Did you know that water expands in volume by about nine percent when it freezes? This creates a staggering force that can crack a boat engine block, damage fiberglass or split hoses.

As fall approaches, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) recently dug deep into its insurance claims files, unearthing a trove of winterizing-related boat insurance claims and finding that more than three-quarters involved cracks in the engine block or the exhaust manifolds. Now, the national boating services, safety and advocacy group is making available at no cost the 15-page “Boater's Guide to Winterizing” that can make the task easier for any type of boat. If problems occur with your houseboat, you could face the majority of the new boating season being filled with repairs to get everything in order once more.

Unless you call Hawaii or the Florida Keys home, BoatUS recommends that you winterize your engine if you live anywhere else and have any possibilities of a sudden freeze wreaking havoc.

This downloadable brochure addresses the reasons for more than 95 percent of the freeze claims handled by the BoatUS Marine Insurance Program in the past decade—and those claims came from all over the country, not just the winter states. You can check out their findings and use their checklist as a base for your own winterizing routine to help make sure you’ve got everything covered. Their checklist is available at www.boatus.com/winterizingguide.