winterizing my boat

apex50

have a 350 mpi mag bravo 3 wondering how everyone is winterizing these. Tried to reach the blue drain plugs but can't get at the 2 on the raw water pump so i ran the motor to operating temp and ran antifreeze through the muffs on the outdrive. Has anyone tried this

Liberty44140

I have 350s that are freshwater cooled and have the air pump system to drain. I first use the air pump to drain all water, then pull all 4 plugs including the two on the raw water pump, get it fully drained. Then I suck 5 gal of antifreeze through each engine via the muffs.

randy56

@apex yes do it every year, takes 5 gallons , what climate  do you live ? How cold does it get? example picture below. 

prgrod01

pull all the blue plugs, drain the water. put the drain plugs back in and run your antifreeze through the muffs. take the plugs out one more time and your done. My mechanic always taped the blue plugs to my steering wheel in a ziplock so you aren't remembering where you put them in the spring. 

worked for me for 5 years in Northern British Columbia.

open system has plugs on engine and exhaust. closed system on engine... don't drain your engine antifreeze!

skennelly

I'm a block filler.  I have the 3 point system.  Remove blue plug on the main drain and the 2 on the raw water pump and thermostat housing.  Let drain...reinstall all plugs...remove large hose from thermostat and pour -100 antifreeze until it pours out the thermostat housing usually 3 or 4 gallons.  Then remove each hose going to risers and pour antifreeze through them.

Leave antifreeze in block....i know I know...let the debate start.

Liberty44140

Yea to each their own on draining block. If I lived up in Canada I’d probably drain the antifreeze out. But where I am in inside cold storage, near the heated storage, we don’t see those temperatures. I use -60 and leave it in for corrosion resistance. West marine has a great deal on antifreeze through Sunday.

Cableguy Greg

I also leave the block full. I used to used automotive antifreeze, but I am switching this year to -200. I will drain the block before I run the antifreeze through the engine. 

69fastback

I just pull my plugs and leave it, but I live in texas. 

zaverin1

Air doesn’t freeze 
pull the manifold
and block plugs
drain
pull
hose of the water pump
if inboards drain strainers 

apex50

Thks for the info guys but I think I'm just going to run the antifreeze through the muffs because I can't get at the 2 plugs on the raw water pump. Ran 10 gallons through hoping for the best gets cold up here. 

reneechris14

I live in CT and do as @randy56 has showed. I only remove the blue plug on the distribution thing(the plastic ball on the lower right of the motor) this Drians the risers. My Mercs are closed cooled. I don't drain the pump in fear of losing the prime and running dry. Fire up the motor kick the idle up to 1000rpms about 4 gals and the pink is pouring a good solid pink, shut it down, leave it full till spring. Oh and I use the cheap stuff from Wally world. I know its has alcohol and could blow up, ant happened yet 

reneechris14

I'm a block fuller too.

apex50

I did run the motor until the thermostat opened fully so should be good to go. The only thing I was worried about was if the raw water pump was  drawing from the foot 

JohnCostelllo

Does anybody know how many plugs exactly there are on a 5.7 Mag    2008 
and a location of them???  Thanks 

Liberty44140

My 2006 mag 350 mpi horizon (internally cooled) has 4 plugs. One on the heat exchanger. Two on the raw water pump, and one on the plastic water distribution unit. I’ve got the air actuated drainage system where I can drain the system with an air pump if I want. 

Cableguy Greg

My 6.2 MPI has 4 plugs. Same block as the 350 MAG, just stroked out. There are 2 on the engine, one at the top by the thermostat and one on the lower port front side of the engine. There are 2 on the sea water pump as well.

Michael T

100% with Al. I have had many friends save a few $ winterizing their boat only to crack a block or head. Even a damaged heat exchanger is very expensive.

Willhound

Agree. I do a lot of my own work and winterize my water and head system. But the $300 my tech charges for winterizing the block, oil and filter,  pressure test the drive and change drive oil is just insurance in my opinion. I let him do the oil changes because at the same time he looks for contaminants and does some visual checks. If something gets missed it's on him, not me.

Dream_Inn

While I completely agree with Al, especially if you don't have the time or not sure of what you are doing.  But, ... I have seem many times over and over where the mechanic (many different ones) does a crappy job and then claims not accountable for it. 

I'm certainly not going to be the one here to advise that you do it yourself.  I'm just saying I would never ever have someone else winterize my boat.  I am way too picky about the way I like things done.

LaRea

Interesting thought.  

S'pose you pay a mechanic to winterize, but still end up with a cracked engine block.  You file a claim against your boat insurance ... they probably cover it, because the owner did the right thing.  Maybe they go after the mechanic, maybe not, but it's their problem.  

But if you winterize it yourself and crack a block, I wonder if they would call it negligence, and decline coverage.  

Stodge

I recall the option to add "failed winterization" to my boat coverage.

GMSLITHO

I also do the whole job myself in the driveway then bring it to the marina to wrap and store 

Dream_Inn

LaRea said:

Interesting thought.  

S'pose you pay a mechanic to winterize, but still end up with a cracked engine block.  You file a claim against your boat insurance ... they probably cover it, because the owner did the right thing.  Maybe they go after the mechanic, maybe not, but it's their problem.  

But if you winterize it yourself and crack a block, I wonder if they would call it negligence, and decline coverage.  

Well, you kind of make my point.  It's your own insurance that is going to pay (& make you pay in the long run). 

I also wouldn't doubt if the insurance decline's coverage if you do it yourself incorrectly. 

Stodge, I think you are right.  I remember something as well for certain states not having winterization covered.

I will recommend for anyone that does do it on their own, make sure, whatever it is, you blow it out with air before you put the pink stuff in.  I do this with my engines and water systems.  It's one extra precaution (of many) that can be taken.

Cableguy Greg

Dream_Inn said:

LaRea said:

Interesting thought.  

S'pose you pay a mechanic to winterize, but still end up with a cracked engine block.  You file a claim against your boat insurance ... they probably cover it, because the owner did the right thing.  Maybe they go after the mechanic, maybe not, but it's their problem.  

But if you winterize it yourself and crack a block, I wonder if they would call it negligence, and decline coverage.  

Well, you kind of make my point.  It's your own insurance that is going to pay (& make you pay in the long run). 

I also wouldn't doubt if the insurance decline's coverage if you do it yourself incorrectly. 

Stodge, I think you are right.  I remember something as well for certain states not having winterization covered.

I will recommend for anyone that does do it on their own, make sure, whatever it is, you blow it out with air before you put the pink stuff in.  I do this with my engines and water systems.  It's one extra precaution (of many) that can be taken.

I always winterize myself. I "worked" at the Rinker dealer in Pittsburgh before it closed and I helped the mechanic winterize quite a few boats. That being said, I used automotive antifreeze on the engine every fall until this fall. I decided to go with -200 RV/boat antifreeze for the block. I drained the system and recirculated 5 gallons of the -200 and 1 gallon of -50 pink (to thin the -200) and ran the engine up to operating temps. That -200 is pretty thick compared to the -50 and -100. It might be overkill, but if there was any water left in the block, the -200 wouldn't dilute that much. I do run pink through my water system.

RustyS

I had this exact situation of a cracked block this past spring. Winterized last fall myself; upon startup of port motor in the spring more water coming through the drain plug than the drive....ut oh!

I contacted my insurance company and discussed with them and was advised not to make a claim if I winterized myself as it would be denied. And, upon further review of my policy it IS OUTLINED within the writings that if I had a receipt from a marina or anyone saying that they had done the winterization they would have covered the claim; no questions asked. I was told they would then go after the marina or individual. Whether they were successful or not of being reimbursed didn't matter as my claim would have been covered.

I still winterize myself; but much more thorough of a job with blocks EMPTY! Air don't freeze!

Liberty44140

Hi Rusty, any idea why it cracked? Was the antifreeze the cheap -50 from Walmart meant for water, or did your Tstat never open? or did you not drain the water first before you ran antifreeze through? What are you now doing differently other than draining the antifreeze at the end?

RustyS

@ Liberty44140 I'm pretty sure the tstat wasn't open when I filled it with antifreeze. It was my 2nd year with this boat ('06 FV300). The first year I drained both motors and all was fine the following Spring. In 2017 a buddy had the kit where you hook a water hose up to muffs with a 3-way valve hooked to 5-gallon container to hold antifreeze.

The starboard motor was fine; must have had it warm enough with tstat open.

Port side appeared to be warm enough by the temp gauge but obviously not as I discovered the following spring.

Lesson learned is that I will NEVER use the "fill up the block" with antifreeze method ever again. I will always drain for now on.

This year I removed the 3 blue drain plugs; let all water drain then replaced them. I then removed large hose at tstat housing and dumped in 2 gallons of anti freeze, then removed each hose to each manifold and dumped in 1/2 gallon in each. Then I removed the 3 blue plugs and let antifreeze drain, and left the plugs off. This method should have mixed with any water remaining from the initial drain, and coated all internals with some non-ethanol based antifreeze to reduce corrosion.

There are as many methods as people you ask. I feel comfortable with my method, and feel I will never need to worry about a cracked block again.

Dream_Inn

Well, my boat is finished and covered.  My engines are FWC, so they have the antifreeze in them.  I run them on fresh water for a few minutes, drain the blue plugs, and then run pink in.  Obviously the pink is just for the risers/manifolds. I am thinking I may just drain the plugs (right now the pink is still in there), since really the only corrosion that it is keeping away is in the risers/manifolds.  I don't know, we'll see.  I've done it this way for 19 seasons.

Liberty44140

Thanks for the detail Rusty, always good to know what happened and why for the rest of us DIYers 😃
yea dream I am the same fwc so I considered draining the antifreeze that I ran through too but decided to leave it in again this year. I used the purple -60 this year in the engines, 4 gal per side, for extra protection and when I looked in my risers last winter they looked brand new still so I decided to stick with leaving it in. I am inside cold storage. 

reneechris14

same here pinked it up last week and leave it in. Pulling the drives and batterys towmarrow and cover her up so I can look at her all winter in my back yard.

Willhound

@reneechris14 did you say "pull the drives"? Doing some work on them? Or do you pull them ever year?