Annual Boat Maintenance
For Serious Boaters
Regularly scheduled boat maintenance is essential for the continued performance and longevity of your boat’s motor or engine.
Generally speaking, the bulk of routine boat maintenance is best performed in the Fall season prior to storage, so everything is put away clean and ready for a smooth Springtime launch.
Annual Maintenance For Outboard Motors
One of the many positive attributes of outboard motors is their ease to work on and maintain. However, regular annual maintenance to ensure trouble-free performance includes oil and filter change every 100 hours, lower unit gear oil change, fuel filter change, and changing out the water separator to ensure clean fuel delivery.
It is also recommended to change the impeller every two years. The impeller is responsible for pumping water through the cooling system. While changing it is an easy procedure, a failed impeller quickly leads to overheating and the likelihood of costly repairs.
An impeller failure is most apt to occur at Springtime start up, when you are most excited to go boating, and when you are most concerned about a smooth launch to the boating season. So be sure to schedule this service.
Furthermore, a serious approach to winterizing an outboard motor is essential. The most important aspect of winterization is to properly stabilize the fuel system. When fuel is not stabilized prior to storage, it is prone to gumming up the injectors, the fuel holds moisture, and this can lead to fuel spoilage and extended unnecessary starting and performance issues.
In our fuel stabilizing procedure, we add a marine grade stabilizer to your fuel tank, then we run the motor until it is warm, ensuring the stabilizer is distributed throughout the entirety of the fuel delivery system.
By changing your fuel filter and water separator in the Fall, it creates a clean fuel system for storage, and ensures a smooth Springtime start up.
Perform Outboard Motor Oil Change and Gear Oil Change in the Fall
Research has shown that a motor stored with clean motor oil prior to storage literally lasts 50% longer. The same is true regarding the lower unit gear oil.
Because outboard motors are continuously exposed to demanding marine conditions, motor oil and gear oil naturally acquire contaminants that lead to corrosion if your motor is stored with last season’s lubricants.
The recommended interval for motor oil change in an outboard motor is every 100 hours of use. For many, this translates to once a season. For other’s who use their boats more frequently, or for an extended season, choose to change your oil mid-season as well. Take advantage of our same-day boat oil change service.
Furthermore, if your motor is used for high-performance speed, or towing for watersports, you should consider changing it prior to 100 hours.
Annual Outboard Maintenance at a Glance
- Oil and filter change every 100 hours (best performed in Fall)
- Lower unit gear oil change every Fall
- Fuel filter and water separator change every Fall
- Stabilize fuel delivery system prior to storage
- Change impeller every two years
- Inspect power trim hydraulics
- Inspect fuel lines and electrical connections for integrity
- Inspect smooth operation of steering, shifting, and throttle
By following this simple maintenance schedule for your outboard motor, you set the stage for trouble-free performance throughout your boating season. Get your routine maintenance scheduled today, and stay on track to get the most enjoyment and optimal performance from your outboard motor.
Annual Maintenance For Inboards and Sterndrives
Inboard motors are heavy-duty marine workhorses that will deliver years of trouble-free performance if you stay on track with regularly scheduled maintenance.
Hands down, the most important maintenance task is to change your engine oil every 100 hours of use. For many boaters this translates to once a season. For boaters who use their boat more frequently, or for an extended season, a mid-season oil change will be needed. For convenience, take advantage of our Same-day Oil Change Service.
The best time to change your engine oil is in the Fall season prior to storage. Research shows that a marine engine stored with clean oil literally lasts 50% longer. Store your engine with clean motor oil, and also clean gear oil in your outdrive to maximize longevity and continued performance.
The Fall season is also the best time to change out your fuel filter and water separator.
A Full Winterization is essential to perform at a high standard prior to the first winter cold-snap. Winterization for an inboard includes stabilizing the fuel system, purging the cooling system of all water, and then flushing it with a glycol based anti-freeze. Doing this correctly is essential to avoiding costly repairs due to a freeze within the engine or exhaust system.
Importance of Stabilizing the Fuel
Clean fuel is paramount importance for the performance and efficiency of your engine. Fuel stored in your boat’s tank and engine without being stabilized invites trouble like gummed up injectors, fuel spoilage, and water in the fuel.
By taking fuel stabilization seriously, you avoid countless annoying issues with starting problems, rough idle, hesitation in acceleration, and dead spots in certain RPM ranges. Furthermore, these issues can be costly to overcome.
Our fuel stabilizing procedure is proven effective. We add a marine-grade fuel stabilizer to your fuel tank, then run the engine until it is warm. This ensures the stabilizer runs through the entirety of the fuel delivery system including the fuel pump and injectors.
To further ensure clean fuel delivery to your engine, we recommend changing your fuel filter and water separator in the Fall prior to storage. This sets the stage for a seamless Springtime launch.
Importance of a Full Winterization For an Inboard Engine
The cooling system for an inboard engine is complex. There are many spots to remove drain plugs to ensure all water is removed. Importantly, because inboard engine compartments sometimes make accessing ports difficult, our certified techs have the tooling and know-how to reach every drain on your engine and exhaust.
After draining the water from the engine, we pump a glycol-based antifreeze throughout the entirety of the cooling system. This fully purges any residual water remaining, while also lubricating the impeller inside the water pump.
Our Inboard Winterization methods are proven effective. The winter of 2022-23 brought the coldest temperatures to Georgia in over a half-century. Of the hundreds of inboard motors that we winterized, not a single engine had a freeze issue come Spring start up.
We know that your boat is a valuable asset and we service boats to the highest marine standards. Trust professionals at Lakeside Marine to service your boat, and have peace of mind knowing that your service is performed correctly every time.
Oil and filter change every 100 hours (best performed in Fall)
Outdrive gear oil change every Fall
Fuel filter and water separator change every Fall
Stabilize fuel delivery system prior to storage
Get a Full Winterization for freeze protection
Inspect power trim hydraulics
Inspect bellows
Inspect fuel lines and electrical connections for integrity
Inspect smooth operation of steering, shifting, and throttle
Oil and filter change every 100 hours (best performed in Fall)
Outdrive gear oil change every Fall
Fuel filter and water separator change every Fall
Stabilize fuel delivery system prior to storage
Get a Full Winterization for freeze protection
Inspect power trim hydraulics
Inspect bellows
Inspect fuel lines and electrical connections for integrity
Inspect smooth operation of steering, shifting, and throttle
Lakeside Marine is The Service Choice For Serious Boaters
Lakeside Marine has a long-standing reputation for excellence in every aspect of boat service. It’s the reason why we’ve been voted the Best Boat Repair Shop for three consecutive years.
We consistently deliver the highest level of service expertise in the marine industry, and we get your service performed correctly every time.
Pre-schedule your service well ahead of time to ensure a spot on the docket. Call our professional service department at (678) 322-7877 or reserve online.
