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Leaving the boat on the water for the winter

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bill_k

Regular Contributor
"thinking about leaving my boa

"thinking about leaving my boat in the slip for the winter, what is needed to do to winterize it.
it has twin 5.7L t-bolt v alpha 1 gen 2"
 
"Where, how cold does it get?

"Where, how cold does it get?
if the water inlet hoses break from freezing or any seacocks break you could sink, batteries can freeze resuling in no pumps."
 
"Does ice form on the water?

"Does ice form on the water? Change the engine oil and filter on each. Fog the engines and drain the blocks and manifolds; pump out via the bilge pump. According to the boys from the great north freezer, the blocks and mans. won't crack if they have been properly drained. You'll need a heat source to keep the temp above 32 F. just in case."
 
"Keep a close check on it over

"Keep a close check on it over the season. Muskrats love to chew on the crud that forms on the bellows (beneath the water line). Their teeth cut holes in the bellows and can sink your boat at its mooring overnight. The mechanics around here love those critters, as repair billings for the mechanicals and water damage can get huge.
Got good insurance?"
 
"A friend of mine keeps his 45

"A friend of mine keeps his 45ft. sailboat in the slip year round in Toronto and he has something they call a bubbler to keep the ice off. Its basically a hose that surrounds the hull under the waterline and has several holes in it and compressed air from a pump. Apparently it works quite well although not sure if it would be a muskrat deterrent? Snowing up here today and getting colder brrrr ... good luck with your boat hopefully it doesn't get tooo cold where you are.

Cheers Norm
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"
 
"Your boat in the water for th

"Your boat in the water for the winter needs to be tended to like a bad stepchild. Mechanicals need to be serviced, Bilge needs a constant Heat source above Freezing, and Hull needs to be kept free of Ice. A Bubble system should be fine for Maryland. Keep a Snow Shovel onboard also. Al W."
 
"Doc...
Toronto doesn't g

"Doc...
Toronto doesn't get winter though. All that smoke that comes out of the stacks at the Stelco plants in Hamilton helps to keep T.O. warm. I'll make the 1 hr. trip to T.O. and they have green grass while I have 3 feet of snow. They call the Army in to clear 1 cm. of snow (about 3 years ago), while we all just trudge on through.


Wrench"
 
"My boat, 31 Jersey, stays in

"My boat, 31 Jersey, stays in NJ water in the winter. I place a KASCO deicer in the water to keep ice from forming around the boat. Close petcocks and fill blocks with antifreeze. Change oil. Float charger on batteries. I place a 100w lightbulb near the bilge pump to keep that free of any ice also. No problems at all."
 
"hey guys,I'm a diver and

"hey guys,I'm a diver and I can tell you this,ALOT goes on in the water in the winter,so please,make sure you are all zinced up and sealed below the water line,alot of people don't realize the stress it put on a boat to stay in the water in the winter."
 
"Removed the Alpha one outdriv

"Removed the Alpha one outdrive. The gimbal bearing inter race come out on the drive shaft. Do you think there is enough room to remove the bearing that is left, with a slide hammer? Or do I have to grind out the bearing?"
 
"Walt...

You need to start

"Walt...

You need to start a new post with your question instead of tacking it on the end of someone else's. Descibe the year, model, engine,..... of your boat so people can understand what you are doing.

Wrench"
 
"Bill,

Here's a pi

"Bill,

Here's a pic showing my boat wintered in the water. If you look closely at the bow just under the surface you will see the kasco deicer. The deicer is installed in a 5 gallon pail with several holes as one year it sucked up a bag, stalled the motor and repair cost was half the price of a new one.
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