Do i have to winterize?
 

Hello

I'm fortunate to be able to store my boat at home. The boat is stored in a climate controlled garage all year. Since this will be my first winter owning a boat is it really necessary for me to drain the engine as if it were to be stored outdoors. We were hoping to get out one more time here and would then put in the fuel stabilizer and top off the tank. Later on i will make an appointment to have the outdrive oil leak serviced.
I would be interested in hearing your opinions.

Depression with no boating and early darkness.

Even though the boat is stored in a climate controlled garage, I'd still think twice about having the engine winterized. Just in case... It's probably a worst case scenario, but if you lost heat in the garage due to heater issues, or even power failure, and it got cold enough to freeze, you risk seriously damaging the engine block. Yes it sucks, but think of it this way: $100 a year or upwards of $4k for a new engine....

You should consider putting the stabilizer in before your next trip. That way you’ll clear out all of the un-stabilized gas.

I'd still winterize it.

If you're taking it in for service on the outdrive, why not just go ahead and have them drain the block and fog the motor too? Or if you're trying to save a few bucks, do that part yourself.

Winterizing the boat is pretty simple. It's a lot of small steps, but all quite easy and doable if you can follow directions. I'm pretty sure I saw instructions on here showing how to winterize, otherwise just do a quick google search and you'll have a few hundread thousand hits on how to do it.

At the very least, do what John says. Put some stabilizer in before your next trip. That way you only have stabilized fuel in the lines & tank for the winter.

Shut the motor down with a bit of engine fogger to lube those cylinder walls so they don't rust while it's sitting. Then drain the block and lines. Even if you think it won't freeze, it only takes a couple minutes to pull the plugs out of the manifolds and lines. Then you're not second guessing yourself all winter.

I'd say, at a minimum, remove the lower plug on the outdrive for a second to verify that your oil is not milky, but if you're taking it in, they'll change that oil anyway.

Keep in mind that readying your motor so it doesn't freeze is different from yearly maintenance that should be performed. Just because you make it so it doesn't freeze, you still need to change fluids, grease joints, etc.