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supervol0509
10-29-2014, 02:29 PM
I've started my first winterization and maintenance process. Learning a lot, but still have a long way to go. Some questions:

1. Replaces transmission and v-drive fluids last weekend. I found it difficult to read the transmission fluid dipstick. It looks like the fluid is up to the second tick mark. Is this fine? Is it a big deal to overfill? Is my target fill range between the two tick marks/bumps?

2. The engine manual recommends replacing the fuel filter during winterization. Does anyone know a make and model of fuel filter that would work for my boat? I can pull it out and look, but the boat is stored by the lake, so I'll have to go pull it out, look, then go to an auto parts store. If anyone happens to know, it would save me some time.

3. Winterization - I just called a place up by the storage place that will do winterization. This is just in case I run out of time. They said they are draining the block, and then pumping antifreeze back in. They said that some people had ended up with damage after last year's cold winter, and most manufacturers recommended pumping in antifreeze, nowadays. From looking through the "How To" threads, it appears that antifreeze is not recommended by the board, and that it shouldn't be required, if the block is drained. Should I be pumping in antifreeze? If so, how? I read that the antifreeze wouldn't even enter the block up to a certain engine temp.

Thanks.

wolfeman131
10-29-2014, 02:32 PM
I think I paid less than $200 for Atlanta Marine to winterize my boat least season.

IMO, much less hassle than #3 above plus I don't waste time worrying if I did it correctly.

bergermaister
10-29-2014, 02:44 PM
Have a look. Many many questions answered.

https://forum.moomba.com/showthread.php?6925-Winterization-Procedure-with-pics-new-and-improved

viking
10-29-2014, 02:47 PM
I normally flush RV antifreeze and then Drain. Probably overkill but peace of mind nonetheless. Drain block/manifolds of water, fill catch tub with approx 6 gallons of RV anti-freeze, place catchtub under the exhaust with a hose to your raw water intake. Run it to operating temp and shut off. Then drain block, manifolds, ect... again and whatever liquid is left anywhere will be majority RV antifreeze. I did this when I stored in unheated garage. Now I mainly drain and that's it since its winter home is a heated shop.

Your best bet on fuel filter is to take it in to parts store and get a replacement. Buy 2 so you don't have to do the same thing next time.

Recommended way to check tranny fluid is to do it in the water. Double check it all again next time to put in to see where it shows.

supervol0509
10-29-2014, 03:35 PM
I normally flush RV antifreeze and then Drain. Probably overkill but peace of mind nonetheless. Drain block/manifolds of water, fill catch tub with approx 6 gallons of RV anti-freeze, place catchtub under the exhaust with a hose to your raw water intake. Run it to operating temp and shut off. Then drain block, manifolds, ect... again and whatever liquid is left anywhere will be majority RV antifreeze. I did this when I stored in unheated garage. Now I mainly drain and that's it since its winter home is a heated shop.

Your best bet on fuel filter is to take it in to parts store and get a replacement. Buy 2 so you don't have to do the same thing next time.

Recommended way to check tranny fluid is to do it in the water. Double check it all again next time to put in to see where it shows.

Got it on the fuel filter, and I'll check it when we put it in next Spring.

As I said, I'm new to this, so I don't quite understand your antifreeze process. I imagine the water pump is made to operate with the boat in the water, and there is sufficient pressure to keep the pump from cavitating. I would think the pump would cavitate if you were just sucking at the intake, without any positive pressure... even worse, it may not be pulling any water at all, and the pump could be running dry. Maybe it's not a huge deal, since the impeller is replaced so often...

supervol0509
10-29-2014, 03:41 PM
I think I paid less than $200 for Atlanta Marine to winterize my boat least season.

IMO, much less hassle than #3 above plus I don't waste time worrying if I did it correctly.

I'm Atlanta area, too. The place I spoke with is doing fuel stabilizer, fogging, draining block, and repumping full of antifreeze for $99. Kind of want to learn how to do this myself, though. All of this maintenance will be a breeze the second time, and will probably save me at least $1,000/year, versus taking it to a marina or dealer.

VA LSV
11-01-2014, 06:41 AM
Fuel filter - Napa 3299

gregski
11-03-2014, 12:28 PM
Kind of want to learn how to do this myself, though. All of this maintenance will be a breeze the second time, and will probably save me at least $1,000/year, versus taking it to a marina or dealer.
Beyond the cost savings, I think it's a really good idea to do some of this basic maintenance yourself because: 1) it forces you to understand the various components of your boat and 2) it forces you to actually look at the working bits at least once a year. Plus none of it is very difficult, it's easier than working on a car.

I don't fill with antifreeze, I just drain. But for the antifreeze process: the raw water pump (impeller) has enough suction to lift water from a bucket. The concept is to create a small closed loop system where the pump pulls water/antifreeze from a bucket, it goes through the engine, out the exhaust and is caught back in the bucket thus closing the loop. You should use a non-collapsible hose to get from the bucket to the pump (I think some people have said they can use a garden hose, but I wouldn't) I would drain the water first so that the antifreeze actually fills the water jacket. Otherwise, you would need to run it in this configuration for a sufficient time for the engine to warm up, open the thermostat and fully mix the antifreeze with the water in the jacket - otherwise the antifreeze would simply bypass the engine and go out the exhaust.

rdlangston13
11-03-2014, 03:55 PM
How are people hooking the hose up to the suction on the boat to suck up the antifreeze???

gregski
11-03-2014, 06:00 PM
To use a garden hose, I disconnect the intake hose at the V-drive (the hose from the thru-hull) I use a small length of 1-1/4" hose that I connect to the V-drive with hose clamps exactly like the hose I just disconnected. Then I've got a couple of adapters to get from a 1-1/4" barb fitting to a garden hose. Just go to the hardware store and start playing with the gizmos and doo-hickeys until you get a combination that works. It took me 3-4 adapters to get there since they typically only step one size at a time, maybe about $10 in parts.

To do the anti-freeze from a bucket, I'd probably do about my same setup but use a reinforced hose instead of a garden hose.

valleywine
11-03-2014, 10:34 PM
How are people hooking the hose up to the suction on the boat to suck up the antifreeze???

I cut the intake hose, put a tee fitting in there with a reducer down to a 3/4" laundry hose which I cap off when not in use. Also need to install an inline ball valve so you can cut off the boat suction when using the hose or sucking from a bucket. Then I cut a hole in the bucket and used a drain pan fitting to connect a hose back to the vdrive water intake. The bucket collects exhaust liquid and recirculates to the Vdrive. It's way easier than it sounds. The hardest part is finding the parts at the hardware store.

brain_rinse
11-03-2014, 10:56 PM
http://i297.photobucket.com/albums/mm219/dan_powers/08%20Moomba%20Mobius%20LSV/fakealake.jpg

parrothd
11-03-2014, 11:36 PM
I stole this design from someone else..http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/11/03/61e99e4e144f89567c0794586c728389.jpg

http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/11/03/eca888fdd0accbaceb5b22db7f0710a0.jpg

uniwarking
11-04-2014, 08:40 AM
I let the dealer do my winterization despite the ease of doing so (stabil, fog, drain, antifreeze). I chose to do the engine oil and filter as well as the vdrive and transmission... that's where the real savings come in (plus I can use the fluids of my choosing) Plus, just in case something were to happen... it would be on the dealer. My dads block froze last year in his I/O... not a good deal!

I went with Mobil 1 15W50 per Indmar's recommendation... plus it's $22 for 5 qrts at Walmart. Then I used Royal Purple SAE30 for the vdrive and Royal Purple ATF in the transmission. I ran it once before I winterized and that RP really quiets down the drivetrain.

jzelt
11-06-2014, 04:19 PM
I put stabil in the fuel.

I took the smallest rubber flex connector Lowes sells and attach that to the intake on the v-drive and have a ball valve plumbed inline with a fitting to go to the garden hose.

1 1/2" to 1 1/2" flex fitting http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/611918/611918018492lg.jpg
90 degree pvc elbow to get the hose connection up to reachable area
Ball shutoff valve connected to elbow
Garden hose female fitting

(I have built a plunger fake-a-lake type fitting before this route, but moving in the boat always caused me concern with it not staying in place during warmup, thus no water and it was tough to keep a tight seal to the bottom of the boat).

This allows me to turn the water on in the house, get in the boat, then turn the water supply on to the motor and start it up. Run it up to temp and then a little more. When warm, I start sucking out the oil, change the filter, refill with new, and while draining the oil, go around and pull the block plugs and manifold hose connection.

In a 5 gal bucket, I add 2 new gallons of pure antifreeze (non diluted and not 50/50), then I also add in 2-3 gallons of watered down antifreeze (which I collected in 2 5 gal buckets from running it in the spring to clear it out).

Take a short piece of garden hose running on the same fitting to the bucket, start the boat, run to 1500 rpm and suck it up, when it is done, shut the motor off.

Then I pull the spark plugs, squirt some fogging oil in each cylinder, clean the flame arrestor and spray motor with some silicon spray to protect.

rdlangston13
11-11-2014, 01:46 PM
I let the dealer do my winterization despite the ease of doing so (stabil, fog, drain, antifreeze). I chose to do the engine oil and filter as well as the vdrive and transmission... that's where the real savings come in (plus I can use the fluids of my choosing) Plus, just in case something were to happen... it would be on the dealer. My dads block froze last year in his I/O... not a good deal!

I went with Mobil 1 15W50 per Indmar's recommendation... plus it's $22 for 5 qrts at Walmart. Then I used Royal Purple SAE30 for the vdrive and Royal Purple ATF in the transmission. I ran it once before I winterized and that RP really quiets down the drivetrain.

Where did you get the royal purple SAE30? I can't find it in that weight at any of the stores by my house


Sent from my iPhone

gregski
11-11-2014, 06:59 PM
Where did you get the royal purple SAE30? I can't find it in that weight at any of the stores by my house
Are you asking generally about SAE30 or specifically about Royal Purple? Most of the big box auto parts stores around me carry SAE30 but it can be a trick to find, usually by the tranny fluids but not always - ask for "30 straight weight" or "non detergent"; the bottle will usually be label as "non detergent" or "ND 30". I don't know about Royal Purple specifically. I think Autozone only had their brand and one major brand like Valvoline.

rdlangston13
11-11-2014, 07:12 PM
I was wanting to know specifically where to buy royal purple SAE30. It not needed I know but uniwarking did claim that it cut down on his drive train noise


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gregski
11-11-2014, 08:39 PM
OK.

I always wonder how much of these observations are placebo effect. A pure, refined oil is just that. I'm not sure how one brand can really be better than another. At least with normal oils you can argue that one brand has secret super-dooper awesome additives that the other guys can't match.

DOCDRS
11-12-2014, 12:40 AM
I use penzoil mellow yellow sae 30 where indicated......

uniwarking
11-15-2014, 10:19 AM
I was wanting to know specifically where to buy royal purple SAE30. It not needed I know but uniwarking did claim that it cut down on his drive train noise


Sent from my iPhone

I got the SAE 30 and ATF from Amazon. Cheaper than the auto stores and they had to order it anyway.


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uniwarking
11-15-2014, 10:26 AM
OK.

I always wonder how much of these observations are placebo effect. A pure, refined oil is just that. I'm not sure how one brand can really be better than another. At least with normal oils you can argue that one brand has secret super-dooper awesome additives that the other guys can't match.

I would agree for the most part, however, the royal purple additive package performs more like a gear lube (I even read this on the Mobil 1 q&a). I don't care to use it in my engine but it sure seems to make sense in a vdrive gear box. It may have been placebo effect but it sure seemed to quiet down the gear train noise... Especially when decelerating.

On a side note, the vdrive capacity is a full qt., the Indmar manual has a misprint. I checked the Walters documentation, verified with the dipstick and then let Indmar know as well... They're updating the next printing.


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Beejwest
12-05-2014, 04:47 PM
I finally got around to winterizing last week. Ran Rotella T Triple 15w-40, and the Delco filter. Used RV antifreeze after the oil change and re-run, I had a piece of 1 1/4" Reinforced clear hose laying around that I connected to the Vdrive to suck up the antifreeze out of a bucket. I just made sure the engine was nice and hot, shut off the motor, killed the water, swapped to my bucket house and fired the engine back up. Once I had sucked up all 6 gallons, I shut off the motor, ran my shower until it all turned pink and drained the starboard side of the block. Then I pulled the muffler drain plug to make sure it was pure antifreeze and drained that. Should be turnkey ready for next year.

I used a venturi siphon to suck the Transmission and engine oil out. Pulled exactly 4 quarts of engine oil, and about 3/4's of a quart out of the filter. Got exactly 1.5 quarts of ATF out. My venturi wouldnt pull the 30 weight out of the Vdrive so I need to come up with a solution for that. Then I shop vac'd all the ballast lines out, as well as the strainer. Done. Total time about 1.5 hours.

bergermaister
12-05-2014, 05:00 PM
...and DIY savings $250+ :cool:

Beejwest
12-05-2014, 05:15 PM
How's everyone else get the vdrive oil out?

Boonejeepin
12-05-2014, 07:13 PM
I was able to pull all the oil out of the dipstick plug with this unit.http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/12/05/5727f3ff99edcfe54f8f35d6ac9825c7.jpghttp://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/12/05/9e759448508f779c47d199e282dd075b.jpghttp://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/12/05/ee332cf8fcdc0a4f49de891a8646cf80.jpg

bergermaister
12-05-2014, 07:50 PM
Russ - do you use that for engine oil as well?

Boonejeepin
12-05-2014, 09:07 PM
Russ - do you use that for engine oil as well?

I do. I pull the remote hose through the transom bilge plug hole and then insert the tube (that sounds wrong). Helps to keep any mess outside of the boat. Really speeds up the drain process.

viking
12-06-2014, 12:43 AM
I've got basically the same oil extractor and do my engine oil every year and tranny every few!

Beejwest
12-06-2014, 01:20 PM
Given that I've started a new job and for the next 8 months, took a 60% paycut, I have decided I would try to make a vacuum pump. I can get all the parts at Home Depot for around $15. I plan to use my shop vac to pull vacuum on a 5 gallon bucket, very similar to the drywall dust vacuum systems. I think the shop vac will pull enough vacuum to do the job. If not, I have all the stuff purchased to make the drywall vacuum when I finish my basement next year.

I'll let y'all know how it goes and post some pics if it works well.