Winterization Questions

[STeveZ]

Winterizing my B28 w/ Cummins engines.

1. Change fuel filters now or in spring? (<50 hrs on 'em)

2. The Cummins manual lists a series of disassemblies and drainings for winterization. Everyone I've spoken with says just get anti-freeze (w/ corrosion inhibitor) into the raw water inlet and run it until the exhaust is running green.

3. I use bio-bore regularly, should I add a stabilizer for the winter? I'm putting it up w/ around 100 gallons; just over half a tank.

[TailhookTom]

Steve: I hope I don't offend anyone, but be careful with what you put in for anti-freeze. The tree-huggers don't like the green stuff going into the water -- I think there is one brand that is safe, but the rest are not. I use CAMCO -- it is pink, and is made for the raw water side of engines use the -100, not the -50 -- the -100 has more corrosion inhibiters in it. It costs about $9 per gallon. I use it straight -- takes about 4 gallons on my volvo six cylinders before I see pink come out the back.

Hope this helps.

Tom

[STeveZ]

The stuff at BOAT US is pink come to think of it.

[steve miller]

steve,
Make sure you fill your tank with fuel before you lay up. Supposedly, a full tank will not allow condensation of water inside the tank.

[offshore31]

Steve

On my cummins, I change my oil and filters before i put her up. Then i'll change them again in the spring after i've put about 10hrs on them. when i put her up, I run the pink anti-freeze through the engines. Then i'll pull the raw water impellers for the season. Make sure to change them every 2 years. Also, make sure to add the stabilizer in the winter, and like Steve M says, make sure to fill your tank. Last i disconnect the batts, and the engines are done.

I haven't done much else to winterize the engines, and they've been fine.

Joe

[John F.]

I guess I do things a little different. I have gassers, but alot should be the same. I use the -100 anti-freeze.

I rigged a 5 gallon bucket with a hose that I hose-clamp to the raw water intake. First, I run 75 gallons or so of fresh water through each motor--I usually fill up about 5 or 6 5-gallon buckets with hose-water, because the hose pressure itself won't keep up with water pump, and dump the water-filled 5-gallon buckets into my rigged 5-gallon bucket unti its about gone. The I dump my 6 gallons of anti-freeze in (I get a case per side), and it runs red for awhile before shut-down (I also fog, but I guess that's a gasser thing). I've never had a problem, and while I live in MD., it does get somewhat cold here.

I also put my boat up as empty as I can. I don't trust the gas to sit that long even with a stabilizer, and I don't like the extra 1200 pounds or so in her while she's sitting on keel blocks. Mainly, I guess I don't like all that extra weight in her. I figure the racors will get any condensation out, and I don't see alot of condensation getting in that little vent. I drain my racors every month or so for a look, and have never had a post-winter problem with water. Just my 2 cents.

And if the fall rock/striper season doesn't pick-up, she'll be getting hauled soon.

John F.

[scooter28]

what part of maryland you from down here in st.mary's county they're catching 30"+ rocks with poppers.

[STeveZ]

John - I too would rather leave less fuel on board, and on the keel, over the winter and see no reason my racors would not intercept what little condensation might occur. Also, I like your idea of running some fresh water through the engines. Couldn't you just stick a hose in the "rigged" bucket?

Still looking for a rationale to change fuel filters/element now or in the spring...

[Kevin]

If you put them on now, your new filters will be old by the time you use them!

[John F.]

I live on Kent Island, and the big fall rock/striper run hasn't materialized up here mid-Bay. Usually we're able troll up 40" fish here by now.

The hose-water doesn't keep up with the raw water pump, and I rigged the 5 gallon bucket so that it has a thru-hull (thru-bucket?) in the side right at the bottom. Gravity and the pump gets every drop of that $10 gallon anti-freeze into the motors.

I change my racors after I put a few hours on her in the spring.

My B31 is white with black enclosure/bimini/sunbrella on all the windows (came that way). She's the "Anna E." If you see me on the Bay, say hello.

John F.

[In Memory of Vicroy]

OK, I know nothing about "winterizing" since I live in the South and AJ stays in the water all year. Guess my dumb question is if you haul the boat and block it up, and have anti freeze in the closed side of the cooling system, why waste money putting anti freeze in the raw water side vs. just draining the raw water side? Most of the raw water side antifreeze gonna drain out anyway. Air don't freeze......

Some of you eskimo Faithful explain this to me please.

UV

[John F.]

UV-

I think you're basically right. I could open the block drains on the 454s, as well as the drains on the risers and any other drain I can find or that are in my manuals. Problems for me are the block and riser drains look so corroded that I think I'd just strip them if I put a wrench on them, they're hard to get to, I'd have to be sure that all the water came out, the raw water I think would be more corrosive than anti-freeze, and most importantly for me, draining the block/cooling system is just basically a pia. Soooo, you're right in theory. Its just easier for me to dump anti-freeze in a bucket and watch the motor suck it up while I drink a cold one than to try to do all the above.

Someday maybe I can winterize by pointing the bow south.........

John F.

[In Memory of Vicroy]

OK, that makes perfect sense. I do a lot of things cause it's too much PIA to do otherwise. Just wanted to make sure I was not missing some basic engineering logic....

UV

[TailhookTom]

UV:

The trick is to close the seacocks after you get the anti-freeze in the raw water side. The reason we use the pink stuff is that it also has a lot of corrosion inhibiters in it so all our expensive (remember I have volvos and you hnow how much those parts costs) pipes don't corrode.


Tom

[no1fishhead]

I change my impellers every spring...it's cheap insurance