Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat

Posted on October 1, 2013

Motorboat The boating season is winding down in many parts of the country and its time to start thinking about protecting your valuable recreational asset. Your insurance policy may not cover damage done by lack of maintenance or neglect, so taking the necessary steps to winterize your boat will protect the vessel and its motor against the winter elements. If there is water inside your engine when the temperature falls below freezing, the result can be a cracked block or housing and a repair bill that runs into the thousands.

Your first step in winterizing should be to make a checklist of all tasks that need to be completed. Check the owners manual of your boat and motor or manufacturers recommendations on winterization.

Here are some guidelines, courtesy of WikiHow.com to prepare your boat for the cold winter months.

Fill your boats fuel tank to just about capacity. Leave enough room for it to expand. Add gasoline stabilizer to prevent the fuel from degrading over the winter.
Close the fuel valves to avoid potentially destructive interior condensation. Any thru-port exhaust ports should be sealed with duct tape and the fuel filter and water separator will need to be replaced.
Coat the spark plugs. Take out the engine flame arrestor and shoot fogging or two-cycle oil into the carburetor while the engine is running. Turn off the fuel supply to burn off any excess fuel. With the engine off, inject oil inside the cylinders.
Fill the engine block with antifreeze. Bleed any remaining engine coolant from the engine block and manifolds and fill with the proper antifreeze for your model boat.
Change the engines gear oil. Flush and replace the lower unit gear case lubricant if your boat has an inboard/outdrive engine. This keeps the internal parts free of water damage.
Disengage the battery and store in a safe, dry place for the winter. The battery should be fully charged when put away. Retain the charge and maintain the water level while the battery is in storage.
Inspect your vessels propeller and hub. Look for dented or bowed blades and widespread wear. Change damaged parts and make needed repairs when winterizing your boat.
Spray the contact points on all plugs and bulb sockets with a moisture displacing lubricant. Wrap the plugs with electrical tape to keep them dry.
Clean your boat before storing it for the winter. Remove surface dirt with a washcloth or soft sponge.
Cover your boat, even if it will be stored in a heated garage or another type of storage facility.

The best place for your boat during the winter is out of the water, under cover, in a climate-controlled boat storage area. However, this can be expensive so, at a minimum, complete the maintenance steps above to help reduce the possibility of costly repairs to your investment come spring. Do you have any additional boat maintenance tips to share?

This entry was posted in Central, Personal, Prevention and tagged boat maintenance, winterize, winterizing your boat.

10 tips to winterize your boat. Store your boat out of water and under cover, if possible. Change all fluids, Teen Driver Updates,Winterize Your Boat not a member? Signing up could earn you gear and it helps to keep offensive content off of our site., before covering the boat. You can expect serious problems when the temperature drops below freezing if you fail to correctly winterize all later step , Step 2 in the five step process on How to Winterize Your Boat: The Engine & Lower Unit. How to Prepare Your Boat for Winter , winterizing your boat is important to keep the fun there are two options when it comes time to winterize your boat Boat Winterizing Step Ten: ,Always pay a licensed mechanic to winterize your boat for you, 7:40 How to Winterize an I/O Boat, step by step guide in HD for inboard/outboard boats ,How to Winterize a Boat in 10 Steps. December 03, 2013; 10:16 AM GameandFishMag.com. By taking the time to thoroughly complete your boat winterizing duties, ,Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat October 11, 2013. The boating season is winding down in many parts of the country and its time to start thinking about protecting ,Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.,The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting colder and its time to start thinking about winterizing your boat before you put her into yacht storage.

Yacht Management Tips: Ten Steps to Winterizing Your Boat
The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting colder and its time to start thinking about winterizing your boat before you put her into yacht storage.

Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat | Central Insurance Companies
Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat » Phelan Insurance ...
Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat October 11, 2013. The boating season is winding down in many parts of the country and its time to start thinking about protecting

AccuWeather.com - How to Winterize a Boat in 10 Steps
How to Winterize a Boat in 10 Steps. December 03, 2013; 10:16 AM GameandFishMag.com. By taking the time to thoroughly complete your boat winterizing duties,

How to Winterize a Boat Step-By-Step - YouTube
Always pay a licensed mechanic to winterize your boat for you, 7:40 How to Winterize an I/O Boat, step by step guide in HD for inboard/outboard boats

Boat Winterizing: 10 Tips to Help Your Boat Make it ...
winterizing your boat is important to keep the fun there are two options when it comes time to winterize your boat Boat Winterizing Step Ten:

Winterizing Your Boat: Step 2 The Engine & Lower Unit ...
Step 2 in the five step process on How to Winterize Your Boat: The Engine & Lower Unit. How to Prepare Your Boat for Winter

Winterize Boat Winterizing Boat Winterize Sailboat
before covering the boat. You can expect serious problems when the temperature drops below freezing if you fail to correctly winterize all later step

5 Easy Steps to Winterize Your Boat | Sport Fishing
Winterize Your Boat not a member? Signing up could earn you gear and it helps to keep offensive content off of our site.

10 tips to winterize your boat - PEMCO | PEMCO Insurance
10 tips to winterize your boat. Store your boat out of water and under cover, if possible. Change all fluids, Teen Driver Updates

Ten Steps to Winterize Your Boat