6 replies to this topic

[baumann6]

I just got a 2012 180 SP and it has been awesome so far I have been looking around at how to winterize it and I was wondering what hoses to unhook off the intercooler to drain the water it is hard to tell with the black and white pictures. And was also wondering if it is possible to use the flush port and a bilge pump to pump anti freeze through it if that will be enough to winterize it and not have to unhook the hoses off the intercooler I have read of other people doing this and just wanted to make sure it would work for my boat. The dealer is 3 hours away so would like to learn to do it myself to save some money. Also wanted to say this site is awesome.

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[Kevin Leclair]

Here is the ongoing post regarding winterizing the Rotax engine(s) - it may provide some additional guidance.
http://seadoosportbo...interize-rotax/

P.S. - Very sharp looking boat!

[baumann6]

Yeah I read that just not sure which hoses to take off hard to tell with the pictures in the manual.

[Kevin Leclair]

Okay, yeah I understand what you are saying. The manual is the best we can provide when troubleshooting and doing maintenance via the forums. If need be try taking some pics of what hoses are in question and we can see if some can better steer you in the right direction.

[MT180SP]

I bought an identical boat to the OP. According to my Sea Doo dealer (one of the largest Sea Doo dealers in the northwest) winterizing is very simple: last time out, add a can of SeaFoam fuel stabilyzer. Once on the trailer, idle the engine for approx 30 seconds, blipping the throttle a few times to expel water. Anything that doesnt get expelled evaporates from the heat. Anything left after that, according to them, is not enough to damage any components when it freezes. Put battery on a minder for the winter and DONE!

Anyone disagree with the dealer on this?

[MT180SP]

Shop foreman at the dealership said he cringes every time he hears of the antifreeze being pumped through the system method. He does have a point: how many owners that do this, PROPERLY drain all the antifreeze from the system prior to first time out in the spring? My guess is a very small amount. Most likely most are just plopping the boat in the water and firing it up, effectively spewing out bunches of toxic antifreeze into the lake. Dealer says this is a non-essential method that just pollutes the lakes and rivers. I would agree.

When you think about how much water it takes to actually crack or break components when it freezes, leaving a little bit of water in a rubber hose or even the intercooler isnt going to hurt a thing if that water can expand a little when it freezes. Its when you have an enclosed area that is FULL of water and then that water freezes and the ice has no place to expand, that you run into problems. Running the engine expels 95% of the water in the system. Now saltwater is a different story---I would think you want all that out before storage, but that would be for corrosive reasons, not freeze damage. Of course the engine is OK anyway as these motors have sealed cooling systems with antifreeze already.

[vwDavid]

Finally some level headed arguements against the antifreeze thing. Somebody big enought to say it aint so and talk about the environmental issues too..

Shop foreman at the dealership said he cringes every time he hears of the antifreeze being pumped through the system method. He does have a point: how many owners that do this, PROPERLY drain all the antifreeze from the system prior to first time out in the spring? My guess is a very small amount. Most likely most are just plopping the boat in the water and firing it up, effectively spewing out bunches of toxic antifreeze into the lake. Dealer says this is a non-essential method that just pollutes the lakes and rivers. I would agree.

When you think about how much water it takes to actually crack or break components when it freezes, leaving a little bit of water in a rubber hose or even the intercooler isnt going to hurt a thing if that water can expand a little when it freezes. Its when you have an enclosed area that is FULL of water and then that water freezes and the ice has no place to expand, that you run into problems. Running the engine expels 95% of the water in the system. Now saltwater is a different story---I would think you want all that out before storage, but that would be for corrosive reasons, not freeze damage. Of course the engine is OK anyway as these motors have sealed cooling systems with antifreeze already.

I went out of my way to doo this with environmentally friendly antifreeze, but it is still impossible to recover it all before going to the lake. And, if you don't spew it into the lake its probably going down the drain.

I bet a $65 item that one could install topside and quick connect to small air compresser would sell like hot cakes to the aftermarket winterization crowd....