SPRINGFIELD, Va., Sept. 27, 2021 – Recreational boat owners are preparing their boats for a long winter’s nap, but sugarplums aren’t dancing in their heads. What may keep them up at night is hoping cold temperatures won’t damage their boats. Freshwater expands in volume by about 9% when it freezes and can push outward with a force of tens of thousands of pounds per square inch, cracking engine blocks, damaging fiberglass, splitting hoses and waterlines, and destroying refrigeration systems. Boat Owners Association of The United States’ (BoatUS) marine insurance provider, GEICO, shares that boaters often don’t become aware of the…