Published on Buzz's Marine-New and Used Nebraska Boat Dealer: Fishing Boats, Sport Boats, Ski Boats, Pontoon Boats, Deck Boats, Jon Boats (
http://www.buzzsmarine.com)
Get Your Boat Ready for the Season!
Spring is here and the weather is beginning to warm up to the point you can finally go for that first boat ride. Many boaters just hook up and go to the lake hoping that everything works when they get there. However, 30 minutes spent checking your boat can save you many problems while you are boating.
Hopefully, you've thoroughly cleaned your boat before storing it away for the winter. Then, when you get your boat out of storage this spring, some tips to follow are:
- Check your trailer: tire condition, pressure, wheel bearings and tail lights.
- Check the battery: clean the terminals, charge it and connect the wires.
- Go through a checklist of the electrical system in the boat for proper operation: bilge and livewell pumps, lights, horn, stereo and depth sounders.
- Check the fluid levels: gear lubricant, engine oil levels and fill the oil injection reservior.
- Flush test: attach a flush test device to the water inlets on the lower gear housing and turn on the water from a garden hose.
- Pre-Test Engine: Hook up the fuel hose and start the engine and check for proper operation before your first trip to the lake, so you know that the engine will start when you get to the launch ramp.
- In the Water Testing: once you have the boat in the water, start the engine and watch the instruments for any indication of a problem.
- Run Test: Proceed to open water and bring the boat up on plane at medium throttle. Engines that have been winterized will tend to run a little rough while they are burning away the winterizing oils, but should smoothout after a short tun.
- Instrumentation: Keep watch on the instruments and be aware of any warning horns or alarms. If you have a problem, it will normally surface on your first trip.
- IF YOU OWN A STERN DRIVE ENGINE BE FULLY AWARE THAT AFTER YOU HAVE RUN YOUR ENGINE ON THE WATER, IT WILL NO LONGER BE PROTECTED FROM FREEZING.
These guidelines are intended to help make your first trip to the lake enjoyable and trouble free. If you should experiance a problem or need assistance with preparing your boat for the water, feel free to give our service department a call at (866) 366-2899.
Hope to see you at the lake,
Paul Smolik
