Re: 1998 tracker force power series 120 hp
Wideopen, where you live is a major factor. Here in Arkansas we do get some cold weather, but nothing like they get in the midwest and some other iboaters' locales. In any case, here's what I do for my barge and it's always worked well for me.
1. Fill the gas tank with gas and the requisite amount of stabilizer (there are several brands available). If the tank is full there's less room for moisture. You'll find millions of opinions regarding the efficacy of stabilizers, but for three bucks a bottle I say why not? You can make up your own mind. Pull the plugs, spray fogging oil into each cylinder, turn the flywheel several times, then replace the plugs. I won't get into the LU (oil, impeller) since that really depends what's been done and how recently. Again, you can make up your own mind, but if you're not confident the impeller was replaced within the last year I'd go ahead and take care of that now. Insure the motor is all the way down so any water can find its way out.
2. Clean up the interior insuring there's no water in any of the storage areas. A shop vac and a couple of towels make short work of this job. I like to leave the seats up, but that probably doesn't really make any difference one way or the other.
3. Insure the onboard charger is plugged in to a GFCI. If you don't have an onboard charged do yourself a favor and install one. It will be the best eighty bucks and thirty minutes you ever spent.
4. Cover the boat. Mine has a snap on factory cover with grommets and push poles. If yours doesn't you can find semi-custom covers that do a decent job.
That's it. Again, if you live in a more extreme climate you may find this procedure to be insufficient. As they say, your mileage may vary. Good luck with the barge. They're a lot of fun.
