Freezing Query

[wheneverIcan]

I decided not to winterise my Nimbus 320 this year as I wanted to use her during the winter. Instead I put a tube heater (180w) in the engine compartment and then wired this to a thermostatic three pin plug adapater to turn on at 3 celcius or lower.

If, just if, this hasn't worked and something has frozen (i'm not too concerned at the sea water cooling as I'm sure it hasn't been cold enough for this to freeze yet???) will I know about it immediately when I turn the engine over or will I just get a leak somewhere that won't be noticable until mid channel!!

I have antifreeze in the coolant - so am i being a little paranoid and worrying over nothing but just say the trip has gone on the pontoon and the electrics not working!! (what does happen when the sea water route freezes?)

Thanks as always for useful hints. I feel a little guilty as I'm always asking questions and rarely giving answers!

Simon

 

[boatone]

If freshwater coolant adequately antifreezed then raw water side is only possible risk but temp would need to fall below seawater freezing point. Not a bad idea to drain off raw water side or flush thru with antifreeze if you can figure an easy way to do it - can you pour anti freeze in thru weed filter?
Little trick I rely on is to put a min/max thermometer in the engine bay so I can see what the min temperature has been since last looked.
Other thing to watch for is that you have drained off all fresh water from domestic water tank and pipes as well as calorifeir if you have one as being freshwater much more likely to freeze.


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[DavidJ]

...also some antifreeze down the toilet and the shower drain hole
David

 

[tcm]

I don't hink that in UK winter you should be too worried. Thing to remeber is that the cracking occurs cos (fresh) water is at it's minimum volume at 4 degrees C. When it freezes, it instantly gets a bit bigger . This is very important bit of physics really. Hence icbergs float, freeze-thaw action pulls down cliffs (with water freezing in the cracks) and so on.

So, pipes crack when solid pipe systems full of water is taken down slowly to freezing point, and crack at that point (and not when they thaw out - that';s when the crack becomes obvious).

But boat pipe systems are mostly plastic. You can (and should) have plastic pipe in domestic systems too, similar resistance to cracking, and it doesn't need much.

Note that saltwater has to be much colder to freeze (hence salt on roads) than 0 celcius.

Muchbigger prob in terms of boat cost is damp, imho. Never heard of probelms of seaboat freezing on south coast - has anyone else?

Oh, and iff wurrid, perhaps a batterry powered thingy at 0 celcius, kicks in below 240v if that fails?

 

[wheneverIcan]

i was told just to run all the taps dry and that should be sufficient for draining the domestic water?

 

[boatone]

Running taps dry wont empty the calorifier if you have one unless somehow the water can drain back to the f/w tank. Havent sorted mine yet but intend to fit a cross link pipe that will let me open a valve and drain back to coldwater side.

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[cngarrod]

Where did you get your thermostatic 3 pin plug adapter from.. need / want one for mine!

Cheers,

Craig.

 

[mike_kolling]

Unless the calorifier is in the Engineroom being heated by the tubular heaters as well.

Thankfully mine is together with the Domestic pump so these should get protected too.

I agree about the thermometer in the Engine room, checked mine on weekend and min temp so far this winter in my engineroom was 3 deg cent.

 

[wheneverIcan]

www.tlc-direct.co.uk. At last I am being useful to someone!!

They are a really great mail order company, got tube heaters from here as well and although you have to buy cable and wire them your self they were only £15 each.

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Heating_Index/Therm_1/index.html is the exact page for the plug in thermostats. very easy to use and hopefully reliable, they have built in battery back up to remeber settings in case of power fails etc.

Order today and you'll get em tomorrow

Good luck

Simon

 

[cngarrod]

Cheers Simon... i used TLC for the tube heaters... but at the time couldn't find any thermostats!

This is Brill - thanks...!

Craig.

 

[byron]

<font color=blue> Och! Dinna ye wurry ye wee pretty head. it hasn't been cold enough to freeze anything. The tube heater coupled to the natural central heating effect of sea water under your hull will have been more than adequate to prevent a problem.</font color=blue>

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