![]() I don’t know about other parts of the country, but here in MN most of this stuff uses Ethanol as the ingredient that keeps it from expanding when it freezes and has nowhere near the anticorrosion additives that are required by MerCruiser or that are requested by Volvo. Let’s stop and talk about the pink stuff at the big box stores. This stuff is roughly -200° burst so when you mix it with an equal amount of water you get -100° and when you mix that with an equal amount of water you get the -50° burst that most of the pink non-tox that you get at the big box stores. It has to do with the non-tox antifreeze we use. OK, here is how a boat shop can winterize an engine without draining the water first. I’m really sure that if you have a “single point drain” setup you will have trouble down the road if you don’t. I’ve done it both ways and there are less rust flakes when antifreeze is used. Is it worthwhile using antifreeze in a cast iron block? Based on 30 years as a marine mechanic in Minnesota I feel it is. That’s why the anticorrosion additives are now so important. Gone are the days that the only metal the water touched was cast iron, there are now multiple alloys that will interact with each other. I feel the biggest reason MerCruiser now requires antifreeze is due to all of the different metals and alloys that make up the new engines. Once again there are a lot of variables involved in if you need to or you should. But is there a better way? Of course there is, it’s called antifreeze and is required or recommended by most manufacturers. If you’re somewhere else, ask somebody in your area who has torn down engines stored both ways for their advice. Should you fog or not? If you’re in Minnesota or a similar climate, my recommendation is to fog, done right it helps more than it hurts. And is what is recommended by most manufacturers. This one is a really good idea, especially if you have electric fuel pumps or injectors. ![]() Running on remote tank with the fogging mixture the manufacturer of your engine recommends. Dump the fogging oil down the carb, works good on most carb engines but can cause serious problems on engines with certain intake manifolds or EFI engines. Pull the spark plugs and spray some in - probably the best for a carb or throttle body engine, but takes way too much time for somebody who has to get 5 to 10 boats done today. ALL of them had some rust in the cylinders and on the valves, but there was less rust in the fogged motors. I have torn down more than a few motors during the winter that have been fogged down the carb, fogged by running on 2 stroke oil mixture and nothing done at all. How much moisture is in the cylinders and on the valves and whether that moisture remains frozen most of the winter (like if the boat is stored in an unheated barn) or it thaws and refreezes on a daily basis (like if the boat is shrink-wrapped) should influence what you do. ![]() I see people give advice without knowing what conditions the boat will be stored in ( or even what motor they have!) and that really matters when you make the decision on whether you fog or not. This is a lot like the anti-freeze debate. So here are my thoughts and I will explain, how a boat yard winterizes without draining the water.įirst is fogging the motor. What I don’t have is the patience that the late Don S had to reply to all the posts where people gave bad (if well intentioned) advice. I’ve spent over 30 years as a marine mechanic in Minnesota, so after winterizing over 3000 engines (without breaking any) I do have some thoughts on putting a boat to bed for the winter. ![]() How to winterize your motor without draining the water. ![]()
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