Winterizing a CD 22

[DaveM]

I've been pulling engines from cars and motorcycles for 39 years but I'm a complete newbie to boats and welcome any critiques on this checklist for winterizing. I've compiled this checklist from a number of threads on this excellent site as well as other reading. Here's what I plan to do with my new-to-me CD 22 to winterize it in upstate New York:

[b]Outboard Engine[/b]:

1. Check lower case for moisture in the grease. If the grease is milky, it has water in it and the grease should be refreshed.
2. Fog the engine. As a car gear-head this is new to me. The way I understand fogging is to put a bit of oil in each cylinder prior to storage to ensure the rings don’t rust to the cylinder walls. I see the Evinrude E-Tec 90 I have has a self fogging mode described in the user manual. I've read about spraying lubricant into the cylinders to fog if you do this yourself. If you use engine oil, don't get carried away as a tiny bit of oil in the cylinder can create a big change in the compression ratio. If you do put oil through the spark plug holes, try this before starting the engine: pull the plugs and turn the engine over for about 5 to 10 seconds. It will make a mess.
3. Store the outboard out of the weather if possible. If the outboard it set down on its side be careful about oil draining out of the case (and I imagine into the cylinders creating a hyrdo lock).
4. Remove the top covers and carefully spray the engine with an anti-corrosive (remember, WD-40 is a solvent, so a light lubricant that doesn’t eat plastic is desirable).
5. Flush the engine with RV anti-freeze. Ensure the engine is positioned vertically so all coolant may drain.[/list]

[b]Fuel tanks:[/b]
1. Add marine stabilizer to the tanks and top them off. The blue Sta-bil does a better job on gasoline with ethanol.

[b]Bilge system:[/b]
1. Run RV antifreeze through the bilge system. Run enough fluid through to ensure the pump has antifreeze in it.

[b]Batteries and electronics:[/b]
1. Remove the fancy electronic bits and carefully store them inside. Before disconnecting the wires, take a picture (even with a mobile phone camera) of the wiring and wire routing.
2. Photograph a picture of the batteries, disconnect them and move them to a warmer location. The photos will help remember routing and correct/safe rewiring. If they are stored in a garage, get them off the floor (on a crate or strong shelf so the batteries aren’t made colder from the ground) and put a trickle charger on the batteries. If the batteries are not sealed, periodically check the water level and top them off so the battery acid isn’t boiled off (want to know how I know to do this?).
[b]
Stove[/b]
1. Remove diesel fuel. I’d like to run the stove until its empty.

[b]Fresh water system[/b]
1. Drain and run a small amount of RV antifreeze through the system. Plug the drain(s) after all the coolant has run out.
[list=][/list][list=][/list]

[jkidd]

For the fresh water I just syphon the water out and pump the foot pump a few times and leave it empty. I haven't broke a fitting yet. I don't like the taste of the antifreeze when you are trying to get rid of it in the spring. As for the motor I check the oil in the foot for water and then just take the boat to Lake Powell once a month in the winter and run it.

[mcc272]

Dave --

The easiest way to drain the water tank on a C-Dory with a pump water system is to slide a length of clear plastic hose over the spout into the sink with a tight fit. Drop the other end out the side window making sure that it is long enough to reach below the bottom of the boat. Take a couple of pumps on the foot pump and go enjoy yourself while the tank empties itself. I would then remove the hose and drop a gallon of pink stuff into the tank through the deck fill and pump it out the sink spout into a container til it comes out the spout nice and pink. The reason for the pink is that you simply do not know whether you got all the water out of the pump and don't want it to crack. In the spring, fill and empty the tank several times, again with the siphon method, and you will be good to go.

Another point on your list that I would mention is the engine and draining the water from it. You really do not need RV antifreeze (aka pink). Run the engine to flush it and make sure it is in the down position. Engines are designed to drain all the water when in the down position so there is nothing in them to freeze. Do not store it tilted up as that can trap water.

If a boat is covered, you don't need to put RV antifreeze in the bilge pump. And if it is not cov ered, the bilge pump will have to work periodically unless you get the bow very high so water drains out the transom plug. The bilge pumps drain everything back through the pump when it shuts off (absent a check valve which is never a good idea to install as it restricts flow). Simply access the pump well and vacuum out the leftover water with your wet/dry vac. It is as easy as that.

In 2 decades, I have never removed the batteries from a boat for the winter. However, that said, I think that it is very important to charge them several times over the winter to keep a good charge on them. AGMs self discharge less than conventional lead acid batteries. But a 24 hour charge several times a winter has always stood me in good stead.

Hope that helps.

[T.R. Bauer]

I would strongly advise draining the carbs if you have Honda motors as they are prone to stuck floats and clogged idle passages even with fuel stabilizer. I also would drain the lower unit oil no matter what and refill with new oil as almost all of them get some water in them and it is nice not to have the gear faces rust up over the winter.

[smittypaddler]

On a spring boating trip I nearly had a heart attack because the cockpit floor was filling with water, until I realized a guest had accidentally turned on the wash-down pump which I'd failed to drain the previous fall, causing the housing to crack when it froze during the winter.

[DaveM]

Excellent comments. Thanks all!

DaveM

[Will-C]

hi,
Fogging the motor is usually done with fogging oil an aerosol type product available at most boat supply stores. I always did it by removing the air box and starting the motor while connected to a garden hose via flushing ears and sprayed the fogging oil right into each carborators air intake until the motor smoked profusley. Some actually do it till the motor stalls. On the newer 4 strokes they still remove the outside of the air box and shoot it into each air intake while running the motor. The idea was to get the back side of the intake and exhaust valves coated to prevent rust along with anything in the intake and exhaust tracts along with the cylinder walls and piston rings.
D.D.