Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Today I am winterizing the Mariah. Our son is taking it to a barn in Northern Illinois for winter hibernation. We have used this spot for years and the boat comes out as nice as it goes in. I'll change the oil and filter and grease the fittings on the out drive, including the fitting on the shaft inside the boat at the transom. Then I'll run in some anti-freeze to protect it to -30 degrees. I'll fog the motor until it stalls. I usually clean and vacuum the interior and place some dryer sheets in all the little places where the critters would like to spend the winter. I'll place two large buckets of Stay Dri - one in the bow and one in the stern on the floor to prevent mold and mildew. We always fill the tank with alcohol free gas and pour in the correct amount of Stabil. I like to fill the tires on the trailer to the proper amount (50 lbs.) including the spare.When it is in it's final hibernation spot, we'll go there and run the out drive down to it's lowest position and then remove the battery. We also put some plastic sheating over the cover, and that's the way it will stay for the next 5 months. We have done this for the last 13 years and never a problem with mice and always starts on the first try the next year.---It's a sad day---

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

All good things must come to an end..........but only til spring!!! :)
Sounds like you have the winterizing down pat. Nice procedure.

Larry

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Wow! Next year you should make a youtube video of your winterization procedure. Very thorough. And helpful!

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

the dryer sheets smell enough to keep the critter away huh ?

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I've used the Bounce dryer sheets for a few years now and they do seem to work. I stick one in the bilge hole, one in each of the storage lockers, 1 in the glove box and wherever else i can think of and have never had a problem since i started doing this. The little critters apparently dont like the smell of them.

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

The dryer sheets have worked for us for 13 years. I forgot to mention that I change the out drive oil too. It's 5:30 and I'm finally finished. The wife wanted to go out to lunch--so I didn't start the winterizing until 3:00 this afternoon. Just in time too--the weatherman predicts 30 degrees Friday night--now I won't worry about it freezing the coolant--it's good for -35 degrees. I checked my records and we ran the boat only 17 hours this year!! But what a great time we had for those 17 hours. Another summer has gone by--it's a sad day----

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I always hate closing time. Down here in Alabama I have got about 3 more weeks and it is lights out.

How do you run the outdrive all the way down? Block up the trailer? I hear a lot of guys saying they do this but no way can I make mine go all the way down. I even lowered the trailer jack all the way down.

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Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Husker Fan-- Our trailer (Prestige) is high enough to allow the out drive to be in the lowest position. It has the 5200 lb. single axle with 15" tires on 6 lug rims.

I have the chariot trailer. I bet I'm close to a foot short and that's with a broken skeg. :p

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Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Did not know about the dryer sheets, I'm putting mine to bed today.

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I agree about the dryer sheets too. I've been using them for years. I put them every where I can, storage compartments, vents, and even in the mesh holders in the top of the cabin. Helps keep the bugs away, and will help with odors too. There's nothing like opening up your cabin in the spring and it smelling like fresh linen!

Also, threejakes uses a product called "Stay Dri", you can also use "Damp Rids" or any other type of moisture absorber. There's a new product called Kanberra Gel that's just making it's way into the marine market. It's expensive, but it's a natural alternative, and helps eliminate bacterias, molds, and fungi. I got a small trial and tried it last year, seemed to work very well!

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I should also mention that I use Lime Away for cleaning the outdrive. It cleans all the white powder from the outdrive and makes it all shiny again.Just use an old 1" paintbrush and spread it all over the outdrive. Then just rinse it all off with clear water--works like a charm.

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I always put my trailer tongue as low it will go and then drop the drive as low as it will go. It is not fully down, but as long as the water drains out and the bellows aren't stretched, you should have no problem.

It's worked for the past 17 years.

But then again it's also stored inside my garage.

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

I winterized mine about 10 days to 2 weeks ago I think. I am sad too. :(

I have a spot on my back porch that is covered and butts up to the house. I dug out the dirt between the house and the cement pad and I can now lower the drive completely AND have the bow raised at a nice angle.
This pic is just between uses and I had not yet dug out the ground, but you can see the spot I am referring to.

http://i386.photobucket.com/albums/o...174948_942.jpg

Next year I am going to mod the pad a bit there so I have more room to accomplish this next year. But she is slumbering away and I can watch over her.

I miss summer already.

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Glad to hear that I`m not the only one missing summer. Brought my boat up to the cottage today to store it in one of my garages and it started snowing! Forgot about the Bounce sheets so I`ll have to return to do that. Funny how I didn`t feel the same way when I put the convertible away!!!!!

Re: Sad Day--Winterizing the Mariah
 

Tomorrow, we are going up to where the boat is stored for the winter. It was placed in the spot where it will rest all winter. We can now go there and run the outdrive all the way down and then remove the battery. We'll take it home and once a month put the charger on it, so it will be ready for the spring. (Is it too early to think about the spring?)