Winterizing older 2 stroke?

[merrittboy1]

Last couple of years have kept my winterizing basic for my 250, motor tilt down, Stabil in tank etc. but have read that leg oil should be emptied and refilled for winter and engine should be fogged. Can you guys tell me what you do. Appreciate input.

 

[gungadin]

I store my boat outside, change leg oil, if there is water there it could freeze and crack the housing, spraw fogging oil into the each carb, drain carbs, fuel stabilizer in tanks, spray under cowl. Put boat under tarp. Refurbish reels etc and wait 'till next year.

 

[merrittboy1]

I store my boat outside, change leg oil, if there is water there it could freeze and crack the housing, spraw fogging oil into the each carb, drain carbs, fuel stabilizer in tanks, spray under cowl. Put boat under tarp. Refurbish reels etc and wait 'till next year.

Do you refill the leg after draining then? Do all 2 strokes have carbs? My son feels that we don't need to fog..

 

[profisher]

Definitely put gear oil back in the leg...keep the bearing and gears from rusting. I use Stabil in the tank but choose to fire the engine very 2 weeks and let run for a couple of minutes until the t-stats open. This keeps all internal parts coated in oil, gives me an idea where the batteries are at and if a problem crops up I can deal with it now and not in the spring when I already have enough to do's.

 

[trendsetter]

Do you refill the leg after draining then? Do all 2 strokes have carbs? My son feels that we don't need to fog..

Always refill the gearcase with oil, it should never be left dry. What motor do you have? Pretty much all two strokes prior to 1999 were carbed with a few exception. The newer ones are either carbed or direct injected.

You don't "need" to fog but it's better for your engine to be stored oiled. An easy way to fog is to mix double the 2-stroke oil in a small gas tank (25:1), add some fuel stabilizer like stabil or seafoam, then run the engine on that tank for 10 minutes at idle. Otherwise by a can of fogging oil and follow the directions. If your engine has a separate oil tank with oil injection then you mix the small tank 50:1.

I'm like profisher, I run my outboards at least once a month over the winter just to flush things out and get fresh oil throughout the engine. Maybe it's just an excuse to play with my boat in the winter.

 

[merrittboy1]

We have a 98 Mariner 250 efi. Son feels that since it injects oil there will be some covering the parts from last run. I will mention the 50:1 idea. Sounds reasonable. Thanks. I am an idiot when it comes to motors etc. learning big time. What temps are you starting your motors during winter? We get some minus 20 for a spell each winter...

 

[trendsetter]

We have a 98 Mariner 250 efi. Son feels that since it injects oil there will be some covering the parts from last run. I will mention the 50:1 idea. Sounds reasonable. Thanks. I am an idiot when it comes to motors etc. learning big time. What temps are you starting your motors during winter? We get some minus 20 for a spell each winter...

The EFI is fuel injected so no carbs on your motor. Your motor is also oil injected, but all that means is the fuel pump mixes the oil/fuel for you instead of adding it manually to the gas tank. The idea behind fogging a motor is to add extra oil to the system to help protect the internals while it sits in storage. In your case hooking up a tank of 50:1 to fog will work well.

You can start a 2-stroke in pretty much any temperature. Just remember to return it to the leg down (running position) for storage. All the water will drain out of the motor in that position.

 

[gungadin]

I should add that I do not start mine during the winter, do not wish to introduce water into engine. I bring the battery inside, store it in heated basement on wooden shelf, and charge it once a month.I have heard of people running RV type antifreeze, but have never done so myself.

 

[Captain PartyMarty]

My Mercury book does not recommend fogging, instead it recommends removing spark plugs and putting a bit of engine oil in the cylinders. Then turning the crank a few times by hand. This is what I have planned

 

[TheSookesOfHazzard]

Definitely put gear oil back in the leg...keep the bearing and gears from rusting. I use Stabil in the tank but choose to fire the engine very 2 weeks and let run for a couple of minutes until the t-stats open. This keeps all internal parts coated in oil, gives me an idea where the batteries are at and if a problem crops up I can deal with it now and not in the spring when I already have enough to do's.

I'd do exactly as profisher says. At the shop I used to work at, we stopped fogging engines only because the oil generally leaks out of one of the piston ports. It's not a bad idea to do it, but we never noticed any issues by not doing it either. In fact, I believe we winterized motors by using a fuel tank that had a mixture of stabilizer and fogging oil in it, instead of spraying oil through the air intake or directly into the cylinders via the spark plug holes.

 

[seascene]

What about running the engine with fuel tank disconnected to run all of the gas out of the carb? Then put oil in the cylinders with plug out and crank coupla times?
...

 

[AlK]

On my carb engines I always use the fogging spray in the intake and pulled the fuel lines and ran them till they quit. Took out the plugs and gave each cylinder a good shot of fogging spray, replaced the plugs and then turned the engine over a couple of times and then let her sit until spring. When spring time came they started up almost immediately - never had a problem.

 

[Canso]

What about running the engine with fuel tank disconnected to run all of the gas out of the carb? Then put oil in the cylinders with plug out and crank coupla times?
...

with a 2 stroke the oil in the fuel lubes the crank. without extra oil, the crank bearings can fog just like cylinder walls over time. fog is a thin layer of rust, why take the chance.

 

[TheSookesOfHazzard]

The other problem with running them out of gas is that the fuel pump is before the carburetor in the fuel system, if it's a diaphragm pump it can overheat and tear without fuel to lube it; and it will be going for awhile waiting for the float bowls to drain.

 

[Duffer]

I've been fogging my EFI for the past five years and it's running like a top. Remove plugs fog each cylinder real good crank it over for a sec replace plugs. Stabil in fuel,change leg oil, antifreeze in your freshwater system and put it away. In the spring I run it the first time with the old plugs then stick new ones on every year. Runs like a charm.

 

[profisher]

I also agree with not running the fuel pumps dry if it can be avoided. Your main engines will burn through the float bowl gas fairly quickly and may be less prone to damage. Kickers however can run for a long time on the fuel in the line between the pump and the carb and the fuel in the carb itself. That is hard on those pumps.

 

[Mike_R]

I've been fogging my EFI for the past five years and it's running like a top. Remove plugs fog each cylinder real good crank it over for a sec replace plugs. Stabil in fuel,change leg oil, antifreeze in your freshwater system and put it away. In the spring I run it the first time with the old plugs then stick new ones on every year. Runs like a charm.

Just to clarify, start by putting fuel stabilizer in the tank then run the engine long enough so the stabilizer gets through the fuel line into the engine. Then fog the engine.

 

[Lipripper]