The following is an archived video story. The text content of that video story is available below for reference. The original video has been deleted and is no longer available.

Freezing Weather Could Damage Your Boat


Monday night’s cold snap could be a big headache for boat owners. But even if you haven't already winterized your boat there are some things you can do to save yourself from the trouble of having to put in a whole new engine.

It may only take several hours of freezing temperatures to cause your boat engine to freeze. Experts say taking a chance and not winterizing your boat could be an expensive one.

Grant Eriksen, owner of Eriksen Marine, says winterizing your boat is more than just adding some fuel stabilizer and antifreeze -- the most important step is draining your boat's engine. "There are drains on each side of the engine block itself and there are pumps on the front that drain,” he says.

A typically marine engine has six areas to drain depending on the specific model. Getting it serviced by a professional will run you a couple of hundred dollars, but you can do it yourself.

"As long as you use the owner’s manual which even your basic owner’s manual will give you instructions on how to do it, Eriksen says.

He says an alternative to winterizing you boat is buying a special boat heater. A regular house heater is not the answer. "You put that in an enclosed space and boom, I’ve seen whole marinas go up and I’ve seen boats burn down and it almost always happens this time of year,” Eriksen says.

Appropriate heaters are shielded and spark protected and run about $400. But a new engine could cost you $15,000

By Angel Covarrubias