New (to me) Boat Prep

[Dogboy]

I have purchased a 25 and gotten it to my driveway.  Now what?

Here's the part of the plan I have no concerns with:
remove the old numbers/registration sticker
Clean/polish/install new numbers/reg/wax hull
Inspect/Charge batteries
Inspect standing rigging
Inspect halyards/lines
Inspect/inventory sails and organize them somehow
Figure out how the Bimini works.  Right now the frame is on over the mast, and the mast cant come up with it on there, so I'm confident it has to come off to raise the mast.  I think it is supposed to fold up against the backstay somehow.
Inventory dock lines, anchor rode, lifejackets, signals etc.

Here's where I'm not sure what to do and when to do it, and it pretty much revolves around the engine:
Diesel...Westerbeke 12c with heat exchanger and remote water heater.
It was winterized per the blue tag on the boat.  Other than that I have no idea what was done nor when.
There are ~5 gallons of diesel in the tank with sea-foam per the P/O.  Not sure how old the fuel is.
Thoughts:
Change oil/filters
Change fuel filters
Inspect raw water strainer
Replace impeller/O-ring
Inspect zincs.

Questions:
How do you "un-winterize" the diesel?  I assume there is antifreeze in the raw-water tubing so I need to flush it but I'm not sure how, nor what to do with it afterwards.
The boat is sitting in my driveway at an angle.  What of the above should I do while in this position?  I was thinking I could do the zincs, impeller, fuel filters and raw water strainer, but leave oil until its in the water.

What, if anything should I do with the prop?  It looks good, but has some dried/on crud from sitting in the water.  I was going to use some clean-up and a kitchen brush to clean it off.  Cotter pin looks in good shape too, so I wasn't going to change anything there.

What do I do about the hot water heater?  If I do nothing can I break something?

Is there anything else on the engine I need to inspect?  Transmission fluid?

The figure out later list:
The on-board water system is a big mystery to me, but I think I can wait on this one until launch.
Figuring out the run of the lines through the traveler to the mainsail etc.
There is an uninstalled VHF radio.  I have a handheld that I've always used on my smaller boats, so I'm going to save this install for later.  I'm not ready to start drilling holes just yet.


My experience:
I've worked on my dad's 23/D, changing oil, filters, checking strainers, replacing the muffler(plastic box + cracked strainer = no cooling and destroyed muffler).
I'm generally comfortable with that stuff.  Its the addition of the heat exchanger and all the plumbing on the boat that have me feeling a bit in the dark.

I have the operating and technical manual and I'll be going through them, but anything anyone can point out to me now would be appreciated.

[Ron]

Dogboy
Nice to hear from a fellow 25 owner. Ours is hull 42 and this will be our second season. We have the outboard model so can't be of much use regarding your diesel concerns. Suggest some of the fine books readily available for sailboat maintenance.
We have found her to be a stout and comfortable boat but it takes some wind to make her go.

[BobK]

I will give you my 2 cents worth running down your list:

Diesel fuel does not deteriorate as fast as gasoline.  I would just add 5 more gallons before I start the engine.
I agree with your filter changes and installing a new impeller for peace of mind.  I would hold off on the fuel filters until after I started the engine for the first time just incase there is a problem...less to trace down.
There should be a zinc attached to the drain in the bottom of the heat exchanger.  Don't forget this one for engine protection.
Look at all the fresh water drains and verify they were tightened not just put in the holes.
The transmission fluid should be changed - however I would wait until the boat is in the water in order to get the proper level on the dip stick.  I use a suction tube to remove the oil from both my engine and transmission.  Less of a mess and it gets 90+% of the oil.
A scotch bright pad  will clean the prop.  This would be a good time to check the cutlass bearing for play.

BobK

[Dogboy]

Update:

remove the old numbers/registration sticker - Done
Clean/polish/install new numbers/reg/wax hull - Done
Inspect/Charge batteries - Done
Inspect standing rigging - Done
Inspect halyards/lines - Done
Inspect/inventory sails and organize them somehow - Inspected/Inventoried, there are only 2, so nothing really to organize.

Figure out how the Bimini works.  Right now the frame is on over the mast, and the mast cant come up with it on there, so I'm confident it has to come off to raise the mast.  I think it is supposed to fold up against the backstay somehow. - Deferred until after launch.  If I need to I can temporarily keep mast up with lowers and the halyard while I re-thread the backstay through the Bimini Frame

Inventory dock lines, anchor rode, lifejackets, signals etc. - Done.  Flares were expired

Not considered but done: Inspect lighting.  Several bulbs out.  I have not been able to test lights on the mast, but I've ordered spares and will test before I raise the mast so I can change them on the spot.

Diesel...Westerbeke 12c with heat exchanger and remote water heater.
Got in contact with P/O.  Oil/filters/zincs changed last fall.  Impeller changed last spring.  Inspected it and no visible cracking, I'm going to let it go for now.

Prop - Scotch Pad and prop looks great.

Still to do:
Change fuel filters
Inspect raw water strainer
Identify coolant color and have some on hand.  There is no coolant in the overflow tank.  Any advice on which coolant to use other than a 50/50 mix?


Defer until launch list is the same.

[frank]

Nope....

50/50 for diesel  :-)

[Dogboy]

Used a straw at the manifold to test color.  Ethylene Glycol.  As such, I've got some of this on hand ready to add:


The manifold is full up to the neck, so I assume from the procedure in the manual that I should wait for the engine to warm up, then add the mix to the overflow.  Thats the current plan anyway.

Looking to potentially splash this evening.  This depends on the difficulty of the lifting of the mast and/or the availability of the mast crane this evening at the marina.

[Dogboy]

So Close!  Got the mast up (crane) and figured out Bimini.  Noticed the weather changing so we went to the ramp.  Marina was launching houseboats, and while we sat the wind picked up to about a 20 mph crosswind.  New to me boat and knowing it has a lot of freeboard, we called uncle.  Will launch sometime this week.  Already made our first mistake too.  Headstay plate has two holes in it, and I mistakenly connected to the rear one.  Have to fix that this's week too along with getting the boom and sails on.  Here she is before we went down to launch.