A well-worn adage describes boats as "holes in the water, into which you throw money."

Thanks to the $878 dividend the state doles out to bank accounts and mail boxes, Alaska residents have a few more bucks to toss into that endeavor.

Each year locals spend some of their dividend to winterize their boat and update marine equipment at Willies Marine, Josh Schuon, parts manager for the boat sales and service center said.

“We always get a couple sales out of it,” Schuon said. “It is good for everybody.”

While a new boat will require a very large family’s worth of dividend checks, Willies has several popular items that a single dividend can cover, Schuon said.

“We have a lot of kickers here in the pfd range,” Schuon said. Along with a generator in the $850 range, he said, and kayaks and inflatable boats.

With direct deposit dividends landing in bank accounts Oct. 4 and checks arriving soon after, the timing is right to prepare boats for the upcoming winter, Schuon said.

Willies can winterize most boat for between $150 and $500 depending on size, he said.

The low end is a basic spare outboard kicker, while a larger vessel’s main and kicker will run closer to $500.

“Or, save some money on labor when you get winterized and oil changed together,” Schuon said.

A typical winterize is oil changes, fog the engine, change the gear lube, stabilize the fuel and add antifreeze components where needed.

Most of the time it is in and out in a couple days

Every once in a while it takes a week or so Willies also offers boat storage, hauling and shrink-wrap.

The most common shrink-wrap for boats 23- to 26-foot runs $355, while a 34-footer costs closer to $700.

Willies Marine is located at 2281 Industrial Blvd.

For more information call 789-4831 or visit www.netak.com/willies.

• Contact reporter Russell Stigall at 523-2276 or at russell.stigall@juneauempire.com.