

 

I'm sure someone will "correct me," but my point is that if there is no water in the engine, there is no problem with cold temperatures.  And I'm sure all manufacturers design to the same criterion, i.e. no water when vertical.

I'm with you MickD!  Just lower the outboard!  

[NHBull]

To the OP’s originals question, 2/3 of winterization is actual annual maintenance.

No downside

[Further North]

On 12/6/2017 at 4:47 PM, MickD said:

Man, if Mercs require rebuild after only 800 hours, I'm really going to miss my Suzuki.  Seems strange since Merc doesn't even recommend plug changes until 300.  So less than 3 plug changes the engine might need rebuild?  

There are Suzuki motors (and plenty of other brands) out there with thousands of hours on them with no re-build.

 

...I wouldn't sweat it.