How far south

Arickosmo

Arickosmo

Member
Apr 10, 2012
307
Middle Coast
Boat Info
2003 400DB
Engines
Mercruiser 8.1L
I live in Indiana. We absolutely winterize and occasionally didn't need to. If you were trying to move your boat to a climate where winterization was merely a formality and was done as more of a precaution than a necessity how far south would you go? I'm changing careers and my wife is pretty mobile so we're debating on where to move. I would like the ability to go boating even in winter but to be honest, I'm not really ready to move to Florida. I always have a bilge heater and can easily do a "quick" winterization myself. We really prefer freshwater boating anyway.

What lakes stay fairly active during the winter months? For that matter, how far north can we go on the coast and boat all year?
 
NC coast here, very few nights much below freezing. Bilge heaters and heat on, good to go.
 
You probably meant east coast, but I'll respond just in case. I'm in Northern California. No need to winterize and I boat year round.

Dan
 
Wylie_Tunes said:
We are in NC, right on the SC line, mid state west to east, and need to winterize against freezing here.
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Just to amend my original post. I typically have trailer boats on the brain as they are about 90% of what I work on. Yes, they need winterized. However, larger boats wet-slipped do not need drained. Our lakes dont freeze and typically hover above 50F. So with the boat in the water, the engine should not freeze. I do know a few customers that run bilge heaters but most do not.
 
Wylie_Tunes said:
Just to amend my original post. I typically have trailer boats on the brain as they are about 90% of what I work on. Yes, they need winterized. However, larger boats wet-slipped do not need drained. Our lakes dont freeze and typically hover above 50F. So with the boat in the water, the engine should not freeze. I do know a few customers that run bilge heaters but most do not.
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AH HA! Now we're talking! Although I don't want to be on most rivers, that gives me a starting point. Knoxville, Nashville? You guys winterizing religiously? I sure wouldn't mind being on the TN river/lake series.
 
This will be our first winter in a slip on Lake Lanier, GA. We will buy a bilge heater and boat year round. Until this year, our 260DA was on a trailer and I winterized. Bilge heater and if necessary, blow out the water lines only if forecasts dictate. Last winter, no need to even winterize on the trailer.

Bennett
 
Arickosmo said:
AH HA! Now we're talking! Although I don't want to be on most rivers, that gives me a starting point. Knoxville, Nashville? You guys winterizing religiously? I sure wouldn't mind being on the TN river/lake series.
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Charlotte NC area but any trailer boat. dry rack or lift I suggest a typical winterizing. Boats left floating, should not freeze. Two large lakes are a river, but not really a river. Wylie and Norman.
 
Nashville--nope: bilge heaters/cabin heaters, done. The first year I had mine, 2013, winter was beastly....a few weeks of freezing weather both day and night where we got ice in the slips. Hasn't been like that since, though I think there was a long snap like that either the year before or a couple of years before. Otherwise, we just don't get below freezing very often/very long.

There are plenty of folks who do winterize completely, of course, but then again....maybe they aren't BOATERS, after all! Those in our crew who trailer winterize; those in wet slips don't, and we have some unofficial live aboards on our little lake, as well. When a pretty day hits, at least one of us launches and brings the rest of the gang.

If we had a working generator, FM and I would be out for overnights a lot more often in the cold months. As it is, we enjoy hanging with friends/family at the dock, or at the marina bar/restaurant, as it stays open all year with lower food/bev prices in the winter.

The pic is average monthly temps in Nashville.

Temps.jpg
 
Arickosmo said:
AH HA! Now we're talking! Although I don't want to be on most rivers, that gives me a starting point. Knoxville, Nashville? You guys winterizing religiously? I sure wouldn't mind being on the TN river/lake series.
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Guntersville Lake is a good spot on the TN River network of lakes. That’s where I’d go (but I grew up in Huntsville so I am kinda biased).
 
Lake Norman (Charlotte NC area). My 290DA stayed in a slip year around and I never winterized - had a bilge heater. Many cruiser on LKN that do the same. Trailer or rack / lift stored boats mostly winterize. Boating here is year around, except maybe Jan/Feb, but even then you can hit a 60deg day. Generally summer weather is late May-Oct, but we can have some cold weather. Usually get one or two snows and a cold snap with some nights in the 10's. If you like 4 seasons, a mild winter and the ability to use your boat year around, it could be for you. 4 large lakes in the Carolinas and George (Norman, Wylie, Hartwell and Lanier). If you are looking 3 seasons of summer and one season of very mild winter you need to go farther south.
 
Does anyone know if winterization is necessary in Charleston SC?
 
I boat in NC in the piedmont region.....we also have a mountain region which has colder weather than this region and a coastal region that has warmer weather....when I had smaller trailer boats all I did was drain the water from the engine and exhaust for winterization...air does not freeze so I had no issues....no need for winterizing with anti-freeze in this area in my opinion....our winters are fairly short and we do not get sustained very cold temps so protection from extreme freezing temps for long periods of time and corrosion protection was not a real concern.......normally I would not start thinking about draining the water from the boats until around Thanksgiving (late November) each year.....then we would normally have the boat back in the water by the following March....it takes about 15 mins to drain the water from the engine and exhaust...so if a nice day comes around after you have drained the water you can use the boat that day and spend another 15 mins at the end of the day to winterize it again....

for my 340 cruiser it stays in the water full time and I do not winterize...the only thing I do is plug the engine room vents with sponges to keep the warm air in the ER and cold air out.....I do have a bilge heater also but it almost never comes on.....our water temp rarely falls below 45*F and the temp in my ER will stay within a couple degrees of the water temp....my bilge heater is set to come on at 40*F.....

cliff
 
Well you could always look a bit farther South to the Big Easy. We don't winterize here. Last year we had a few nights of temps into the high 20s but always above freezing during the day. And we can typically boat year-round but of course you need to pick your days.

I just relocated from California to the north side of Lake Pontchatrain in the town of Covington. Its a great place to live. Lot's to do, great number of city activities and how can you not like a place where its legal to drink in public!
 
My old 240 was kept on a rack and definitely required Winterizing. But Chez-nous lives in the water year round. The only thing I do is plug the engine room vents with foam strips cut to fit and make sure the bilge heater has power. Then set the cabin temperature to 55 degrees to avoid freezing water lines.
 
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