Winterize

[STLtige2216]

just got my 2001 tige 22i this summer any help with winterizing?

[ajholt7]

Do a search. There are tons of threads on winterizing.

[chpthril]

You've picked the perfect time to jump im. There are a couple of active threads on winterizing right now. You can also use the search button at the top of the page.

Specifics will change with boat year, model and engine, but the basics are the same: treat fuel, change oil, drain water, charge batteries.

[Tstick333]

So if I do those four things I should be good?

1. Treat fuel
2. Drain Oil
3. Drain water
4. Take batteries out and store them in my house

Thanks for any help. First time winterizer here!

[hicrawler]

Fastest way I have found was using a homemade "fake a lake." Just run the boat on the trailer with water from your house for about 5 minutes to warm the motor up. Drain the water from the engine drains. Then run the "fake a lake" in a bucket filled with antifreeze until it comes out of the exhaust. While I am running the antifreeze in the motor I spray penetrating oil down the carb also.

[hicrawler]

Note- When using a fake a lake you will need a submersable water pump to help the coolant and water enter the suction side of the motor. I bought mine from Harbor Freight for like $10 and plumbed with a garden hose to the plunger. If you don't use a pump I don't think you will get enough volume to keep the motor cool.

[NICKYPOO]

Note- When using a fake a lake you will need a submersable water pump to help the coolant and water enter the suction side of the motor. I bought mine from Harbor Freight for like $10 and plumbed with a garden hose to the plunger. If you don't use a pump I don't think you will get enough volume to keep the motor cool.

I've never heard of that. While a garden hose is low pressure, its enough to keep the motor plenty cool so long as you're not racing the motor.

[IDBoating]

I've never heard of that. While a garden hose is low pressure, its enough to keep the motor plenty cool so long as you're not racing the motor.

x2.

Use the spray from around the Fake-a-Lake to indicate whether your engine is getting sufficient water. I have 60 PSI (very average) on my garden hose spigot, and I have excess water spraying out from around the Fake-a-Lake unless I take the RPM's to over 2000 (at which point the vacuum and volume of the engine's impeller pump is sufficient to consume all the water the hose can supply). As long as you have some "overspray" and also have water coming out of the exhaust, there's more water available than the engine is demanding and you should be fine.

[TRD]

Note- When using a fake a lake you will need a submersable water pump to help the coolant and water enter the suction side of the motor. I bought mine from Harbor Freight for like $10 and plumbed with a garden hose to the plunger. If you don't use a pump I don't think you will get enough volume to keep the motor cool.

I use a fake a lake several times a year and add nothing else to it. It works fine, just make sure the cup is around the inlet so when the boat is running no water is coming out. Water will come out before I start the boat and after I shut it off, otherwise it doesn't. Boat temp is fine, just keep an eye on it.

[hicrawler]

The main reason I use the pump is so I can put the coolant in a 5 gallon bucket. The pump acts as the water pressure coming from my garden hose. When I'm not winterizing and just want to run the boat while on the trailer I put the garden hose in the bucket to keep it full of water.

[IDBoating]

The main reason I use the pump is so I can put the coolant in a 5 gallon bucket. The pump acts as the water pressure coming from my garden hose.

Since the raw water pump on the engine is an impeller design, I would think it could generate enough vacuum to pull the water out of a bucket with a short section of hose. But I'm glad you have a solution that works for you!

[chpthril]

Since the raw water pump on the engine is an impeller design, I would think it could generate enough vacuum to pull the water out of a bucket with a short section of hose. But I'm glad you have a solution that works for you!

But the fitting in the fake-a-lake is probably a .5" ID.

[IDBoating]

But the fitting in the fake-a-lake is probably a .5" ID.

True... but I can still see the difference when the engine is off, vs. when it's idling, vs. when I rev it up. The "overspray" goes from lots to some to none. Since the hose pressure isn't changing, it must be the vacuum that is changing as RPM's increase... and it's happening through whatever ID is on that F-a-L's hose fitting. So the vacuum must be increasing, and if it were trying to suck fluid from a bucket through a short hose that's not hard work for an impeller pump.

As long as he's happy, no problem-o!

[TRD]

I'll be honest w/ you guys. I talked w/ Chptril years ago about this. When I run my boat off of the fake a lake my temp never comes up because the water stays cold. It will come up for a second and drop right down. Now I just use what Chptril told me to do, drian the block and remove the 4 top hoses off the thermostate and pour RV antifreeze in the hoses. I use about 2 gal and this protects the the block, manifolds and fuel cooler. This way if we have a warm day, it only costs me 2 more gal of antifreeze and gas money if we want to make a couple of runs.

[IDBoating]

I'll be honest w/ you guys. I talked w/ Chptril years ago about this. When I run my boat off of the fake a lake my temp never comes up because the water stays cold.

An engine running on the trailer doesn't warm very fast because there's almost no load on the engine. You can hit the rev limiter and still be running hardly any fuel through the engine at all.

Little fuel = little work = little heat.