do I really need to winterize?

Ok I just baught a mb b 52 and I am going to store it in my heated garage. What all do I need to do?

Heated garage? Follow these steps.

1. Wait 'till the water temperature is to your liking.
2. Take the boat out and ride.

Mike, I don't know where you live, but we are in Missouri and store our boat in our heated garage. We do not winterize it.
I get a bit nervous about it when the temps drop really low, but the thermometer in the garage has never dropped below 50 degrees, even when the power went out for a few hours.
We have a wood stove in the house, and turn the fan on in the heat/AC system to blow the heat throughout the house, basement, and garage.

Just have a back up plan in case the power goes out for a long period of time.

if you get worried, and it gets real cold, take a heat lamp and/or construction light (not sure of the technical term tehre) and keep it lit up at night it motor the box, should keep it warm enough not to do any damage or anything...

not really to hijack but....

can it sit like this for like 6 months? (winter)

i would assume its like a car then and most everything should be flushed at the beginning of the summer, etc.

It can but it's better to have fogging oil in the cylinders, gasoline stabilizer in the tank and fuel system and fresh oil in before you let it sit.

You don't have to, but remember if something goes wrong, it will be a $5000 engine replacement mistake. Stabilize the fuel. Fogging the engine is good so you don't get any surface rust in the engine, and its good for when you start it for the first time of the season.

i don't winterize my boat but still use it all winter and store it in out enclosed barn thats not heated. it'll get to about 30 or sometimes into the 20's at night and i've never had a problem. if for some crazy reason its going to be in 10-20 degree area i'll decide not to be lazy and take the 20 minutes to drain the block, exhaust manifolds, oil cooler, and heater.

I store my boat in a insulated garage all winter for 3 years now, no problems. I do throw a heater inside the ski locker, one that has a thermostat set at 42 degrees.

I did go on travel one week when the temps here dropped below 10F. In addition to the heater, I added a 200 watt magnetic block heater, and I plugged that into an extention cord that pulled off a different circuit, just in case the heater kicked the breaker.

(Message edited by yosquire on November 02, 2008)

I'd just do the end of season fluid changes, Stabil in the gas tank and pull the batteries. You can fog if you like but I don't with a 5 to 6 month lay up I just don't see it as totally necessary obviously it can't hurt though.

I don't winterize my boat because I have a heated garage. The only time I got nervous was when I got home one night, I closed the garage door and went inside. I woke up the next morning and the door was open and my cat was in my boat. It was -20 that night and thanks to my heater being behind my boat I had no problems. The rule of the family is you cannot close the garage door without watching it go down all the way because pets can trip the sensors and open it back up.

What is the temperature that we are shooting for before damage is possible? This is my first winter with a boat in coastal NC, and I am trying to figure out if I am safe without winterizing by using some of the techniques above. How does continual riding/operation figure into the equation. Thanks in advance!

bump. Will someone please provide the magic temperature I am watching for?

32

You don't need to winterize any more than you need to change the oil. It's all done to prevent anything from happening & to help prolong the life of the motor, heater, shower, etc.

Yea, 32 is the magic number.... but it would have to be 32 or less for like a week straight to cause damage. The colder it gets, the less time it would need to cause problems.

Also, keep in mind that any heated garage can have issues. We never lose our power around here because it's all underground. But about 4 yrs ago we had some rain & the power station had flooding problems. We didn't have any problems at our house at all..... except for no power for about 5 days straight. Granted that wasn't a problem with freezing, but you can't ever tell what Mother Nature can throw at you.

Thanks Hate, I guess I feel a little stupid now.

I have measured ambient vs motorbox temperatures a couple times. There is typically a 10 degree delta between the two so you should not need to worry until it gets down below 22 degrees.

I use to do water damage restorations in homes, (broken pipes etc). It was almost always anything below 18 degrees and things would pop.

If you're not going to use it over the winter the least I would do is drain the block. Peace of mind.

Mikeski, I'd think the motorbox temp issue is a two way street. It may be about 10 degrees warmer in there, but in the event the temp gets below 32, won't it stay below 32 longer even after the outside air temp goes up?

I keep my boat in a heated garage, but we plan on using it on occasion this winter, so what should i do?

Here is my 2006 chart from the temp recorders...