Malibu M5 M6 winterization

[Slayer]

Which is the 4th, the heat exchanger plug, or the plug on the v-drive?  The hardest one to reach for me was the starboard side manifold drain.  The v-drive was the easiest one. 

[wdr]

Depends on if it is equipped or not. My 3/19  build didn’t have the 4th plug which would be on the hose below the heat exchanger.

[IXFE]

11 minutes ago, Slayer said:

Which is the 4th, the heat exchanger plug, or the plug on the v-drive?  The hardest one to reach for me was the starboard side manifold drain.  The v-drive was the easiest one. 

I was referring to the heat exchanger plug, but I re-read your post and missed that you called it out.

For me it was in this order (easiest to hardest)

• v-drive (1) - it's blind but easy to reach, takes 10 seconds
• manifold plugs (2) - hard to find if you're putting them in, easier if you're taking them out (cuz you can see the blue), not terrible to reach, but you're right about taking the panels out. 
• heat exchanger (1) - major pita, be prepared to stand on your head. and use the fishing line method if you're worried about dropping the plug. in my 25 LSV last year the plug hole was hidden by the fresh water hose, and sitting beneath it.  not as hard to reach in my 24 MXZ.

Edited April 19, 2021 by IXFE

[oldjeep]

And if you plan to keep the boat for a while - pick up a couple of extra blue plugs and o-rings.  Those are the same plugs that Mercury used to use on the Black Scorpion equipped Malibus back in the early 2000's.  And while they are convenient, they are pretty easy to strip/cross-thread (the blue plug) and the o-rings only last so long before they are crushed flat and brittle. 

Edited April 19, 2021 by oldjeep

[Slayer]

2 hours ago, IXFE said:

I was referring to the heat exchanger plug, but I re-read your post and missed that you called it out.

For me it was in this order (easiest to hardest)

• v-drive (1) - it's blind but easy to reach, takes 10 seconds Agreed.
• manifold plugs (2) - hard to find if you're putting them in, easier if you're taking them out (cuz you can see the blue), not terrible to reach, but you're right about taking the panels out.  Yes, the panel removal made this much easier. 
• heat exchanger (1) - major pita, be prepared to stand on your head. and use the fishing line method if you're worried about dropping the plug. in my 25 LSV last year the plug hole was hidden by the fresh water hose, and sitting beneath it.  not as hard to reach in my 24 MXZ.  With the panel removed, I could see the blue plug.  Didn't think about putting it back in, though.  I can see that being a PITA, but again with the panel removed and the PNP Bag pushed to the side I think it will be relatively simple.

Soooo happy the heater is part of the closed cooling system.  Makes winterizing so much nicer.  This was a quick drain for the next couple days due to typical freezing and snow in April in the great State of Michigan.

Edited April 19, 2021 by Slayer

[dlb]

6 hours ago, oldjeep said:

And if you plan to keep the boat for a while - pick up a couple of extra blue plugs and o-rings.  Those are the same plugs that Mercury used to use on the Black Scorpion equipped Malibus back in the early 2000's.  And while they are convenient, they are pretty easy to strip/cross-thread (the blue plug) and the o-rings only last so long before they are crushed flat and brittle. 

Are there 3rd party suppliers for these plugs? 

[Eagleboy99]

45 minutes ago, dlb said:

Are there 3rd party suppliers for these plugs? 

The OEMs are 5-7 bucks a piece.  You could probably find some on Aliexpress for a buck or two - but would you want to trust your engine to that?

 

Or $3.49 each here:  Sierra 18-4226 Drain Plug Replaces 22-806608A02  https://www.wholesalemarine.com/mercruiser-blue-plastic-drain-plug-by-sierra.html

I bet the stealership charges $20/per...,

Edited April 20, 2021 by Eagleboy99
Answering my own question...

[gahvey]

I am surprised that someone hasn't come up with a way to keep the plugs "attached" to the hole in the engine.  Kind of like a 'T' piece that sits inside the engine and is attached to the plastic plug.  You could unscrew the plug and it would fall low enough to let the water drain out, but the plug would stay attached so it is easy to put back in.

[Eagleboy99]

3 minutes ago, gahvey said:

I am surprised that someone hasn't come up with a way to keep the plugs "attached" to the hole in the engine.  Kind of like a 'T' piece that sits inside the engine and is attached to the plastic plug.  You could unscrew the plug and it would fall low enough to let the water drain out, but the plug would stay attached so it is easy to put back in.

And little parts to break off inside.  No thanks.  Add a safety leash to the plug if you must.

[gahvey]

2 minutes ago, Eagleboy99 said:

And little parts to break off inside.  No thanks.  Add a safety leash to the plug if you must.

I thought about that too....I am no engineer, just throwing it out there.

[Eagleboy99]

1 minute ago, gahvey said:

I thought about that too....I am no engineer, just throwing it out there.

My Zodiac plugs have an outside leash - that seems to work well.

[ahopkins22LSV]

55 minutes ago, gahvey said:

I am surprised that someone hasn't come up with a way to keep the plugs "attached" to the hole in the engine.  Kind of like a 'T' piece that sits inside the engine and is attached to the plastic plug.  You could unscrew the plug and it would fall low enough to let the water drain out, but the plug would stay attached so it is easy to put back in.

That would be cool but I’d prefer them to come all the way off so I can always ease my paranoia by sticking a stiff wire up the plug hole/hose to make sure it’s not blocked. I do plan on leashing mine with fishing line. 

[csleaver]

3 hours ago, gahvey said:

I am surprised that someone hasn't come up with a way to keep the plugs "attached" to the hole in the engine.  Kind of like a 'T' piece that sits inside the engine and is attached to the plastic plug.  You could unscrew the plug and it would fall low enough to let the water drain out, but the plug would stay attached so it is easy to put back in.

Someone figured that out several years ago, Volvo Penta.  Now they just have a single blue button on the front of the engine that you push down to drain all of the sea water, then pull up on it to close the drains, no plugs needed.

[Eagleboy99]

12 minutes ago, csleaver said:

Someone figured that out several years ago, Volvo Penta.  Now they just have a single blue button on the front of the engine that you push down to drain all of the sea water, then pull up on it to close the drains, no plugs needed.

My brother has a 200 hp outboard like that.  One button winterization.

[bcoppess23]

16 hours ago, Slayer said:

Soooo happy the heater is part of the closed cooling system.  Makes winterizing so much nicer.  This was a quick drain for the next couple days due to typical freezing and snow in April in the great State of Michigan.

A little tip that I learned on here.  Drill a small hole in one of the ends of the blue caps and loop fishing line through.  Makes holding onto much easier as you winterize or start back up.

[jcon44]

On 4/19/2021 at 1:09 PM, IXFE said:

I was referring to the heat exchanger plug, but I re-read your post and missed that you called it out.

For me it was in this order (easiest to hardest)

• v-drive (1) - it's blind but easy to reach, takes 10 seconds
• manifold plugs (2) - hard to find if you're putting them in, easier if you're taking them out (cuz you can see the blue), not terrible to reach, but you're right about taking the panels out. 
• heat exchanger (1) - major pita, be prepared to stand on your head. and use the fishing line method if you're worried about dropping the plug. in my 25 LSV last year the plug hole was hidden by the fresh water hose, and sitting beneath it.  not as hard to reach in my 24 MXZ.

So I actually just spoke to my dealer today about the heat exchanger plug on my M5. I found out last fall when winterizing for the first time that I don't actually have that so I pulled that hose off to drain. I was also not fun. I asked them to add the plug when I there for other warranty stuff. Needless to say they didn't add it and I needed to speak to a few people before they grasped what I was talking about but when they finally spoke to a technician he confirmed some early M5s didn't have it.

What the tech said he does on all M5/6 is pull a hose from the back of the impellor housing and blow the water out the vdrive plug hole. instead of messing with the plug at the bottom, that I don't even have. I haven't looked to confirm which hose he is pulling but will take a look the next time I am on the boat this week to get an idea.

seems like it may help me out and save ya'll (you all) some knuckles..

has anyone else heard or done this?

 

[asnowman]

11 minutes ago, jcon44 said:

seems like it may help me out and save ya'll (you all) some knuckles..

has anyone else heard or done this?

 

Nope, just pull the hose apart at the t-fitting below the heat exchanger (for the shaft seal i think) and drain it from there. You can actually reach that area, and flex the hose from the heat exchanger into the bilge to drain it.

[dtyson]

I have the M6. I called the dealer and they said if I winterized with them they would run antifreeze through the impeller and totally flush out all the water. The manual say nothing about this only that I need to pull all the drain plugs. Love to know he official requirements.

[gahvey]

pulling the plugs "should" be enough, but running antifreeze through the system is added protection and by far recommended by most people on here.

Better safe than sorry

[Surf4FamFun]

 Have not looked for it but understand that there is an environmentally safe antifreeze.

[Riverjunkie]

Im new to wake boats, Ive had an I/O for years so I'm pretty familiar with winterizing the engine, but what do you all do to winterize ballast pumps and tanks? I know to pull the bags out, but the hard tanks always have some water in them it seems.  

[gahvey]

I don't usually do anything with them except to empty them out as much as I can.  Take the bags out and go park on a hill going up hill and turn the pumps on to drain.  Should be pretty good (not perfect, but probably not enough to cause issues with freezing).

[ahopkins22LSV]

1 hour ago, gahvey said:

I don't usually do anything with them except to empty them out as much as I can.  Take the bags out and go park on a hill going up hill and turn the pumps on to drain.  Should be pretty good (not perfect, but probably not enough to cause issues with freezing).

Yup all I do too. Pumps drain themselves out every time out of the water and even if there is an inch or two left in the tanks, there is tons of room for that ice to form. That said, I definitely do my best to pump all out but I don’t sweat about it worrying if anything was left. 

[asnowman]

2 minutes ago, ahopkinsVTX said:

Yup all I do too. Pumps drain themselves out every time out of the water and even if there is an inch or two left in the tanks, there is tons of room for that ice to form. That said, I definitely do my best to pump all out but I don’t sweat about it worrying if anything was left. 

Same here, i have a nice hill in my driveway, so i run the tanks as dry as i can with bow high in the driveway.

I do disconnect the bags and clean and dry them out though. Then they get put back in and reconnected before the boat goes in storage.

[theloungelife]

On 9/16/2021 at 7:56 AM, Riverjunkie said:

Im new to wake boats, Ive had an I/O for years so I'm pretty familiar with winterizing the engine, but what do you all do to winterize ballast pumps and tanks? I know to pull the bags out, but the hard tanks always have some water in them it seems.  

I disconnect all the bags.  Then use a shop vac and suck out all the water in the lines from the bag side and from the thru hull outlets as well.  Leave bags disconnected for winter.  Haven't had anything break with that method.  On this note, I love my Ridgid 18V shop vac for this.  I have one specifically for boat water with the wet appllication foam filter