www.iFourWinns.com

Well I've got some big problems with your procedure, and if your engine isn't closed cooled, or you don't drain the block before sucking in the AF you could wind up with a cracked block. See on a raw water cooled engine, the thermostat may not open all the way running on the water hose (cold water) on a cool fall day. So then what will happen is that the AF will go in the thermo housing...in the manifolds....out the exhaust and on the driveway but with the thermostat closed, or mostly closed, the same raw water in the block/heads just keeps re-circulating. Then there's the issue of fogging, you have to time it so the AF does not run out before you finish fogging or you will overheat the engine and ruin the impeller. So my advice based on 8 seasons of doing my boat is DON'T do it that way...
here's what I do...

First READ YOUR ENGINE MANUAL


1) put in stabil before the last run of the season...
2) Warm up boat on the water hose
3) Change motor oil and filter
4) Start engine and check for leaks at the filter and top oil off to correct level
5) Run engine again and then fog it
6) This is the most important step....drain everything, poke each drain hole with a long wood screw to make sure water comes out of EVERY drain, pull off the big hose on the front of the engine that goes from the thermo housing to the water pump on the front of the engine (that one holds a lot of water). On VP engines you probably have to disconnect the hoses on the impeller housing too...There is a power steering cooler that has to be drained on some engines too.
7) After draining, I replace the big hose at the water pump end.
Then I start pouring -100 AF in till it comes out the block drains, you can see it push out the water then you see the AF. Stop pouring, then put some marine grease on the threads of the drain plugs and replace em. Fill the engine till it comes out the thermo housing. Then re-connect the upper end of the hose to the thermo housing. Next fill the manifolds the same way till the AF runs out the exhaust. Finally fill the raw water take hose till AF runs out the water intakes on the drive. This will push water out of the raw water intake hose and usually out of the PS cooler too. I then re-connect the raw water intake hose.


Now on to the drive, I drain and replace the gear oil. I look for water in the gear oil, if none fine, if I see water I take it to the shop for a re-seal

Next I remove the drive, to check the bellows, gimble and ujoints. I grease the gimble and ujoints. Also I grease up the Cobra shift linkage. The drive then gets stored in the garage.

Finally the engine gets sprayed with a coat of Boeshield or Corrosion X.

That's about it....

Oh and on the impeller, do it in spring, so it doesn't take a set sitting in one position all winter...

Keep in mind the part about adding AF is optional, you don't have to do it, draining all the drains is the MOST IMPORTANT part of the winterization process...
I like to add AF because it does reduce corrosion...

Brian I find that interesting because my own experience with the kit sold by West Marine and others is that unless your thermostat opens then the raw water in the engine may just recirculate and not go out the exhaust to be replaced with antifreeze. I tried it one year and I checked the water drains on the block and what came out looked like rusty water. On http://www.iboats.com most of the professional boat mechanics that post there advise against using this method.

I know that you can tell if the thermo is open by feeling the top of the thermo housing, when it's cold the thermo is still closed because the incoming water bypasses the thermo outlet to the engine and goes out the manifolds. When the thermo opens, the water from the engine then exits straight up and goes out the manifolds, then the top of the thermo housing will be hot. But still it's hard to be sure the antifreeze concentration is enough for freezing temps. When your marina does it do they use the tank, or do they use a trough that recirculates the af as it comes out the exhaust, which keeps it at a higher temp and that may ensure that the thermo stays open long enough.

My concern is advising someone who has not done this before and does not know how to tell if the thermo is fully open, may feel that the engine is adequately winterized when it is not. You can't tell for sure by looking at the temp gauge because mine reads 160* when the thermo is closed (top of housing cold) and still reads 160* when it opens (top of housing hot).

I looked at a 2005 Volvo owners manual on line and they only advise the old fashioned drain method. Same with Merc and OMC. I wonder if someone under warrantee had a problem with a cracked block would they be denied coverage because the factory procedure was not followed.

I know for sure if you have to do a lot of boats that method is way faster. I think that removing the drains is a better method because it keeps them from getting rusted in place. Then if you really have to get them out one day it might be a hell of a struggle.

And for sure I would NOT wait to hear noise from the drive to decide to check the bellows. There you are going to wind up with about $1000 worth of repairs, to replace the rusted gimble and ujoints because you had water in the bellows.

Once again, Merc, Volvo and OMC in their maintenance schedules ALL advise removing the drive at the end of the season to check the bellows, gimble and ujoints. Also if you have a leak in your input shaft seal you will be leaking gear oil in the bellows and your drive will be low on oil and you will not know that unless you check the level.

If you never do this and don't grease the coupler splines, guess what happens one day....the drive won't come off...yes that happens...happens to outboards too if no one removes the lower unit to change the impeller every other year.