Last year I had my 5.7 inboard winterized by a shop that did not use antifreeze to protect the cooling system from freezing. They have been doing engines this way for years without any issues. We didn't have any problem with freezing and it ran fine this summer and I'm wondering if anyone else has done this and how it can be accomplished. I'd like to do it myself to save money and if antifreeze isn't necessary, better yet.
Howdy
Welcome aboard.
This issue is argued every Fall.
You do not need to use Anti-freeze. (period)
You MUST however, ENSURE that you drain every bit of weater from the block, manifolds and every other place that water might pool.
(If you want to pour RV/Marine AF in the engine after draining, you can but it is essentially unnecessary.........if there's no water in confined areas, there's nothing to produce ice)
To that end, remove block drains (don't just open petcocks)and manifolds drains. Use a thin screwdriver, nail, wire etc to poke into the holes and dislodge debris and rust flakes.
Remove hoses that might pool water (the "big" one on your circulating pump) lower the drive so any water drains from it and if it sits outside, rain cannot run into the prop area.
There's other things that you should do for Winterization.......Check the "sticky" message threads at the top of the forum for more info on DIY "stuff"
Regards,
Rick
