I am also thinking of having a professional to do the engine winterisation. I can do the non-engine winterisation part, like the head and the fresh water tank.
Not sure what others do.
Thanks,
Shirley
Hi Shirley,
I have always used a professional to winterize my boat but this year am hoping to at least try it. The Rigging Shoppe in Scarborough is offering a course on this on Sunday morning so I’ll see if this is something I can do.
Dorothy Salusbury
Cathartic Nonsuch 30
Ashbridge’s Bay Yacht Club
Toronto
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Do not forget that anything that normally holds water can freeze. That includes – anchor washdown systems, cockpit showers, manual and electric bilge pumps, reefer drains, shower sumps, etc. Fortunately, as long as my boat’s in the water, I don’t have to do anything unless there is an abnormal deep freeze.
PS – I like the idea about motoring up a freshwater river!!
Joe Valinoti
S/V iL Gatto NS30U #221
Sea Harbour YC
Oriental, NC USA
Hi Dorothy
May I know how much you pay to have a professional to winterise your engine ? I am still debating if I hire
Thanks
Shirley
I think that Dorothy has the right idea and will learn an awful lot more about her boat.
Joe Valinoti
S/V iL Gatto NS30U #221
Sea Harbour YC
Oriental, NC USA
Shirley,
As I alluded to in an earlier post, winterization is often over complicated by owners and boatyards. Prices and procedures vary.
The yard I plan to use this winter changes $199 for winterization. If they can’t use your motor to move the boat to the lift, they charge $150 to tow the boat to the lift.
My assessment is the “value” of a winterization is about $50 which about what I assess my boat tinker hourly rate to me.
I poured about 150 hours into Soave’s keel joint refresh and probably 80 hours into stripping and rough fairing her bottom last winter. So there are plenty of DIY things to do, no need to do anything you are unsure about.
Most folks just suckup and pay the $199 for winterization… which by coincidence is the hourly service rate for all services at the marina.
I think a variation of Wards process could be accomplished on the hard, by flushing with a garden hose and draining. Ward’s method has some peripheral benefits because it encourages you to inspect parts of you engine that may otherwise ignore ( like your impeller ).
Winter storage is $89.75 /ft. Soave ( NS33 ) runs $2962. ( HERE ) is a link to the winter storage agreement.
I hope others storing boats on LIS in Fairfield County this winter will let me know if they pay significantly less.
Rob Cohen
s/v SOAVE
NS33 #009
Cedar Point YC
Westport, CT
That’s the way I’ve been doing it for 38 years Jim.
To add an additional point to this conversation, I’ve also been using a mix of 70/30 automotive coolant instead of the pink stuff. That way if the coolant encounters any water along the way in the engine and elsewhere the freeze protection is actually enhanced.
I catch this coolant at the exhaust and use it in the bilge pumps. I catch this and test it with a hydrometer to make sure the mix is still OK. If not I add coolant to get back to 70/30.
This is then used to antifreeze the head which gets pumped out in the spring. Prior to launch fresh water is run through the raw water filter and the prior captive coolant in the engine is caught and saved for next fall.
The only wasted coolant is the bit used for the head.
Ron
Ron & Diane Schryver
“Alpha Waves” 1987 NS30U #393
Georgian Bay Midland ON
Make sure not to use automotive coolant in your domestic water system. The ethylene glycol automotive coolant is toxic.
The pink stuff sold for winterization is propylene glycol. Propylene glycol is an additive in some consumer products. It is much less toxic than the auto coolant.
Ward Woodruff
413-847-0620 cell