Winters in Austin are mild, so it’s tempting to think that you don’t have to bother with winterizing your boat. But it can take just a day or two of one hard freeze to potentially damage your engine block—and if the block cracks, you’re looking at having to replace the entire engine. Even if your boat is on dry land, all the water hasn’t necessarily drained from the motor. At the very least you can pull the engine drain plugs to make sure the water is drained, but you’ll probably want to take full precaution and do the additional steps required to winterize your boat if you want to be sure you’re preventing any damage from occurring while your boat is outdoors in the winter.

These other steps may include changing the oil and fogging the engine. The Boat Owners Association of The United States provides an extensive checklist for how to winterize your boat engine. Heated boat storage, of course, mitigates any of these concerns but it comes at an additional cost.

Also, chances are your boat isn’t going to get much use in the winter months, and sitting idle for long periods of time isn’t good for your boat at any time of year. Corrosion can be destructive in the off-season, which is another good reason to go ahead and winterize. If there’s anything that needs fixing, too, consider getting it done over the winter. The spring is especially busy for boat repair establishments, as many owners either put off repairs or realize new things that need fixing.

So although we might be far from having a white Christmas here in Central Texas, it's always a good idea to winterize your boat. Better safe than sorry!