November brings many things to the Crystal Coast, beautiful weather and great fishing are tops for many of us.  Along with the obvious comes a major decision, do we continue to use the boat or put her to bed.  Winterization is a must for those of you that are not fishing through the winter months.  Today's engines and fuels do not tolerate long periods of lay up without proper measures being taken.  For those of you with new four stroke engines, Yamaha and other engine manufacturers recommend that you change the oil and filter as part of winterization.  Now is the time to protect your investment from damage caused by the lack of use during winter months.

Last year we warned everyone about the possible damage due to fuel blended with ethanol.  A year later these concerns have come to be reality.  Our service department has had a constant flow of fuel system problems directly related to ethanol.  Whenever possible, be certain to buy ethanol free gas.  We will continue to carry ethanol free gas as long as a supply exists.

For those that are new to boating we want to explain what winterization protects against.  The boat's engine(s) needs to be protected against internal and external corrosioin along with stablizing the entire fuel system to prevent fuel breakdown.  The lower unit needs to be checked for water intrusion to prevent damage to the gears.  Both salt and fresh water systems need to be drained before the temperature falls below the freezing point.  We also treat electrical panels with a protecting spray that will prevent corrosion, one ot he leading causes of electrical failures on a boat.  For more details specific to your boat do not hesitate to call James Hajjar for help.

For those of you that keep your boat on a lift or a slip away from Radio Island Marina we can perform most necessary services at your dock.

Shrink wrap provides another level of protection for your investment during the winter lay up.  Both the interior and exterior are protected from the elements.  Shrink wrapping is priced on an individual boat basis and James can help you with this as well.

Winter is also the best time to address those items that we all seem to put off fixing such as wiring, electronics and canvas.  Let us take care of problems now before the season rolls back around.