Should I add a gallon on antifreeze to the ballast? The boat is in the water and will see some freezing temps. I could use the fresh water antifreeze.
Water Ballast for Winter
- Thread starter alabamaranger
- Start date
I have never done anything and never had any problems. I leave the ballast valve open when I trailer - which ensures all the water drains. I leave it open during winter storage. Our temps are below freezing for most of the winter season. The only problem i ever had with freezing was not ensuring all water was out of the ports potti pump. It split open when it froze. And I did leave a 6 pack of diet Pepsi in the boat once - they all burst but since it was diet, there was no sticky mess to clean up.
Chris
Chris
So, your boat will stay in the water over the winter? Does the lake freeze?
it couldn't hurt to put some antifreeze in the ballast, but how much is a question..
you may need to blow the ballast to get room for the liquid antifreeze.
it couldn't hurt to put some antifreeze in the ballast, but how much is a question..
you may need to blow the ballast to get room for the liquid antifreeze.
anti-freeze, like automotive anti-freeze?
propylene glycol and Glycerol, may be " less or non toxic to us and the animal kingdom
but it's not cool or allowed to improperly dispose of..I.E. dump it out at the ramp or blow it out while we empty the ballast, we got enough trash from previous generations polluting our water(s) what was recommended by Macgregor?
propylene glycol and Glycerol, may be " less or non toxic to us and the animal kingdom
but it's not cool or allowed to improperly dispose of..I.E. dump it out at the ramp or blow it out while we empty the ballast, we got enough trash from previous generations polluting our water(s) what was recommended by Macgregor?
Not that big a deal. Every diesel powered boat in cold weather starts out its season by pumping 1-2 gallons of the stuff into the water when started for the first time after a winterization.
From the EPA - Environmental releases – If PG does reach soil and water nearby, it is considered practically non-toxic to aquatic organisms and it biodegrades rapidly.
I'm guessing you might use the kind of antifreeze we use in RVs, right?
http://prestone.com/enca/node/415
I would think that wouldn't be a bad thing or particularly dangerous given that you're in the water for the season.
http://prestone.com/enca/node/415
I would think that wouldn't be a bad thing or particularly dangerous given that you're in the water for the season.
Thanks, I put a gallon of RV antifreeze just to make sure. Water never freezes. I figure it below the water line anyway. The weather here one night was 9 F. Coldest I seen it in Alabama for a long long while. Crazy thing is, it's suppose to be 64 F Sat.
adding just one gallon is absolutely a waste of time and money. that will equal approximately a 1% solution which will have no effect or protection what so ever. you need to approach 30-50% concentration if your actually seeking anykind of freeze protection. a full ballast would require minimum of 30-60 gallons of antifreeze for any kind of marginal protection, anything else your just wasting time and money.
Ballast will be same temp as water is in. Don't know about Alabama, but here in SW Fl. Water almost never gets below + 60 degrees.
I too have 26D. The PO left the boat in the water when temps dropped below freezing. The the vunerable point on our boats is the rear of the ballast tank where it narrows down between the hull and the top of the tanks to less than an inch. This area froze on my boat and split the tank away from the hull. Hell of a job to find this leak. Had to cut out the rear inner liining (the holds) for several feet to get access to fix it. Its been dry for the last four seasons, three of which the boat is moored all summer.
As others have advised, anti free, you'll need 50 /50 or blow out some of the ballast water with a dingy inflator pump in reverse to clear water from the rear of the tank.
