On Tuesday, 17 September 2013 10:12:04 UTC-3, Hank© wrote:
On 9/17/2013 9:00 AM, True North wrote:

Is this more of your legendary wit and humour, Hankie?

I thought you were some kind of boats handyman.

As per my Mercury manual, I change the engine oil, the engine filter, the gearcase oil and I lubricate all zerks and any pivoting part.

I also make sure the gas is topped up and the proper amount of stabilizer included while running the engine for 5 minutes before the oil changes.

I'll leave the water separator filter in place until next spring/summer when I burn off the old gas.

There may be an additional step or two that I'll discover in my manual.

Last step is putting the trailer up on blocks and assembling the Navigloo shelter I purchased from Costco.



By next year the gas in your tank will be 2 years old. The oil is still

new and you haven't moved things enough to expell the grease.


Say what??
If I top up at the end of October and use the gas by the following June... how does it get to be 2 years old?
What grease am I supposed to expel? I put fresh grease anywhere I can to push the old (possibly contaminated with sal****er) grease out.
My engine still has about 44 months factory warranty so I just might take it to a local Mercury authorized dealer and have then winterize the outboard.. It's too far to keep going back to the Legend dealer where I bought the boat.
(about 180 miles round trip)

On 9/17/13 11:13 AM, wrote:
On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 04:58:42 -0700 (PDT), True North
wrote:

Watch too early for winterizing.
I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild day blows up from down south.
We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect this week to be sunny and mild.
Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.
Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.

You folks have a higher tolerance for cold weather. I see the
Canadians actually getting in the water here in February.
Air is 70, water 68 and they are saying "Toasty eh"



When I was a kid and visiting my grandparents in the summer up in
Massachusetts, we'd go swimming off Revere Beach and for some reason I
never thought the water was too cold. My mother told me I was splashing
in the water there with her in late August 1945 when I was about a year
and a half old, just before Japan surrendered. Nowadays, I'd probably
not stick a toe in that water. Florida ocean temperature waters "ruined"
me for the swimming waters of my Yankee heritage.

On Tuesday, 17 September 2013 12:13:47 UTC-3, wrote:
On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 04:58:42 -0700 (PDT), True North

wrote:



Watch too early for winterizing.

I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild day blows up from down south.

We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect this week to be sunny and mild.

Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.

Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.



You folks have a higher tolerance for cold weather. I see the

Canadians actually getting in the water here in February.

Air is 70, water 68 and they are saying "Toasty eh"

Lately we've been getting a lot more hot weather, but I remember in my teens and early 20's a lot of summers where 75 would be a 'hot' day.
Water seldom gets up over 68 here on the Atlantic Coast even in late August/early September....except for a few beaches in deep bays.
example: Queensland or Hubbards beaches in St Margaret's Bay.
On the north shore, it's a different thing on the Northumberland Strait.
They claim it's the warmest salt water north of the Carolinas.. at least that's what they tell the tourists.

On Tuesday, 17 September 2013 12:24:05 UTC-3, F.O.A.D. wrote:
On 9/17/13 11:13 AM, wrote:

On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 04:58:42 -0700 (PDT), True North

wrote:



Watch too early for winterizing.

I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild day blows up from down south.

We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect this week to be sunny and mild.

Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.

Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.



You folks have a higher tolerance for cold weather. I see the

Canadians actually getting in the water here in February.

Air is 70, water 68 and they are saying "Toasty eh"







When I was a kid and visiting my grandparents in the summer up in

Massachusetts, we'd go swimming off Revere Beach and for some reason I

never thought the water was too cold. My mother told me I was splashing

in the water there with her in late August 1945 when I was about a year

and a half old, just before Japan surrendered. Nowadays, I'd probably

not stick a toe in that water. Florida ocean temperature waters "ruined"

me for the swimming waters of my Yankee heritage.


Here's a peek at a weather buoy at the mouth of Halifax harbor.
Air & water temps very close right now. ( 1240 hrs ADT )
http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=44258

On 9/17/13 11:39 AM, True North wrote:
On Tuesday, 17 September 2013 12:24:05 UTC-3, F.O.A.D. wrote:
On 9/17/13 11:13 AM, wrote:

On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 04:58:42 -0700 (PDT), True North

wrote:



Watch too early for winterizing.

I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild day blows up from down south.

We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect this week to be sunny and mild.

Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.

Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.



You folks have a higher tolerance for cold weather. I see the

Canadians actually getting in the water here in February.

Air is 70, water 68 and they are saying "Toasty eh"







When I was a kid and visiting my grandparents in the summer up in

Massachusetts, we'd go swimming off Revere Beach and for some reason I

never thought the water was too cold. My mother told me I was splashing

in the water there with her in late August 1945 when I was about a year

and a half old, just before Japan surrendered. Nowadays, I'd probably

not stick a toe in that water. Florida ocean temperature waters "ruined"

me for the swimming waters of my Yankee heritage.


Here's a peek at a weather buoy at the mouth of Halifax harbor.
Air & water temps very close right now. ( 1240 hrs ADT )
http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=44258



Ahh, 52F water temp. Delightful. Water temps are still in the low to mid
70's hereabouts.

On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 09:25:40 -0400, "F.O.A.D." wrote:

Winterizing an outboard that you plan to keep for a long time requires
more than keeping the lower unit down and tossing a tarp over the boat.

At the very minimum, you should:

Wash the engine's exterior to remove any salt, stains, whatever, and
retouch paint.

Run fuel stabilizer into the fuel tank and run the engine at idle for 10
or 15 minutes to push the stabilizer into the engine.

Spray fogging oil into the air intake if you can until the engine smokes
at idle.

Remove the spark plugs and spray fogging oil into the cylinders and then
if you can turn the start key with the dead man's switch removed.

Replace the engine oil, oil filter, and lower unit gear oil.

Grease the fittings, if any.

===

Those are all good maintenance practices but really don't have
anything to do with winter. Hank's point, which I agreed with, is
that outboards don't require any special precautions for freezing
weather.

Wayne.B wrote:
On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 08:11:20 -0400, Hank©
wrote:

On 9/17/2013 7:58 AM, True North wrote:
Watch too early for winterizing.
I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild
day blows up from down south.
We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect
this week to be sunny and mild.
Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.
Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.


What's to winterize Donnie? Put the leg down and throw a tarp over the
boat. You're done.

===

That's the nice thing about outboards.

Should probably fog the engine also with the low usage.

In article ,
says...

On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 08:26:09 -0700 (PDT), True North
wrote:

On Tuesday, 17 September 2013 12:13:47 UTC-3, wrote:
On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 04:58:42 -0700 (PDT), True North

wrote:



Watch too early for winterizing.

I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice mild day blows up from down south.

We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect this week to be sunny and mild.

Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving at most ramps.

Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.



You folks have a higher tolerance for cold weather. I see the

Canadians actually getting in the water here in February.

Air is 70, water 68 and they are saying "Toasty eh"

Lately we've been getting a lot more hot weather, but I remember in my teens and early 20's a lot of summers where 75 would be a 'hot' day.
Water seldom gets up over 68 here on the Atlantic Coast even in late August/early September....except for a few beaches in deep bays.
example: Queensland or Hubbards beaches in St Margaret's Bay.
On the north shore, it's a different thing on the Northumberland Strait.
They claim it's the warmest salt water north of the Carolinas.. at least that's what they tell the tourists.

We used to belong to the Oxon Hill Swim club, a privately built and
maintained swimming pool in Maryland. The water came from a deep well
and they just let the pipe run most of the time. The water cruised
around 69-70 all summer. We had complaints from other swim team
coaches that our water was too cold.

I don't get into my pool unless I have to until it reaches 80 and prefer
85.

On Tuesday, September 17, 2013 12:10:30 PM UTC-4, wrote:
On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 11:47:57 -0400, "F.O.A.D." wrote:

Ahh, 52F water temp. Delightful. Water temps are still in the low to mid
70's hereabouts.


Water was 27.8c in the river on the 9th when I did the state water
sample. (about 82f)
Salinity was 1.4 PPT. I thought my hydrometer was going to sink ;-)

Sounds better than 52 degrees. Hypothermia is not delightful. :-)

On 9/17/2013 9:30 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:


"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...

On Tue, 17 Sep 2013 08:11:20 -0400, Hank©
wrote:

On 9/17/2013 7:58 AM, True North wrote:
Watch too early for winterizing.
I'll wait until late October or early November just in case a nice
mild day blows up from down south.
We've just gone from a crappy damp windy two week period but expect
this week to be sunny and mild.
Trouble is, the tide cycle is against me for launching and retrieving
at most ramps.
Guess I'll go to a lake today or tomorrow.


What's to winterize Donnie? Put the leg down and throw a tarp over the
boat. You're done.

===

That's the nice thing about outboards.

-----------------------

Cover the prop area with a tarp also to prevent rain and snow from
entering the exhaust channels and freezing.
Don't ask how I learned this.


That's why you lower the leg.