Help-Winterize

[sdu7066]

I'm a new boat owner and never winterized my boat before bringing it out of water. Now the marina has shut off the water also. Is their still a way to winterize my engine? It's a 27'Pacehip with a 8h.p. Yanmar diesel engine. Thanks.

[delmarrey]

A few questions first.

What does the marina shuting of the water have to do with your engine?

Is the vessel still in the water, or on the hard?

Is the engine freshwater cooled (have a heat exchanger)?

And what climate conditions (location) are you in?

These will simplify the answer to fit you specific needs!
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[sdu7066]

As stated, it's out of the water and the marina has already shut off water in the yard. It's a raw water cooled diesel engine. Someone said I could bring a bucket up on board and attach a hose. Thanks.

[CSY Man]

Hmm, you must be talking about flushing the engine with fresh water before ya put the boat away for the winter.

There is more invloved: Change oil and filter, remove batteries and so forth.

Should be plenty of help and advise on the subject in yer manuals, on the 'net etc..

Or even better, move to Florida.....

[BC Mike]

There are still some details I would like to know. You said it is raw water cooled meaning it is cooled by the water it is floating in. What was it floating in? Fresh or Salt. Does it freeze where the boat is at? Does it have a saildrive or a shaft? I am trying to determine where the water pump is. Lets start with the basics, there is water in the engine and it should come out. There will likely be a drain plug on the engine block and on the exhaust manifold. Under them both until water drains out. Make a note to screw them in next spring. If you can see the water pump disconnect the hose on the low side and turn the engine over by hand to force the water out. In this condition the engine will not freeze and you are safe for the winter. If your intention was to run fresh water and anti freeze through the engine then you need a bucket and hose and a means of catching the exhaust. If the boat was in fresh water I would not bother with this procedure. If it is a saildrive the pump may drain just by turning the engine by hand. What does the manual say? BC Mike C

[delmarrey]

I'm going to assume you’re in the cold country (location) since they've shut off the water. I'll explain what I have and need to do for my own diesel and you can decide from there. Mine is freshwater cooled but I'll defer for that.

You'll also want to change the oil and filter in the engine and transmission before you get started.

I've installed a "T" on the raw water inlet with another valve to a garden hose fitting. From that I shut off the seacock and install a garden hose up to the deck and into a 5 gal. bucket full of water. Then open the secondary valve.
For your engine 5 gal. will be enough for winterizing for this procedure. On mine I add 3 oz. of a product called salt-away.
Start up the motor making sure the hose has suction and run it until the bucket just empties then shut down the motor. It should take less than a minute.
If you want to run the motor longer (without salt-away) you can run another hose into the bucket filling it while it is being used. But you don't have that option right now.
DONOT RUN A GARDEN HOSE DIRECTLY INTO THE RAW WATER INLET! Depending on the pressure it could ruin the pump.

If you don't want to install a "T" then you can just run a hose directly from your inlet.

After all this drain all the water from the engine and the lines. If you have a wetlift drain it also.

Pull the cover off your pump and the impeller from the inside and spray them all with silicon. Check the impeller. If it's in worn condition or showing any cracks and/or chips, now is a good time to get a rebuild kit.
Loosen up the belts. Spray down the whole engine with WD-40. Change the air filter before your next startup.

You'll also want to empty out any other water on the boat (tanks and bilges) as well as the head. Pump a little antifreeze thru the head in case it freezes.

One more thing if there are any cracks where water my sit and possibly freeze, seal or cover them up. Freezing water in a crack will make a bigger crack and on and on!
Got to get back to work............................._/)

[sdu7066]

Completed the project this past weekend. Wasn't too hard, next year I'll winterize before pulling out. Thanks everyone for all your help!

[Sonosailor]

If it is water-cooled exhaust, you will want to empty the water muffler. I do that, then I take the raw water intake tube of the kingston cock and put it into RV glycol. I then turn the engine over with the compression valves on and the stop switch pulled until the glycol goes to the muffler.

I also fog the engine while doing this, using a generic engine fogger from any hardware store.

I also remove the fresh water impeller, rub vaseline over it, put it in a plastic bag, and tape it to the engine. Ought to be able to do this easily to be a real sailor anyway. You may have to replace this impeller in the dark some day.

The spilled RV glycol can be used to run through the sump pump.

If there is a glycol loop and a heat exchanger, you should replace the glycol.

Greasing the engine control cables where they protrude from their casings are a good idea.

Filling your tank to the top will stop the air transfers and stop moisture being dropped into the fuel.

Tell you what. Go to a bookstore and look up Nigel Calder's Boat owners Mechanical and Electrical Manual. Buy it. Will make you smarter than me.

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