bilge ice

[Neil Gordon]

Robert,

I don't have any of THAT single malt left, but I have an ample supply of replacement single malt. Fear not.

By the way, here in the Northeast, we not only have sailor socks, but we have extra special, extra secret sailor pajamas, too.

[Paul D.]

I cannot resist.

In Minneapolis it is -20 with 20 knots of wind tonight. Colder up by the boat. They actually cancelled school today and now just called it for tomorrow too. Wind chill about 70 below they reckon. That's cold my friends. (Spoken like Crocodile Dundee as in, (That's not a knife…") All our windows are iced up, few things work, example the garage door opener, my neighbor's snowblower, my 13 year old car…

Anyway, haul out and winterizing properly for the season is taken pretty seriously by us northern lot, but even this winter may test our theories and methods. My brother and I, in front of the fire the other day drinking a fine beverage, wondered if we would find some leaking plumbing lines during fitting out this spring. We will see. Here is the standard winterizing procedure we use once on the hard for the most gnarly winters this side of Cape Horn. It has worked well for us over the last ten years.

• -Drain fresh water tanks and hot water heater if you have one
  -Empty, flush, empty holding tank
  -Use a gallon of pink stuff (-50 propylene glycol) per tank and pump through hot and cold water lines, heater etc
  -Use a gallon in the head and pump through, leave seacocks open
  -Pump bilge and pour a gallon of pink in there and pump through manual and electric bilge pumps
  -Disconnect engine intake from seacock and stick in a bucket with a gallon or so of pink stuff
  -Start motor and run till exhaust flows pink then fog air intake and stop
  -Remove fresh water pump impeller
  -Pour some Stabil in Diesel tank
  -Top up batteries and leave solar panel set up through regulator or set up a trickle charger
  -Turn off battery switch and check and close propane at tanks
  -Leave open cockpit drains
  -Cover boat (A whole 'nother thread here, don't get me started on lose flapping tarps with half full antifreeze bottles hanging off them!)
  -Leave open some port lights for ventilation, I even leave in my hatch screens in and place 10 vents in the shrink wrap
  -Place Bounce fabric softener sheets all through cabin and lockers - where you don't want critters
  -Clean everything up and say a little prayer to the god of frost

I may have missed something here but generally, we try to keep things dry, covered and ventilated produces good results with little surprises come spring. I doubt a little ice in the bilge would hurt anything as the ice can expand up pretty easily. It is when it freezes hard within a confined space that you get problems mostly. But I would not rest easy all winter if I forgot to pour some pink down the bilge if only because you do get a little water in there, even with a proper cover.

OK back to my car….

[Oswego John]

Hey Paul,

On the positive side, no mosquitoes tonight.

Think springtime.
O J

[tjr818]

Well O.J. wins again. Here in Saint Louis we only have one foot of snow, -10 degrees, and a wind chill of -35.
Is that really gel coat in the bilge? Ours doesn't look that smooth. I always thought is was just resin and roving.

[Sea Hunt Video]

Megunticook:

I fear my post temporarily "sidetracked" your thoughtful post on bilge, ice, water, etc. I apologize.

In my defense, I have had Neil G. and OJ as role models over the past several years. Both are reprobates.

[Paul D.]

OJ,

No bugs indeed! Best part about winter camping. In fact several of us, well maybe only one or two, are actually rather excited the pine beetles will suffer in our north woods.

Lots of soup and bread making going on here.

Hope the boats survive alright.

[Neil Gordon]

In my defense, I have had Neil G. and OJ as role models over the past several years. Both are reprobates.

It was a long time ago, in the range of four and a half decades, but I was described then as incorrigible. I wonder what happened to her.

[Neil Gordon]

Hey Paul,

On the positive side, no mosquitoes tonight.

Think springtime.
O J

That's exactly what the little critters are thinking. They spend winter planning their coordinated assaults.

[mcos]

No big problem. The bilge is narrower on the bottom. The ice pushes up out of the bilge relieving the side force. The freezing isn't the problem, it is the expansion as the ice starts to melt. To ease your mind, cut a chunk of Styrofoam and wedge it in the bilge. Fit isn't particular as long as it will stay wedged in and not simply float up . You could also wedge a suitably sized plastic bottle in the bilge. The idea is to provide expansion room to absorb the force of the expanding ice. I usually dump a gallon of RV antifreeze in the bilge then wedge the bottle as far down in the bilge as I can reach with a slab of Styrofoam. Hope this helps.