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To winterize or not to winterize...


eubanks

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We live in Dallas, TX where the temps don't get below freezing too often. When they do, they usually don't stay there very long. We have our boat in a dry storage out by the lake. It isn't heated but seems to stay decently warm as the boats are very well protected from the elements.

So my question is...Do we really need to worry about winterizing? I know you would rather be safe than sorry, but I also would rather not go through the hassle if we don't have to. Opinions for a newbie boat owner?

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I live in San Diego and never have. I've owned boats for 7 years here and never had a problem. I also have never heard from anyone else, dealers included, that anyone here does it. it think your weather is about the same as ours in terms of how cold it gets.

I'm not planning on it, but I also plan on riding through the winter.

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I winterize if the forcast calls for sub freezing temps for more than a day. It only takes about 30 minutes to do the whole deal. I drain it then make everything ready to go in case the weather permits.

If it is just a short freeze I place a clamp on 60 watt work light in the engine compartment. Keeps it warm as toast in there. I just don't trust the bulb if its freezing multiple days.

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We live in Dallas, TX where the temps don't get below freezing too often. When they do, they usually don't stay there very long. We have our boat in a dry storage out by the lake. It isn't heated but seems to stay decently warm as the boats are very well protected from the elements.

So my question is...Do we really need to worry about winterizing? I know you would rather be safe than sorry, but I also would rather not go through the hassle if we don't have to. Opinions for a newbie boat owner?

I would worry about the hoses for the heater/shower. I dont know about the ballast hoses or even how that works, but that may be another area of concern.

As for the block, piece of mind is great. I cant imagine it being cold enough, long enough to do damage to the block. However, for 5 minutes of your time to drain, it sure doesn't seem worth chancing it.

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I'm in the Dallas area - what I did to my VLX - pull the engine block drain plugs, water hoses, manifold hoses, transmission cooler hose...and the bilge plugs...let it all drain out...after a few minutes I reconnected everything...ready to ride/use through the winter. The current boat sits in the water and has a cabin heater as well as a bilge heater. No winterizing there, although if it is gonna be really cold for awhile I might drain the transom shower, wetbar and icemaker lines.

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