What notice does the boat give to an improper winterization?

[tjrowbot]

I hope that I never find this out personally, but what are the signs of an improperly winterized boat specific to the motor? I remember reading a thread where the member wrote the boat ran fine until he checked the milky oil and knew something was wrong. Any steps in the first water test of the year that are common?

[jpwhit]

There is no single / simple answer to this question. It ranges from the block is cracked and the boat immediately overheats, to much more subtle issues such as a tiny crack in the exhaust system that causes no immediate issue, but lets water get into a cylinder and rusts that cylinder over time.

[waterlogged882]

I hope that I never find this out personally, but what are the signs of an improperly winterized boat specific to the engine? I remember reading a thread where the member wrote the boat ran fine until he checked the milky oil and knew something was wrong. Any steps in the first water test of the year that are common?

I can't think of much of an immediate sign other than water is leaking upon visual inspection. I am sure something could jump out but for the most part the signs will be chronic.

Internally: water in the oil is indicative of a water leak going inside the block...that's the first tell tale. It can come from several different causes / sources. Run the engine to operating temperature and maybe an extra lap, shut the engine off and look at the oil on the dipstick.

Externally: Water leaking externally is a solid indicator where you would do a visual inspection of the engine (on your knees with a good light) and look over the heads, exhaust manifold, risers, and block...look closely for physical water leaking from a crack, pinhole, or bad gasket.

Aside from that any other indicators will be in the form of a problem in some other manner, yet the root cause can be a leak or consequence of a ruptured or internally separated hose, gasket leaking, etc. as stated above.

.

[tjrowbot]

Thanks WL, I am confident in my winterizing skills, it was a question that has been on my mind for too many months without asking.

[curver900]

you can always to do a cylinder leak down test... then you know before you go into the water.... if you drained the block you are in good shape..

[HDAVIS]

Look for rust on the side of the block

[tjrowbot]

you can always to do a cylinder leak down test... then you know before you go into the water.... if you drained the block you are in good shape..

My process in the mid-west is to leave anti-freeze in until spring, so water out / AF left in. What is a cylinder leak down test? I will search the process too, thanks C900

[chrislandy]

"trust your training!" if you drained the block, ran antifreeze through it etc... then just de-winterise and have fun - unless there's a big hole in the side of the block or manifolds, the likelihood of finding an issue without running up to temperature is pretty much zero.