cold weather storage techniques

[dirty.old.fisherman]

We, we are new to this type of boating and have a slip that is at 7000 feet in the So California mountains. It freezes for about five months of the year up here. WE want to know if all of the water can be purged from the system so that it is safe to leave the boat at that altitude.

We have a Rose type hull with a 12 sq foot boiler and a four horsepower double acting single cylinder engine in storage in these conditions. The boat was rigged by James Medsker using items that he uses. We know that we would drain the hot well, the under-water condenser and the main five gallon storage tank. We may have to install some drain valves in order to purge all of the water from the boiler and associated plumbing. Do we blow it all out with air, or do we fill it with antifreeze ?

WE just want to know if others are storing their boats in this type of freezing conditions. And what steps would be necessary to realy winterize the complete system for storage. Thank you.

[farmerden]

I crack all the lines,drain the keel condenser,drain the boiler.You may wish to blow the lines out with air if available. I place a trouble light in the boiler and that seems to keep the moisture away.Make sure to cap the chimney to keep the heat in.I have always used a 60 watt bulb but I recently tried one of those 100watt rated coil florescent lights which only use about 15 or so watts of energy and to my surprise they still produce heat , not much but I think enough to do the job.I also unbolt the heads a wipe down the cylinders to dry them then I wipe them down with a oily rag. As an aside make a list of what you did because as I was launching for the first time one spring I had this feeling something was amiss and sure enough I had failed to put the drain plug back in the keel condenser.As a matter of fact I put everything back together this weekend and pressure tested the boiler and thinking about just now I haven't put that plug back in.The thing I miss the most about getting old is my mind! Den Oh yea don't forget your water storage tanks

[gondolier88]

ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS strip down any sections of pipe that are isolated by check valves, and remove/loosen the caps on the check valves!!!

Delicate components like pressure gauges really don't like being frozen, take them off, store in a warm safe place.

If you are going to store the boiler completely empty; put a light in the firebox, wrap the boiler in blankets on the outside, take the top and bottom valves off the boiler or open them to allow a small airflow through the boiler. I would suggest not to cap the chimney entirely as it is not so much the heat that prevents condensation as the ventilating airflow induced by the small heatsource.

If you are going to store the boiler completely full to the brim; add antifreeze to the water in the boiler, shut all valves so as not to allow any water to evaporate, wrap the boiler in blankets and put a small heatsource in the firebox.

During the winter on SY Gondola I use a 125w greenhouse heater which works very well, and all it's energy is heat, as opposed to a light bulb.

I also imagine that -20 is a warm winter to you, in those conditions you cannot afford to leave any pipework with slugs of water in- it will split the pipe.

Greg

[Lopez Mike]

I second the bit about check valves. I have a couple of cracked ones laying about. They bust right where the inspection cap thread meets the sealing surface. Much squirting and bad grammar in the spring.

I once stuffed an old electric blanket in the firebox door. It worked great. Adjustable.

[fredrosse]

farmerden - "I crack all the lines....."

I thought the idea was to prevent that!!??

[Mike Rometer]

I had a severe condensation problem in one of my workshops. Even well oiled up machines succumbed to that oil emusifying on the surfaces overnight. I wrapped my lathe bed in a blanket, and over that a small electric blanket, and then another cover. Even set on 'low' that kept ALL the machines clear, for something less than 20watts consumption.

The "light bulb in the firebox" trick is a very old one that is well proven, just don't let the filament burn out!

[farmerden]

very small crack Fred! Den or should I say "wise crack"

[fredrosse]

"I use a 125w greenhouse heater which works very well, and all it's energy is heat, as opposed to a light bulb."

An ordinary light bulb only converts a very small fraction of its electric energy to light energy, I don't have exact numbers, but I think it is in the regime of only a few percent. The other 90+ % of the energy is converted into heat within the light bulb. Regardless of the conversion efficiency, if the light bulb is located inside the boiler firebox, then all of the light energy that shines inside the boiler is also instantly converted to heat when the light is absorbed by the boiler interior surfaces. The net result is that all of the energy from an electric light is used within the boiler, same as any electric heater.

[dirty.old.fisherman]

Yes but as I stated at times of as long as three days the electricity is out at our remote place in the mountains on the lake and so I have asked about using anti freeze to protect the system rather than draining and using a heat system..