OK I have wheeled JEEPS for awhile CJ, Comanche (favorite), and JK. But, never had a winch. I live in Florida and swamp wheel almost exclusively. Question is: Smittybuilt XRC-8, XRC-10, Superwinch 9.0 or 8500 and throw Warn in their. DO THESE ELECTRIC WINCHES WORK WHEN WET??? DO THEY WORK UNDERWATER??? Ususally if I get stuck I am almost up to my headlights in water. I have always wondered this as I have seen pics of a submerged winch doing work. But do they all work that way?

 

probably wouldnt work underwater.. if i were you i would get a hydrolic winch.. i have seen them before.. but not recently.. or you would be legendary if you rigged up a pto winch on your jk.. those can go underwater!!!

 

For the most part most winches are water resistant. They will work under water, but you would want to take the time to do regular maintenance and grease everything really well that others in dryer climates may never have to worry about.

 

my superwinch 8500 worked under water, and survived being stuck under there for almost 3 hrs....that being said I think I might just have been lucky! definitely not gonna try that again. But the winch is working just fine after that.

 

X2 you will just have to do more maintenance than others, but there is no reason for it not to work. I have been around lots of winches that have spent a fair amount of time underwater while driving, but have never actually used one while submered. I would go to some of the manufacuters and ask their opinion.

 

Ramsey and Warn are high quality electric winches that are water resistant. Will they work under water? I can't give you an honest answer. I would think yes but you'll probably want to clean them very thoroughly when you get home. I know the military uses Mile Marker hydraulic for reasons like this.

 

From the Warn PowerPlant owner's manual:

*No lubrication is required for the life of the unit, unless it is submerged in water. If this occurs, a qualified service center must complete service as soon as possible to prevent corrosion damage. If the control pack is submerged, it must be replaced when the unit is serviced.

I really like the Warn PowerPlant--just used it this past weekend to winch out two really stuck pick-up trucks (in an area I could easily drive circles through--if they'd just bought Jeeps!). And the compressor was perfect for TORN, High Roller and me when we wheeled at EJS last month. But, if I was routinely in swampwater, I think the quote above would give me pause.

 

You could always due a Warn 8274 that keeps the electrics up higher than most any other winch.

 

They will work under water but the manufacturers suggest you get the thing professionally serviced afterwords. They actually recommend that if you submerge it all. I would say if you seem to do it a lot then get it looked at. It will corrode and fail over time.

I have the same bumper as you and the reason I got it was to keep my winch up as high as I could. I can't believe how often I'm up to my bumper in water. So, it was a good call in my situation.

 

I believe the Superwinch Epi 9.0s has a completely sealed, submersible solenoid and it comes with synthetic rope, which floats, it might be just what you need