Winterizaton questions for a newbie...

S

steevireno

New Member
Sep 19, 2009
17
Lehigh Valley, PA
Boat Info
Sea Ray 210 SD
Engines
Merc 5.0 w/Bravo III
I am new to boat ownership and have recently purchased a new '08 210 SD leftover. I am a DIY'er and am interested in winterizing the boat myself but don't want to make a costly mistake.

My boat has the Merc 5.0 MPI with the Bravo III drive. My biggest concern is making sure I fully drain the engine of all water and properly add the antifreeze. The tech from the dealer gave me an overview of this process including removing 2 of the plugs (on the front port side of the engine, top and bottom) and the 3 hoses to which I will dump the anti-freeze. However, there are more plugs underneath that I haven't looked for yet as well as changing the drive oil and fogging that we didn't cover.

Also, does anyone have a PDF service manual for this set up that I could review.

I still have some time before this needs to be done, but want to make sure I review everything well ahead of time so I am ready. I am quite meticuous with the work I do, particularly to my vehicles, and no exception will be made here. That said, I have considered using the dealer for this process (and still may) but I need to savvy and knowledgeable on this process for my own benefit.

Your tips, insturctions, suggestions and advice would be appreciated.

Steve
 
Steve, below are two links that should help. In addition to them use the advanced search feature here on CSR for more info. Keep in mind the engine & cooling system you have when reading on these sites.

http://www.outdriveshop.com/winterize.html

http://mercstuff.com/winterizing.htm

ps...Use the user control panel here on CSR to add your boats specifics to your sig line as well as your location. It will help others responding to any questions you may have. Oh yeah, Welcome to CSR!
 
This is helpful but is there any place to get acutal diagrams of what the parts look like? I went to the mercstuff.com and it is saying to remove the drain plugs one at a time, next it says to remove the cooling hoses and pour anti freeze down them but im not sure what hoses are cooling and were the plug is?
Can anyone help with this?
Thanks!
 
millz90 said:
This is helpful but is there any place to get acutal diagrams of what the parts look like? I went to the mercstuff.com and it is saying to remove the drain plugs one at a time, next it says to remove the cooling hoses and pour anti freeze down them but im not sure what hoses are cooling and were the plug is?
Can anyone help with this?
Thanks!
Click to expand...

A service manual would do it.

Take a few minutes and poke around the engine bay - under, over, sideways, on your head upside down...
 
millz90 said:
This is helpful but is there any place to get acutal diagrams of what the parts look like? I went to the mercstuff.com and it is saying to remove the drain plugs one at a time, next it says to remove the cooling hoses and pour anti freeze down them but im not sure what hoses are cooling and were the plug is?
Can anyone help with this?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
This will give you some idea but a manual is the right thing to use.

http://www.marinepartsplus.com/catalog/category/engine/gas/4_cyl
 
Great i will dig up the manual. A guy around my area will come to my house and do the winterization for me for $195, which includes the following. Do you think it is worth it?

-Winterize
-Change Oil
-Gear Lube
-Pull drive and replace all Gaskets
-Grease u-Joints
-Gimbal Bearings
-Replace fuel/water separator


Should i have this done or would it be a lot cheaper to do it my self?

What do you guys think?
Thanks!
 
Well, price it out and see if it's worth it to you. Seems like a good price to me (and as mentioned above, a learning experience) but it's your money, you know?

millz90 said:
Great i will dig up the manual. A guy around my area will come to my house and do the winterization for me for $195, which includes the following. Do you think it is worth it?

-Winterize
-Change Oil
-Gear Lube
-Pull drive and replace all Gaskets
-Grease u-Joints
-Gimbal Bearings
-Replace fuel/water separator


Should i have this done or would it be a lot cheaper to do it my self?

What do you guys think?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
 
steevireno said:
I am new to boat ownership and have recently purchased a new '08 210 SD leftover. I am a DIY'er and am interested in winterizing the boat myself but don't want to make a costly mistake.

My boat has the Merc 5.0 MPI with the Bravo III drive. My biggest concern is making sure I fully drain the engine of all water and properly add the antifreeze. The tech from the dealer gave me an overview of this process including removing 2 of the plugs (on the front port side of the engine, top and bottom) and the 3 hoses to which I will dump the anti-freeze. However, there are more plugs underneath that I haven't looked for yet as well as changing the drive oil and fogging that we didn't cover.

Also, does anyone have a PDF service manual for this set up that I could review.

I still have some time before this needs to be done, but want to make sure I review everything well ahead of time so I am ready. I am quite meticuous with the work I do, particularly to my vehicles, and no exception will be made here. That said, I have considered using the dealer for this process (and still may) but I need to savvy and knowledgeable on this process for my own benefit.

Your tips, insturctions, suggestions and advice would be appreciated.

Steve
Click to expand...

Steve,

Check this out:

http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23556
 
Yeah that would be a good way to learn...what them do it. Does the drive really need to be pulled and gaskets replaced each year?
 
Not in my opinion. Unless there is something in there to grease that it needs to be pulled for, I don't know. Maybe the gimbal bearing?

Also, with winterizing, you may want to run coolant through the motor instead of draining the water. My brother in law froze a block by pulling the plugs to drain the water and they did not all drain. My mobile boat mechanic has NEVER had a block freeze, and he flushes them all with antifreeze through muffs on the outdrive. It's easier too.
 
berth control said:
My brother in law froze a block by pulling the plugs to drain the water and they did not all drain. My mobile boat mechanic has NEVER had a block freeze, and he flushes them all with antifreeze through muffs on the outdrive. It's easier too.
Click to expand...

Gotta make sure to poke the hole to be sure the water is out. But as long as that is done... good to go. Plus, you're insured you have straight anti-freeze and not a water/anti-freeze mix. Don't get me wrong, that other way can work. But, we do hundreds upon hundreds of winterizations every year - never had one crack.

I agree that the drive doesn't have to be pulled every year.

Steve - how are you making out?
 
Dennis,

Pretty good. Read through lots of material, spent about an hour in my engine bay examining things, went throught the checklists and manuals then made an appointment yesterday with you guys :)

I think I am going just let Peter's Marine handle it, at least this year. Being my firt boat and only 10 hours on it, don't want risk not doing something properly. I'll let you know if I suddenly feel brave enough to take it on myself.
 
That's probably a good idea for your first year. If you want, stop by the store on some Saturday during the winter and I can go over a lot of the stuff in the store with you.
 
You'll probably see more of me in there this winter than you bargain for - and my wife will probably be frowning as each visit will result in emptying my wallet for all the accessories I plan on purachsing :) I have Bobby busy planning some additions.
 
steevireno said:
You'll probably see more of me in there this winter than you bargain for - and my wife will probably be frowning as each visit will result in emptying my wallet for all the accessories I plan on purachsing :) I have Bobby busy planning some additions.
Click to expand...

Not a problem - I'd rather be talking to someone than cleaning floors when it's slow! :grin:

How's that boat pole working? Is it staying put next to the windshield?
 
Ha!

Actually its had a lot of use including retrieving hats from unsuspecting guests. Great investment.

I found a better place for it - I hang it behind the seat on the bimini top pole where the two poles cross. Easy to get to and out of the way.
 
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