Should lower unit be trimmed up out of water while storing at marina?

wcpender

I have noticed everyone leaving their lower unit in the water while at the marina. Is it better to store it in the water or out?  (Fresh water)

Ernest_T

According to the owners manual for my Yamaha F150, it it recommended to tilt the prop out of the water for storage, but I think this is primarily to prevent corrosion, which may not be a factor in fresh water.  The other possible reason would be to prevent marine growth on the lower unit.  

To properly store the motor trimmed up, you would tilt the motor up, engage the support brackets (levers) on both sides of the motor, then completely retract the trim rods to also protect them during storage.

I don't keep my boat in the water at my marina (also fresh water), but I've noticed that maybe only 1 out of 5 outboards stored in the water tilt the prop out for storage, so it obviously works either way.   

bshippjr

Probably does not matter, although it will get algae growth if left in fresh water.  While my current boat is on a lift, when we had a pontoon it also was in a covered slip in a marina but not on a lift.  Sometimes we trimmed the motor up and sometimes not.  Periodically while we were swimming, we would just brush off the algae. Also, since the boat was not on a lift, we kept the lower unit in the water during the winter to prevent freezing.

With my 217 on a lift, I just make sure the OB is trimmed down so all the water drains out.

instymp

I keep it up in the summer & down in the winter.

rdcastle

If you have an outboard like mine with oil injection, if I leave mine tilted too far up I get some oil under the cowling. I am on a lift so up or down really doesn't matter except for the mess it creates when I grab the front of the cowling to remove it.

HydroCanis

So that's where that comes from...