Heating data......

[oscarvan]

For reference.

Due to going down hard with the plague my winterization program was interrupted to the tune of three weeks. I did through it all monitor conditions and thankfully I was given a break. It briefly dipped into freezing territory by one or two degrees twice, but the water was still warm so I was not too worried.

Finally got back to the boat yesterday and all was in good order. But, we came as the temps last night went down to 26ºF for a good 8 hours. This was too much for my comfort level so we hung out on board with heat going.

All four heat pumps going the salon is 74º (the aft unit actually cycling). Forward salon unit, VIP unit and MSR unit going full bore kept the below decks in the mid 60's. I forgot the big foam inserts I have for the engine room air supplies, so there was a lot of cold air coming in there. With the doors cracked the temps in there never got below 38º.

Water temperature was 42º

We were quite comfortable hanging out with WIFI and Roku......... Never a bad day chilling on the boat.

We're going on a motorhome trip to warmer climes second week of January so I have between now and then to get it all protected. I plan on making some modifications to make the process more efficient and will do a writeup on it.

[Jammin']

We're off the Potomac just below Colonial Beach and I'm two hours away. Marine antifreeze run through the fresh water pipes, but nothing else winterized. I run two electric radiators and have the block heaters on thermostatically controlled outlets.

My security cameras were down yesterday so I couldn't tell if the power was on. I texted my next door neighbor last night to see if the light was on at the shore power at the end of the dock. it gave me great piece of mind to know that it was.

[oscarvan]

Yes, winterizing the potable water system and having a little heat to keep the below waterline parts above freezing with monitoring is a good idea. Still wouldn't want to do it if I was more than a few hours away, like in Florida. 100% protection will be the name of the game. Trick is to set it all up where I can do the whole boat in a few hours.

[jim rosenthal]

I found out (the hard way) that unless the FW system is properly winterized, the pipes WILL rupture in a hard freeze.

My winterizing procedure:
-pump tank dry of fresh water using onboard pump
-manually drain hot water heater using hose, and then shut valves to isolate from system
-connect push pump to dockside water inlet
-run pink stuff through entire system until it gushes out of ALL taps, showerhead, etc. Don't forget the taps in the engine room(s)

This seems to work well, so far. I used to use an air compressor, but that is not fool proof. So far, this method has worked through the occasional hard freezes we get here in MD.

[oscarvan]

I found out (the hard way) that unless the FW system is properly winterized, the pipes WILL rupture in a hard freeze.

My winterizing procedure:
-pump tank dry of fresh water using onboard pump
-manually drain hot water heater using hose, and then shut valves to isolate from system
-connect push pump to dockside water inlet
-run pink stuff through entire system until it gushes out of ALL taps, showerhead, etc. Don't forget the taps in the engine room(s)

This seems to work well, so far. I used to use an air compressor, but that is not fool proof. So far, this method has worked through the occasional hard freezes we get here in MD.

Yes, that's the plan. And, don't forget the windshield sprayers also....

[questover]

I blow out all fresh water with air compressor then run pink thru all lines. Then blow out all pink. Even then I will get some clear water out. Been good for 15 years.

[Maurice]

I found out (the hard way) that unless the FW system is properly winterized, the pipes WILL rupture in a hard freeze.

My winterizing procedure:
-pump tank dry of fresh water using onboard pump
-manually drain hot water heater using hose, and then shut valves to isolate from system
-connect push pump to dockside water inlet
-run pink stuff through entire system until it gushes out of ALL taps, showerhead, etc. Don't forget the taps in the engine room(s)

This seems to work well, so far. I used to use an air compressor, but that is not fool proof. So far, this method has worked through the occasional hard freezes we get here in MD.

Good article in Practical Sailor about winterization. They say to be sure to use propylene glycol and not denatured ethanol (pink stuff) because the latter will cause corrosion. They also recommend ethylene glycol in head systems to protect the nylon and neoprene. Also learned that glycol actually contracts when cooling so if the mixture has about 30% glycol (-50F protection) bursting becomes nearly impossible. The temperature protection on the container is almost always the burst temperature, not the freeze temperature ... big difference.