Winterising your boat

[Cashbuyer]

I may be wrong, but why show a picture of vinyl wrapping for an article on winterising?
And I find the first paragraph is nothing short of scaremongering regarding ice and freezing - plenty of us leave boats in the water all winter with no issues.

And I thought you weren't supposed to just 'turn over' an engine without adding load. Or is he describing a manual crank?

http://www.ybw.com/expert-advice/winterising-your-boat-13584

 

[kashurst]

It doesn't seem to be a well edited article - re wrapping and cranking.
scaremongering? I don't agree. It depends where you keep your boat. Engines do freeze if not winterised and create all sorts of issues. Many people leave their boat in the sea all winter and never do anything to protect them. However sea water freezes at -2. Admittedly the sea temp rarely goes below +3 in the UK so what's the problem? Intercoolers can freeze if not drained. If you take the boat out of the water then its very vunerable to freezing. Same if its inland and still in freshwater and theres a run of really cold nights. Few years back 8 engines froze and cracked their blocks at York. The ice on the water was over 6" thick though. Domestic plumbing definitely freezes in or out of the water. In the past I have had to replace shower fittings and taps because of ice damage.
I think the engine cranking thing refers to leaving a boat unwinterised with the intention of using it quite often. The boat mags run these articles every year, whether or not you act upon it is up to you. If your boat is in Devon in the sea then maybe not, if it's ashore on the west coast of scotland - definitely.

 

[rafiki_]

Also consider the insurance implications. Insurers expect you to properly maintain the boat, including taking appropriate precautions over the winter months.