"Winterizing" Motor

[Sam]

I have had a number of discussions with other bass fishermen about "winterizing" their bass boat's motor.

Some say it is a waste of time. That all you need to do is run the gas out of the motor; drain the fuel tank; and change the lower unit's lube.

Some say it is wise to take the motor to a qualified dealer and have them check it over; spray the inside with oil; change the lower unit's lube; and to make sure the motor is in top condition for next spring.

Also, keep the gas tank full and add Sta-Bil Ethanol Treatment applications to the gas tank.

So what are your opinions about "winterizing" your motor?  Just curious.

Thanks in advance for your input. 

[Shane J]

Well, I just did mine a couple weeks ago, and I opted to fill the gas tank, treat the tank with Sta-Bil, ran it for 10 minutes, pulled the fuel line off and fogged the intake until it died. Then i fogged the plug holes, changed my lower end oil, and charged the batteries to full charge. The hardest part, was taking all my gear out, and accepting that winter is here.

[Jig Man]

The only way I have ever winterized anything is to add some stabilizer to the gasoline.  Since I have a Merc I use their product.  I do change the lower unit fluid in June and December.  And once per year I put on a new water seperating fuel filter.

I have heard that you really don't need to keep the tank full of gasoline with todays tanks because there won't be condensation but I don't know that for a fact.

[Lund Explorer]

Morning Sam.....

Well, I got a call just an hour or so ago from my local marina.  My boat's winterization is complete, and I'll be picking it up later on today.  This was done at the same place I purchased the boat.  They put sta-bil in the fuel tank, fogged the motor, and changed the lower unit lube.  They also ran the diagnostics on their computer system to check for any other issues.

The cost for all of this was $98. 

In the spring, I'll take it back out and run it for a day or two before I take it back for a full spring tune up, and to have the trailer bearings checked out.

Last spring, that cost was $126.

Total cost for the year was $224 to service my best source of fun that cost over $10,000.  Seems like really cheap insurance to me, but that is your profession right?

[ww2farmer]

I do it myself. Last trip of the year I mix stabilzer with the gas and run that trough the motor, then I drive the boat up on the trailer, leave the outboard running while it's on the trailer but still in the water, spray fogging oil in the air intake till it stalls. Take her home put it in the garage, trim the motor all the way down to drain any water out and leave it down all winter. Drain and refill lower unit, drain/refill motor oil ( I have a 4 stroke). Change oil and fuel filters, change spark plugs, and while the plugs are out spray a quick shot of fogging oil in the cylinder head. Put plugs back in pull the kill switch out and crank the motor over a few times to get the fogging oil I put in the head moved around abit. Put the shroud on the motor, clean/vac the boat, grease trailer hubs, take batteries out and put in basement, make sure livewell is clean/drained, crank the trailer jack up so any water in the boat runs out the back drain, put the cover on the boat, and get ready to ice fish. In the spring about a week or 2 before ice out I take it to the marina and have them check it out make sure it's ok for the season, comes back with the thunbs up every time, this year they will change the water pump impeller.

[Hot Rod]

My dealer told me that it you don't need to fill the tank with fuel before storage as long as it is treated with stabilizer.  That a full tank was only for older boats with metal internal tanks which caused condensation inside empty tanks as the temp changes.

Personally, my bedroom is right above the garage I store my boat in so I don't really want 20 gallons of potential KABOOM sitting right below me as I hibernate all winter  ;D

[Wayne P.]

Hot Rod, is you dealer saying that a plastic gas tank cannot get as cold as a metal gas tank? BALONEY !!!

With that theory, does you plastic vehicle bumper not get dew (condensation) on it when the metal body gets dew (condensation) on it?

Condensation occurs because the humidity in the air condenses on cold surfaces. With a full gas tank, there is less air with moisture in it inside the tank. All built-in gas tanks are vented and will exhange air with temperature changes. The fuel volume and vapor will vary also with temp changes basically forming an air pump with the volume changes. Each time the temp drops and the fuel/vapor volume gets smaller, the space left is filled with air/humidity. That cycle occurs many times in all seasons of the year with the moisture condensation being the most severe in the cold temps.

[Way2slow]

Plastic tanks do not develope condensation inside them like the old aluminum tanks.  Since they don't conduct heat as efficiently as the metal tanks, the more gradual temperature changes inside them tend to cause significantly less of a condensation problem.

As for storing a full tank of gas, I do just the opposite, I always pump any remaining gas out of my tank when I park the boat.  I absolutely will not run gas that's more then six - eight weeks old, I don't care what kind of additive or stabalizer is in it.   I also disconnect the input hose to the prime bulb and stick a short piece of fuel line on it.  Every month or so, I use a small one gallon fuel container with about a 1/2 gallon of gas and one ounce of Sea Foam, put that piece of hose in it, crank the motor and run it until it has use most of the 1/2 gallon of gas.   Doing this, there is no need to fogg, worry about carbs or DFI injectors getting gummed up.   Since I lost my fishing partner last year, I haven't been doing much fishing so before I go, I pull the plugs out and clean the soot of them.  Fichts will soot a plug after extended idleing and I may run it several times between trips.

Fogging a motor depends on where you park it.  If it's under a shed or in the garage, it's not needed.  Where the problem really comes to bear is when the boat is parked so the morning sun hits it.  On cool mornings, the sun raise the temp inside the cover very quickly, this causes huge amounts of condensation to develope inside the cover and the motor it's self will get soaking wet.  Pull the cover off some cool/cold mornings after the sun has been shining on it for a 1/2 hour or so, you will think someone sprayed a water hose in there.   This can eventually break down the oil film on the internal engine parts and cause rust in places you really, really, don't want it.  For this reason, you should never, ever disconnect the fuel source and let the engine run out of gas.  That leaves almost no oil film in the engine to protect it.

When fishing a lot, I changed my LU oil twice a year, Now I just change it once this time of the year, matter of fact, I will be doing mine this weekend.

I change water pumps every three years but I do that at the first of the spring season.

Don't forget the trailer, the bearings need to checked/packed and axle seals replaced once a year, when you winterize is a good time to do that.  Even running the oil filled hubs, it would be smart to reseal them and check the bearings each year.  If running bulbs, it's smart to pop them out and put dielectric grease on them, and fill the connector with it. 

Then you have the boat, all water needs to be purged from the live wells, pumps and lines.  If you cover the boat, the lids needs be proped open a few inches to keep the condensation for keeping everything in them from being soaked, this also helps keep the electric connnections in the console for corroding. 

[Team_Dougherty]

http://www.yachtsurvey.com/myth_of_condensation_in_fuel_tanks.htm

[aarogb]

All my dad does to our boat is put some Sta-Bil in it and keeps the motor trimmed down so water drains out and water doesn't get in it.

[TommyBass]

With that theory, does you plastic vehicle bumper not get dew (condensation) on it when the metal body gets dew (condensation) on it?

Not sure what that has to do with the price of eggs in China?

That is an irrelevant example, as Way2Slow stated, it has to do with the thermal or "heat exchange" properties of the plastic being dramatically less than metal. A gas tank is more or less an exclosed space so any quick thermal changes happen much slower through plastic wall than metal (nothing like the car example, where everything is directly exposed to the elements). While outside air can get in some through venting etc, its much less of an issue (Not to mention winter air is generally much "drier" / less humid than summer air, so whatever comes in is probably going to be drier than what its replacing.). However, it is still possible to get some condensation in your plastic tanks. Now on that note, I don't see a problem with filling it up, it will infact decrease the amount of air if something were to go wrong. Just add stabilizer, its what its for. I have did nothing more than run the water out of my motors every winter and add stabilizer and they start first turn every spring

[J Francho]

Winterizing a boat, and preparing a boat for storage during sub freezing temperatures may not be the same thing.

:

[Tin]

You live in Virginia and are putting your boat away? Winterizing while having open water should be a sin...    ;D

I trim the motor all the way down, dump Sta-Bil in, put the muffs on and run it for a bit to get the Sta-bil in, turn it off, and leave it. If I'm doing it wrong let me know. Four years, always starts the first turn 4 months later.

[riverfisher]

I do it myself every fall before the big freeze! Here is my yearly check list.

1. Fill your gas tank(s) and add gas stabilizer. (Follow the instructions on the stabilizer bottle as far as quantity. If in doubt, more is better.) **Most manufacturers will advise to store the tanks full to ensure that there's no condensation. Some of the smaller motors can have their fuel lines disconnected and run dry; this doesn't eliminate all gas from the motor and can lead to gummed up carbs, etc., come Spring. Having stabilized gas throughout the motor ensures that gaskets don't dry out and there's no chance of the gas turning to varnish.

2. Run the motor for 10-15 minutes to ensure that stabilized gas is in all of the lines, carbs, etc. (I take mine for a run after stabilizing the gas; I want to make sure that I've used up all of the un-stabilized gas that was in the fuel line, etc., and that only stabilized gas is in the system.)

3. Before shutting the motor off, you will want to fog the engine by spraying a fogging oil (storage seal) into all of the carbs (or the EFI system). **Check your owner's manual for specific instructions on how to fog your particular engine. (Some of the newer engines are not to be fogged.) Follow the instructions on the can; you will want to have the motor smoking big time, this ensures that you have the engine properly fogged. **Fogging oil puts a coating of oil on all of the cylinder walls and throughout the engine; it prevents rust from occuring during the winter storage months.

4. Remove the spark plugs and spray fogging oil into each of the plug holes. (About a 3-4 second spray in each.) Replace the spark plugs and disconnect your kill switch. Turn the motor over 3-4 times to distribute the oil into the cylinders. **Not everyone does this step, but I figure that it's extra insurance that the entire engine is well fogged. After the first run in the Spring you might want to consider putting in new spark plugs, don't put in new ones in the Fall, they will just get messed up with the fogging oil.

5. Remove the prop and check for fishing line behind it. Grease the shaft and replace the prop.

**If you have any nicks or dings on the prop you might want to have it repaired during the winter when the prop guys aren't too busy, rather than waiting until Spring.

6. Change the lower unit lube, (or at least check to ensure that there is no water present in the oil to ensure that it can't freeze during the winter. If there's water in the oil, it will be at the bottom and will come out first, or the lube will be a milky color which indicates water present.

7. Grease all fittings and lubricate all points shown in your owner's manual.

8. Fill the oil tank(s) to the top to prevent condensation during the winter.

9. Remove all batteries and store them inside. Charge them about every 6 weeks or so to keep them topped up. **You might want take the wires from each battery and put a cable tie (or piece of wire) through them to keep them in sets so that you know which ones go where come Spring. Label them as well, if need be.

10. Check to ensure that you don't have any water in your livewells, bilge pumps, etc. If in doubt you might want to add some RV antifreeze to them.

11. To make sure that the water in your water pressure line doesn't freeze during the winter and damage your gauge, you might want to disconnect the line and drain the water out.

12. Check your trailer tires to ensure that they are at the maximum tire pressure (probably 50#). Depending on where you store your trailer you might want to consider putting the trailer on blocks to keep it from sitting on the tires all winter.

13. Check the trailer hubs to see if they need grease added.

14. You might want to prop all of your compartments open slightly with pieces of styrofoam (or something similar), to ensure that air can circulate everywhere to prevent any condensation.

15. Remove basically everything from the boat.

16. Make sure that you store your motor in the down position to ensure that all water has drained out.

17. Wash the boat,and put a coat of wax on it (and the motor), if it needs it

[TommyBass]

You live in Virginia and are putting your boat away? Winterizing while having open water should be a sin... ;D

ooohhh... X2...  Good point, I change my recommendation to this!

[bassattackerdad]

We add stabilizer and run the boat. We don't run out the gas. if you do, you may have a problem unless you fog the cylinders, since the fuel is mixed with oil it serves as a lubricant for the cylinder walls. Without lubricant in the cylinder walls...you know the rest. We don't fog since we fish all year, even when it's cold, yes even when it's brrrr cold. We store boat outside but covered. It's probably a good idea to trim motor down but I don't like all that pressure on transom for a long period of time. Motor cranks right up fine, but like I said, we probably don't go more than 3-4 weeks without taking it out as long as there's no ice on the water!