Hi I called the marine dealer $75 to winterize can i do it myself and save money? Owners manual says to pry off idle knob shoot fogging oil in as it runs run conditioner through it and then I want to drop the lower unit oil. The lower unit concerns me because I run pretty late in the season afraid it may not drip out? other than that sounds like I can save some cash? 15 hp Johnson 1990. Thanks!
If your lower unit oil doesn’t drain out you have a problem. Easy to winterize. Pull the plugs, spray some fogging oil in each cylinder, turn it over a couple times and done. I also like to make sure the last tank has stabilizer in it and i also unplug the fuel line and run the fuel out of it. Also drain and fill the lower.
Oops! I meant for the lower unit just because it will be cold 40 degrees roughly when I try to drain it. Sounds easy to do so I just go through the plug holes not the carb for fogging?
Hi I called the marine dealer $75 to winterize can i do it myself and save money?
Absolutely crazy price for a 10 minute job.
1. Drain and change the lower unit gear lube any time you want. No need to wait until the bitter end. The point is to get fresh lube in there and check for signs of water. If you see no water, there is no problem, just leave it alone after refilling.
Do NOT let anyone convince you to leave the lower unit dry until spring. More lower units have been ruined by guys forgetting to add oil than have ever been “saved” by this bad idea.
BTW, stories about water getting in lower units and freezing such that the lower unit “bursts” are vastly overblown and mostly the result of armchair mechanic theorization. If your lower unit is leaking that badly, you would have had a pool of oil underneath it and it would be leaking so badly it wouldn’t hold water either.
2. THIS IS THE CRITICAL STEP. When you last use the outboard, disconnect the fuel hose and let it run until the carb is dry and the motor quits. You can also do this in your driveway by running the outboard on “water muffs” connected to the garden hose.
3. Either drain the fuel tank and run the gas in your truck to use it up or add Stabil. Do NOT add Seafoam or other magic potions.
4. Pull the spark plugs and spray fogging oil in the cylinders. Inspect plugs and check for the proper gap. Replace and do NOT over-tighten.
5. Pat yourself on the back for saving $75 for what amounts to super-easy 10 minutes of maintenance and that’s only if you stop to take pulls off your beer between steps. Total cost of supplies used is about $3. My can of fogging oil dates from 1995, to give you an idea of how long the supplies last once you have them. I think with small outboards you should be able to fill the lower unit 2-3 times with one bottle of lube.
Grouse
Get one of these for changing the lower unit oil:
Remove top screw, then bottom screw and let drain. Fill from bottom screw hole until oil come out top screw hole. Replace top screw, then bottom screw and you’re done.
At 40 degrees, the oil will drain slow. Give it an hour or even overnight if you have the time. Use new oil that is at room temp. It will fill easy.
-J.
Lol we already talking about this? we have another 3 months till I am even worry about that.
Read your manual on fogging some say do it while it is running and some say just spray it in the plug holes and bop the throttle and repeat.
Make sure your bilge and live wells are free of water also.
You guys are awesome thank you so much that step by step is awesome!!. I just want to save some cash and know I can get it done myself the post about the water in the lower unit is very helpful I was always so worried if I changed the lower unit and ran it a couple more times that if for some reason (gasket does not seal good) that I could crack the lower unit now I can rest easier thank you all!!
If you want to change your lower unit oil earlier that’s ok too. Just pull the lower plug after your last use and see what the oil looks like. The water will sink to the bottom of the gearcase. If it’s milky like coffee with creamer, you have water in there and you better get it out. It’s not ideal but if you ever have that late season emergency fishing trip after you winterize it, you don’t have to change it again just because you decided to take it out one more time.
Good advice so far. In my opinion, using non-oxy gas would be the most critical step. Also, I’ve never had a problem using Seafoam and think it works just as good or better than Stabil.
BTW, stories about water getting in lower units and freezing such that the lower unit “bursts” are vastly overblown and mostly the result of armchair mechanic theorization. If your lower unit is leaking that badly, you would have had a pool of oil underneath it and it would be leaking so badly it wouldn’t hold water either.
This theory certainly could be vastly overblown, but I had that happen on an old 10hp Johnson, back before I knew better.
I always run non oxy in everything but the cars never had a carb or injector problem since. I always put stabilizer in it always.
I always prefer seafoam to stabil. Probably just what you are comfortable with. I have heard not to use them together.
I wouldn’t worry about changing the fluid late in the season, it’ll drain. My lower unit seal began leaking very slowly halfway through duck season last year. No time to have it fixed with such a short season, so I did the redneck thing. Changed it after every weekend and ran it that way into Mid-December…temps in the low teens and it drained out fine.
Fog the cylinders and you’re good to go. I replace plugs every spring, some don’t.
I prefer to fog the cylinders through the intake if possible and the plug holes as a last resort. You just get more coverage that way.
You just get more coverage that way.
And more smoke. 
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