How to de-winterise your vessel

Despite the recent cold snap, Spring is upon us and now is the time to de-winterise your vessel and prepare for the water.

Phillip Crowe, Service Foreman at Prior Power Solutions offers this advice to boat owners:

“Some of the basic maintenance and checks can be done by boat owners such as oil and coolant replacement/top-up.

It’s also recommended that engine filters are replaced regularly. Our multi-dealer parts department stocks genuine fluids, parts and accessories for fast dispatch with a friendly and knowledgeable team on hand to assist with any questions or concerns.

There are other aspects to consider right now too. Examine hoses on the cooling system for any cracks, replacing any damaged hoses. The rubber impellors on the sea water cooling pumps will also need checking for any cracking sustained over the winter months.

To de-winterise your vessel, take time to check the sacrificial anodes on your vessel to ensure they are still above the minimum required size. Ensuring these are replaced immediately if they are worn below the minimum since these are crucial for protecting valuable metal components such as the propeller on vessels.

Inspecting belts is another relatively easy task for boat owners. If you push them down and the give is significant, then they are too loose. Alternator belts tend to wear out much more rapidly than other belts, so we recommend paying particular attention to these. Examine carefully the belts in particular for black soot near the pulley.

One thing you don’t want to forget is your bilge pump. Make sure you give this the once over, along with the circuit and automatic switch unless you want to risk flooding inside your boat and wet feet and damaged belongings!

Lastly, now is a good time to invest in a full service for your boat engine. Small problems can quickly escalate to larger, more costly jobs.

Our technicians are manufacturer-trained for all major brands and we are proud to be a Volvo Penta Centre. We can help with a whole range of things and our team can be quickly dispatched right across East Anglia and the UK, so give us a call today on 01493 441383.”

Phillip has been with Prior Power Solution for almost ten years. His current role within the business is Workshop Foreman and he is also part of our senior technical support team. In his spare time, Phillip is a keen sailor with multiple boats in his fleet and enjoys spending many hours on the beautiful Norfolk Broads.

For more information about our marine services click here.