i take the hose off the output side of the strainer and pour two gallons in through a funnel with both systems running. I take the plug out of the bottom og the strainer to drain it and open the seacock when the boat comes out of the water to drain any water in the hose.
How do you winterize you AC
- Thread starter GregR
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- Joined
- Mar 18, 2001
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- 3813
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- 9,936
Just did mine this past weekend.
Shoved a hose into the thru-hull output and blew it out with my compressor - I have two, so did it through both. Then I used a hand pump to pump pink through the thru-hulls until it came out the intake.
Used about a gallon of pink and took about 10 minutes
Shoved a hose into the thru-hull output and blew it out with my compressor - I have two, so did it through both. Then I used a hand pump to pump pink through the thru-hulls until it came out the intake.
Used about a gallon of pink and took about 10 minutes
I want to be prepared when I get to the boat since I'm over an hour away. For those of you that blow air thru the hull AC discharge, what do you use? If you use an air compressor do use try to get a tight seal or do you just use an air blow gun? I was thinking shop vac or air compressor, just wondering if the seal needs to be air tight.
Same question for those that do it from the other end, at the strainer or the pump.
Same question for those that do it from the other end, at the strainer or the pump.
Glad to hear this system/product works. I watched some videos on it this weekend, seemed simple enough, I'm just too cheap to spend the $80 for it.
My generator seacock got clogged this summer; I do see value in this product for unblocking something like this as well.
You have to get a good seal or at least as good as you can. If you're going to pump antifreeze thru, I'd skip the compressed air. Just leave the seacock open so you can fill the strainer and see pink exit the bottom of the boat. One gallon will be more than enough for one unit. I bought the Seaflush system. pretty pricey for a plastic funnel and a length of corrugated plastic hose. haven't used it yet. I also think it'll be good for flushing clogged thru hulls.
I pumped from outside on my old boat that had one ac unit. This boat has two units, and although they share a pump and strainer, they have separate discharges on the side of the boat.
If I pump in each discharges individually, wouldn’t the pink go through each system back to the pick up on the bottom independently?
I've struggled with AC also...finally, I noticed if given enough patience, I can fill the strainer and it WILL suck the antifreeze.
I have 2 systems, one pump. There must be a check valve cause I can't back-fill. Tried it many times, friends tried it, etc.
But 90% of the boaters near me back-fill. Someone in our club created a 5 gallon bucket with a bilge pump and appropriate fittings...it's passed around.
This is the easiest way IMHO.
For the generator, I bought a set of barbed to hose-bib plastic fittings. For the engines, I added a permanent flush. For water, I blow it through then add a gallon of AF to the tank to get past the pump....same for macerator, shower sump, head, etc. Anywhere there is a pump I like to leave antifreeze sitting in the pump.
I have 2 systems, one pump. There must be a check valve cause I can't back-fill. Tried it many times, friends tried it, etc.
But 90% of the boaters near me back-fill. Someone in our club created a 5 gallon bucket with a bilge pump and appropriate fittings...it's passed around.
This is the easiest way IMHO.
For the generator, I bought a set of barbed to hose-bib plastic fittings. For the engines, I added a permanent flush. For water, I blow it through then add a gallon of AF to the tank to get past the pump....same for macerator, shower sump, head, etc. Anywhere there is a pump I like to leave antifreeze sitting in the pump.
I'm going back to the boat tomorrow to try to winterize the AC from the thru hull discharge. This is my last day to get this done before the boat has to go into storage. I'm a little anxious I will not have the right tools with me to get it done.
I'm bringing my air compressor, a pump that attaches to a drill I just bought, garden hoses to attach to the drill pump and antifreeze. I'm bringing the air compressor in case I am not successful pumping antifreeze in.
My concern is how to get a tight seal from the garden hose (and the air compressor as well) to the thru hull discharge. For those that do this what kind of adapters, gizmos, fancy things have you come up? I'm thinking maybe a PVC pipe clamped to the end of a garden hose after cutting off the end of the hose, with the PVC hose going into the thru hull. If that is what you do what size PVC, what size garden hose, etc? I'm assuming these thru hull discharges are a standard size and I can pick something up at the hardware store.
Hope this makes sense, and thanks
I'm bringing my air compressor, a pump that attaches to a drill I just bought, garden hoses to attach to the drill pump and antifreeze. I'm bringing the air compressor in case I am not successful pumping antifreeze in.
My concern is how to get a tight seal from the garden hose (and the air compressor as well) to the thru hull discharge. For those that do this what kind of adapters, gizmos, fancy things have you come up? I'm thinking maybe a PVC pipe clamped to the end of a garden hose after cutting off the end of the hose, with the PVC hose going into the thru hull. If that is what you do what size PVC, what size garden hose, etc? I'm assuming these thru hull discharges are a standard size and I can pick something up at the hardware store.
Hope this makes sense, and thanks
Seems like you are really over complicating it and risking not getting all the water out. How many units do you have? What's the point of reverse feeding it through the output. You already have a pump. Why not just use your pump to pump two gallons through. You don't have to blow the air out first. The antifreeze will displace it. If you pour the antifreeze into the pump from a height above the pump, it will self prime and push it trhough as fast as you can pour it in. Actually one of the easiest systems to do since the system winterizes itself.
Greg,
You’re not going to get a garden hose in the discharge. Just a couple of feet of smaller diameter cheap clear tubing from either Lowe’s or Home Depot that you can shove in the discharge. Cut it in the middle and hook both ends to your pump. Drop one one in to the container of Antifreeze and shove the other end in the discharge and hold it in as tight as you can while you pump the antifreeze in. You’ll probably spill a little, I usually keep a rag in the hand that I’m holding the tube in the discharge with, The antifreeze will go through the system and come out the pickup on the bottom of the boat. I use a cheap hand pump so I usually have an assistant pump away while I hold the tube in the discharge with one hand and the jug of antifreeze with the other.
Since you have one of those little drill pumps you’ll probably have an easier time trying to do it with just two hands if you’v Got something to prop the jug of antifreeze up on. That way you can use one hand to hold the tube in the discharge and the other to trigger the drill.
The whole thing will only take a minute or so once you have everything rigged up.
You’re not going to get a garden hose in the discharge. Just a couple of feet of smaller diameter cheap clear tubing from either Lowe’s or Home Depot that you can shove in the discharge. Cut it in the middle and hook both ends to your pump. Drop one one in to the container of Antifreeze and shove the other end in the discharge and hold it in as tight as you can while you pump the antifreeze in. You’ll probably spill a little, I usually keep a rag in the hand that I’m holding the tube in the discharge with, The antifreeze will go through the system and come out the pickup on the bottom of the boat. I use a cheap hand pump so I usually have an assistant pump away while I hold the tube in the discharge with one hand and the jug of antifreeze with the other.
Since you have one of those little drill pumps you’ll probably have an easier time trying to do it with just two hands if you’v Got something to prop the jug of antifreeze up on. That way you can use one hand to hold the tube in the discharge and the other to trigger the drill.
The whole thing will only take a minute or so once you have everything rigged up.
Thanks, this is my plan, I will be by myself, the drill water pump I have has garden hose connections on both sides so I'm going to have a challenge connecting any other hose to it. I was thinking about buying a washing machine hose connection and cutting off one end, which should be small enough to push through the hull discharge
Or, get a fitting with a garden hose thread on one end with a barb on the other. The home improvement stores often have them in brass near the plumbing stuff and plastic near the garden hoses. Either is fine.
Find a short length of cheap clear tubing that will fit on that barb and also in to the discharge. Attach it to the barb with a clamp and you’ll have what you need.
This is really simple to do once you get what you need.
- Joined
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- 9,958
Sounds like you lost prime in your A/C unit.
Once they lose prime they hard to prime unless they are flooded.
If you can hook up a garden hose to it you can prime it.
Once primed, I would just let pink go in from tank.
I make sure I close my seacock for A/C unit before boat is hauled, this keeps it primed.
Made this mistake once and I could not prime it without a garden hose apply pressure.
The pump can't pump air!
Once they lose prime they hard to prime unless they are flooded.
If you can hook up a garden hose to it you can prime it.
Once primed, I would just let pink go in from tank.
I make sure I close my seacock for A/C unit before boat is hauled, this keeps it primed.
Made this mistake once and I could not prime it without a garden hose apply pressure.
The pump can't pump air!