A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

On Nov 25, 9:07*am, Frogwatch wrote:
Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

No, they pretty much drain themselves, however, you do need to verify
there is no water in the lower unit.

Terry

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

Frogwatch wrote:
Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

Outboards will drain completely on their own so long as you don't tilt
them up.

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:07:24 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

As long as you keep the engine tilted down so that all the water in
the block and lower unit drain out, no.

I have seen lower units busted up because they weren't drained
properly though. It does happen in particular if you don't cover the
exhaust port on the prop.

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

Tom Francis - SWSports wrote:
On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:07:24 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

As long as you keep the engine tilted down so that all the water in
the block and lower unit drain out, no.

I have seen lower units busted up because they weren't drained
properly though. It does happen in particular if you don't cover the
exhaust port on the prop.
He He.

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:43:22 -0500, Jim wrote:

Tom Francis - SWSports wrote:
On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:07:24 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?

As long as you keep the engine tilted down so that all the water in
the block and lower unit drain out, no.

I have seen lower units busted up because they weren't drained
properly though. It does happen in particular if you don't cover the
exhaust port on the prop.

He He.

He he wasn't the reaction of the owner when he saw it after a few days
of 20 degree temperatures. :)

Brand new Optimax to boot.

A nasty thought, do outboards freeze?
 

Tom Francis - SWSports wrote:
On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 11:43:22 -0500, Jim wrote:

Tom Francis - SWSports wrote:
On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:07:24 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

Those of you in the frozen wastes will know about this but it never
occurred to me because it rarely has gotten cold enough here.

When I get home, I run fresh water through my 90 hp Yamaha outboard.
Does sufficient water stay in the cooling passages to freeze and cause
trouble?
As long as you keep the engine tilted down so that all the water in
the block and lower unit drain out, no.

I have seen lower units busted up because they weren't drained
properly though. It does happen in particular if you don't cover the
exhaust port on the prop.
He He.

He he wasn't the reaction of the owner when he saw it after a few days
of 20 degree temperatures. :)

Brand new Optimax to boot.

My guess is the engine was tilted up allowing the housing to fill with
rain water. My guess is the boat was transported somewhere to be
winterized and left tilted because it had to be transported again. Lower
the outboard when you get to the winter resting spot. Rain isn't the
only way the housing could fill with water. I think you know how, so
there is no need to go into it. Also covering the prop hub reduces
significantly, the possibility of trapped water evaporating.