Your yacht’s engine is perhaps the most
vulnerable part of the boat to being left
unused over the winter. Most of the servicing
should be done at the end of the season,
keeping in mind that it won’t be used
immediately. Disconnecting the seawater
hoses and running the engine with
freshwater flowing through it will flush
out the salt and reduce internal corrosion
significantly. Make sure that you have
sufficient water pressure flowing to flood
the intake whilst you run it. Use the old
impeller to fill the engine with frost inhibitor
and then leave the impeller housing sealed
for the winter. This stops the new rubber
impeller from degrading when unused for
six months. It’s also well worth sealing the
air filter off to reduce moisture; you can do
this with a thick plastic bag. Be sure to leave
a note over the engine isolator to remind
you that you’ve done this when you come
back to the boat. When you return to put
the boat back
in the water, all
that’s left to do
is install a fresh
new impeller
and gasket,
running
the engine
as normal.Engine Fuel tanks
Fuel tanks should be left full over the
winter to stop condensation forming and
also have a fuel treatment added to inhibit
algae and fuel bug growth. In addition
to the usual engine servicing over winter,
we also send our client’s fuel and oil away
for contaminant testing as standard. This is
a way to prevent damage from something
that’s impossible to see, and it costs far
less then people think. When you start
the engine for the first time, keep in mind
that any sediment in the tank will have
collected, so keep an eye on your filters
for the first couple of hours.Plumbing is often forgotten over the
winter. This means draining the system
of all water as thoroughly as possible
over the winter. It tends to collect in
places you can’t see, so pipes should
have been left disconnected where
water might accumulate, freeze and
expand. This will all need reconnecting,
so again, be sure to take note of what
you’ve taken apart before the system
comes back up to pressure!
Heads don’t necessarily need servicing
every year and actually, there’s not much
difference in price between a service kit
and a new pump assembly on a manual
system if you do replace components.
What you should do is ensure the systemPlumbing
Running fresh water through
the engine will dramatically
reduce internal corrosionClearly mark all systems
that should not be run
as a reminderHydraulic systems tend to be
reliable but a fluid leak after a
cold winter can be messy, so it’s
worth looking over the pipeworkEXPERT ON BOARD