Electrical equipment over the winter?

[Our Serenity]

What does one do with the electrical equipment that cannot be removed from the boat over the winter (especially in the North East and other rather cold areas of the country)? I am specifically referring to the GPS and any other electrical equipment that are affixed to the boat. We are planning on taking out the fishfinder and VHF since these are mounted on brackets and can be removed without ripping off part of the dashboard.

We will be storing the boat outside in a boat yard with shrink wrap without access to full time electrical power. Should we put some blankets on the helm to try and minimize direct contact the freezing air (does that even work?) Or is there nothing to be done other than stay warm in front of the fire place until boating season returns to the Long Island Sound?

I did a search of the forums, which was not helpful, and read through almost all of the threads in the Winterizing forum but did not see anything on point. If I missed a thread, please post a link to it as a reply as I don't want to waste anyone's time if this has already been discussed.

Thanks in advance,
Alicia

 

[Larry]

I have never heard of anybody having any issues with there electronics staying on board over the winter other then theft. Anything you can remove easily I would, and anything with a plug on it (any accessable electrical fittings i.e. light bulb bases, dash switch's) I would spray with "Boeshield", this is a great protectant/lubricant.

 

[katricol]

Other than theft, I see no issue. A cover for your dash is a good idea to keep the sun off .

 

[Sea Gull]

If you read the manuals for your electronics you will probably find that they should not be operated below a certain temperature. But winter cold should not be a problem if they are sitting dormant. I remove anything that could easily be stolen, but leave all installed electronics.

Be sure to take measures to minimize condensation, that is what can kill the electronics more than the cold. Vent the whrink wrap and put some type of moisure absorbing material in the cabin.

 

[Lazy Daze]

I've only ever had one piece of equipment (fishfinder) go bad over winter. It did look as if the LCD had frozen somehow and cracked the screen. But, that would be the extreme exception, certainly not the norm. In fact, I would be surprised if anyone else had something similar happen. It was a fluke. More than likely what happened was because it was a cheap unit and it allowed water to get in. This was about 15 years ago.

 

[Alex F]

If you read the manuals for your electronics you will probably find that they should not be operated below a certain temperature.

I just remembered this thread while reviewing specs for ST60 tridata display, so here's an example of what Sea Gull suggested:

Environmental
Operating temperature range-15°C to +55°C
Non-operating temperature range-25°C to +70°C
Humidityup to 95%
Waterproofing standardIPX6 & CFR46