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We just finished our first season with our new 150 Montauk. The engine is now winterized, boat is drained, cleaned and polished. She is stored covered in an unheated garage.
The live well was drained. It's empty inside. Is there any sort of "winterizing" needed? Like anti-freeze somewhere?
If the livewell has a pump that draws raw water from outside the hull, and/or a recirculating/aerating pump, then these and their associated hose plumbing should be winterized to avoid freeze damage.
To winterize pumps and plumbing, let the pump draw non-toxic antifreeze into its inlet side, and then allow it to pump the antifreeze through the entire plumbing system.
EDIT: Note, the same should be done for any bilge or sump pump(s).
The only precaution I take for our bait live well system is to open the seacock to allow any water in the system to drain out. Unless we have bait in the well we normally operate with the system drained and the seacock closed.
Phil T wrote:
With due respect to J, I had a boat in Maine over 10 years and never touched my bilge pump when it came to winter.
Detach the hoses from the pump and run the pump dry for 5 seconds. Leave all plugs OUT.
Winterizing pumps and plumbing with antifreeze is a very standard practice. Another option is to drain and/or blow them out.
The method described by Phil above would not have worked in any boat I've owned, as there were no check valves to prevent water in the hose run from siphoning back down into the pump and bilge. Even if there had been check valves, this would have left standing water in the hose run, water which would have frozen.
I've never owned a boat where a plug could be left out to prevent water from accumulating in the bilge over the winter. That includes my current Whaler. So I winterize all the pumps and hose runs -- bilge, wash down, and live-well pumps. And a sufficient amount of antifreeze is left to pool in the bilge to prevent freeze up of any water that finds its way there.
Of course, the configuration of some boats may permit different approaches.
The pickup line is a forward facing scoop located on the bottom of the hull. No way I could feed the pump with anti-freeze unless the whole boat was immersed in a bath of it.
I have not deliberately used the live well. The seacock was open when I took delivery of the boat. The first trip out the live well filled with water, just from the water being forced thru the scoop. I took the standpipe off to drain the water, and then closed the seacock. Next trip (with the standpipe off) I had water puddling in the live well, which came up thru the open drain port. Then I put a plug in the drain hole and used the live well for storage. No further water issues.
When i put the boat away for winter i opened the seacock back up. No water came out. The plug was also removed to let it breathe.
Access to the seacock is thru a 6" inspection port. Its hard enough to reach the handle, much less work on the pump. Pulling hoses doesn't look like an option.
The pickup line is a forward facing scoop located on the bottom of the hull. No way I could feed the pump with anti-freeze unless the whole boat was immersed in a bath of it.
I have not deliberately used the live well. The seacock was open when I took delivery of the boat. The first trip out the live well filled with water, just from the water being forced thru the scoop. I took the standpipe off to drain the water, and then closed the seacock. Next trip (with the standpipe off) I had water puddling in the live well, which came up thru the open drain port. Then I put a plug in the drain hole and used the live well for storage. No further water issues.
When i put the boat away for winter i opened the seacock back up. No water came out. The plug was also removed to let it breathe.
Access to the seacock is thru a 6" inspection port. Its hard enough to reach the handle, much less work on the pump. Pulling hoses doesn't look like an option.
It can be tricky working hose clamps in a tight space. But that is how it was installed, and may someday need to be replaced. So there should be enough space to access the pump, hoses, thru-hull etc.
If you do decide to go that route, you can take the opportunity to add a "T" valve spliced between the thru-hull and the pump. That way you can leave a section of hose attached at the T fitting, and open the valve to divert the source for winterizing. Stick the hose in a gallon jug of non-toxic anti-freeze, and turn on on the pump.
It would take a little time and effort this year, but from then on it would be a matter of about two minutes to winterize the live-well pump. Really a shame Boston Whaler doesn't build this in to the plumbing at the factory. I guess they've been down in Florida too long.
