Winterize with vodka

G

GxK

New member
Ed Devlin, from whom I purchased my TomCat 24, said that he winterized the water system aboard the boat--There is no water heater--by pouring 40 ounces of vodka into the tank and briefly activating the galley foot pump and the freshwater washdown pump. This approach worked well for him for four winters on Long Island.

I'm located in slightly colder climes where temps just above and below freezing will be the norm for the next three months but I'm tempted to follow the same winterizing techinque. At Last is on the hard for the winter.

Any comments, pro or con, on the vodka approach?

Is anti-freeze a a better way to go? If so, what kind of anti-freeze?

--Georgs
 
The pink anti-freeze is probably cheaper than vodka. I bought a gallon bottle at Bass Pro for maybe $6. It was made by Star Brite and is for RV's and boats. I think it is readily available, especially at this time of year. Try Walmart or, or a sporting goods store.

Rob
 
Just be careful of what your dilution to the water is.

Reminds me of a true story. When I lived in North Bend we had an overnight visit by a distant relative and his 15 y/o son who was into drugs and alcohol and were on their way to a rehab center for the boy. I had a half gallon of gin in the freezer unopened. The next evening when I went to pour myself a martini I discovered that the bottle was frozen. Obviously our diminutive friend didn't realize that 80 proof alcohol does not freeze in a normal freezer. I did some tests later and determined that he had drank half of the half gallon.

He came out of rehab okay and is presently doing okay. (He later sent me a check for the cost of the gin)

So just be careful of what your dilution to the water is.
 
Georgs-

A little Search with the word "vodka" reveals the following from Rogerbum:


In general, I agree with Tom for those of us in the Northwest. Use the boat all year - think it's better to make sure the engines run every couple of weeks.

However, in John's case, in "sunny" Meredith NH, where Lake Winnepesaukie can freeze over to a depth of 3-4 feet in winter, some real winterizing is in order. I'd recommend draining the fresh water and then pouring in a bottle of so of cheap vodka or rum as anti-freeze and pumping it a bit to get some in the line. You can never get the things completely drained and this is a nice, safe antifreeze and the after taste is OK. Also, shut-off the fuel and run the engines dry, then (if carbureted), fog the carburettors. Add stabil to fuel in the tanks. Pull the batteries and toss them on a trickle charger about once a month. If the boat is going to be buttoned up tight, put some desicant inside.

If the boat is stored inside and won't get too cold, leave the batteries in and if you have shore power and chargers, plug the shore power in. Then buy a heater and set it to come on a little above freezing - West Marine sells one for this purpose as most home space heaters don't have a thermostat that goes low enough. This is what I do for my boat in winters in Seattle. Mine's outside but we do get some below freezing weather in Jan.

Roger on the SeaDNA

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(I included more than just the discussion of the use of vodka above as it is relevant to the other discussions about winterizing that are current.)

After this, and several other similar discussions, we concluded that one could always make use of this anti-freeze cocktail to numb one's body if dire circumstances caused us to get stuck on the boat in really cold weather.
 
Rob & Karen":mn2uolfx said:
The pink anti-freeze is probably cheaper than vodka. I bought a gallon bottle at Bass Pro for maybe $6. It was made by Star Brite and is for RV's and boats. I think it is readily available, especially at this time of year. Try Walmart or, or a sporting goods store.

Rob
Click to expand...

Be sure you get the pink stuff - RV antifreeze. We paid around $3/gallon for it at Wal-Mart. It takes some flushing to get it out of the system (part of the reason you don't want to fill a hot water tank). If it isn't all out, the water will be foamy and taste a bit soapy. For that reason, vodka may be a better choice. :wink: (Sundowners "on tap"? :mrgreen: )
 
Yes - and if you use tequila, you can pour some mixer in before the first launch and have margarita's made on the way to the ramp! :cocktail
 
I would say any suitable spirit of 80 proof or better would work. If you don't like gin or vodka, you could use Jack Daniels or some type of blended scotch. I don't think I would use a good single malt since the residual water would dilute it too much. The choice of spirit would be what you wanted to drink in the spring as you de-winterize the boat.
 
Unless the Tomcat system is much more complicated than the 22' I would just undo the clamp at the footpump which will allow the small amount of water in the rubber bulb to drain. I soak it up with a few paper towels. The cheap vinyl hose between the pump and the water tank has never been damaged during winters in my location. I also drain the short section between the faucet and the output side. The clamps are easy to undo on my boat.
 
Thanks to one and all for comments and advice.

I've been persuaded to go looking for the appropriate anti-freeze, as it may be more effective and certainly is cheaper.

--Georgs
 
I don't winterize our boat....no need ... I do take all the water out when we are not using it..... but I think I screwed up.... I have been putting in a cup of bleach to kill the greenies... I think that has attacked my foot pump...cause now when I flush the bleach water...and flush with fresh water I now see crud that looks like it came from the inside of the foot pump....uah !
I don't drink that water anyhow... but now I wouldn't even use it to cook with.... my current plan is to replace it with a pressure pump and a foot operated switch.... in the future I think I will buy some cheep gin and use that.... (plus maybe then I will start drinking water, my doctor is always pushing me to drink 9 glasses a day)

Joel
SEA3PO
 
On my trailer I quite using the RV antifreeze, it takes for ever to get the taste out of the system. Now I blow the system out with pressurized air, works great. Never having the opportunity to evaluate the Tomcat water system I’m not sure how this would work.
I just open the each facet and shove a robber tipped nasal in a blow. I go around to each facet a few time until all I can hear is air moving through the pipes.
I don’t believe there’s drain cock on the 22 cd water tank, not sure about the Tomcat either, but adding one would be an added convenience I’d think.
Since I’m generally a Gin drinker, running a bottle of cheep vodka through the system sounds like a desirable alternative.

Salute,
:cocktail
 
The only thing I would add to Dan's advice-if you just have to use gin please use that awful cheap stuff like Beefeaters or Monarch. Anyone using Bombay Sapphire will be shot at dawn!
 
Since I keep my boat in a covered marina in S.W. WA, where the temps average 5-7 degrees warmer than Seattle, the only way I winterize my boat is to use it.... every 2-3 weeks throughout the winter and go sturgeon fishing. After reading this thread I was just about ready to go out and install a water tank, just so I could winterize it with a gallon or so of Jack Daniels and then spend about a month or two to empty it... and then those common sense comments from Dogon Dory had to appear..... C.W.
 
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