boating question

[billfish16]

Originally Posted by jr76

I am still fairly new to the boat ownership thing and would love some good advice. I have a boat i keep at a marina in point pleasant. My question is what is the earliest i can safely put my boat back in the water? Do i have to wait until there is no more chance of freezing temps? Is my only concern ice forming around the boat?? I am sure the major concern is the motor freezing, but is there any tricks so i can go in a little earlier???? Thanks

I sometimes keep my outboard powered boat in the water late into the Fall. If the air temp drops below freezing I drop the outboard in the water which at that time of the year is well above 40 degrees. This keeps the engine warmer than the air which makes the boat easier to start as well as drains the water out of the engine which could freeze if ithe motor is in the up position. The conditions in the Spring are usually the opposite with the water being colder than the air but if there is a severe Spring cold snap this might be useful.

billfish16