Engine rm heater

rossjo · Post by **rossjo** » Mon Dec 21, 2009 7:50 pm

Larry - just watch for power outage sif you do no winterizing.

If you live down south in a moderate climate, you can do minimal winterizing (our saltwater never gets below 43deg). I simply drain my hot/cold systems when I leave the boat. Since I'm in Salt water, I'm good to go on the seawater sides, and both engines and genny have closed water systems with anti-freeze.

We went out Sunday (50 deg) with the heat on, and it was wonderful.

foofer b · Post by **foofer b** » Mon Dec 21, 2009 10:40 pm

With Larry's boat in the water, would it freeze in the engine compartment on a really cold night? How cold are you talking about. Having lived in north Florida all my life, I haven't experienced the cold spells ya'll have. My Dad has always kept his boats in the water and rarely did he ever put a light in his engine compartment. Last year though, due to Al Gore's global warming!, we had an especially cold winter, having about 30 (nights of) freezes. The year before we had three. I had to mount a light fixture in the engine compartment with a 100 watt bulb to keep it warm on the cold nights. Will this be enough to keep my engine and water lines from freezing ? We have spells with 4-6 hours below freezing on cold nights.

ltbrett · Post by **ltbrett** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 12:08 pm

I'll try to answer foofer's question. Just realize that the stakes are pretty high when you're wrong regarding a freeeze. Salt water freezes at 28 deg. You have no worries at all for raw water lines above that temperature. Furthermore, the sea water itself will be well above freezing where you are, keeping your hull relatively warm. As nearly half the surface area of engine compartment is under the water line and the other half is well insulated, the engine compartment will stay relatively warm down to 20 degree temperatures. I boat in CT and keep my boat in the water without a heater until December. This year, we had a couple of 20 degree nights. Nothing froze. Water temp was in the 40's. The fresh water side is a different story. The lines are small diameter and are more susceptible to freezing. They also run outside the protected engine room and well away from the warm sea water. I winterize my fresh water system at the first sign of a freeze.

Hope this helps.

Brett

rossjo · Post by **rossjo** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 4:22 pm

I just drain my FW lines & water heater ... and leave the faucets open.