Newbie boat owner

[ecoastkid]

First things first. Been lurking a while and reading a bunch. Thanks for all the info you guys provide.

I've never owned a boat before but purchased a 2007 220 SANLE this past fall. When I was a kid, I used to attend a camp that always had Ski Nautiques. I always wanted one after that and now I cant wait to enjoy it with my kids this summer.

I am in the process of renting a slip from a local marina on Lake Wallenpaupack here in PA but the prospect of leaving it float there all summer is a bit scary and I have a few questions I'm hoping someone with experience can answer.

1. Do you shut off the Blige pumps when you leave the boat? Should I be worried about rain, seepage, etc if I am unable to visit the boat for a few weeks?
2. How do you secure the boat? I was already planning on taking most things out of it when I am gone (Have some big totes I can throw into my truck.) But what about the boat itself? Do you just leave it tied up or is there some type of device that locks it to the dock?

I'm sure I'll have a few more but those are whats top of mind.

Thanks in advance,

[azeus17]

Are you allowed to have lifts at the marina? That would be my first choice. If it were mine, no way would I turn of the bilges while it's floating, no matter the length of time. The marina likely has shore power, so I would just get an on board charger and then leave the auto bigles on. It may not keep it from sinking if something tragic happens, but would help with rain or leaks around the shaft, etc. Hopefully the marina has some security features (locked gate for owners only, or similar). If that's the case, I think you just put the cover on and hope your fellow owners are respectful. Not sure what else you can do besides the obvious of not leaving stuff in the boat.

[NautiqueJeff]

I agree -- don't turn off the bilge pumps. On my older boats, I run a battery tender junior and just leave that plugged into shore power. It will certainly be able to keep up with the bilge pump draw. I have found that the auto bilge pumps will run on the battery alone for about two weeks before they run the battery down enough that it'll be too low to start the engine. A battery tender will eliminate that concern.

http://products.batterytender.com/Di...12V-0-75A.html

[doug69]

I think you will get a lot of “it depends” on this post. There is the argument about whether or not you should leave your boat In the water all season-I leave mine with no issues but others don’t. There is another whole string on that subject.

It also depends on the marina. Is it exposed to massive waves or protected? Do you have friends that can check on your boat while you are not there? Is the dock made of rotting old
Wood that won’t hold a cleat in a windstorm?

I am sure there is also information dedicated to tying ropes. I ended up using a combination of YouTube and what the guys with boats beside me did. Probably somewhat dependant on your cleat situation and how much you can alter it as well.

My two cents.... I leave my boat in the water for a couple months with maybe out one week in the middle to dry it out and give it a good clean. I have no access to land power and leave bilge on but rarely away for more than a week and we have a good private marina where we all look after each other’s boats. I am also not on a big lake exposed to big waves.

Good luck.


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[Rogue14]

Like most questions on most topics, there will be varying opinions and experiences.

We have a short season but my boat stays in the water at our cabin usually from mid June until mid Sept. 15 weeks max. and usually a bit less. I do not leave the bilge pumps on in my 2007 SV211 because I have only 1 battery and my pumps are the type that constantly cycle and I was always worried about coming up for the weekend to a dead battery. I've never had an issue. I do use a super soaker and then a rag to empty as much water as possible before I leave for the weekend since the pump never gets it all. I'll leave the bilge hatch open and honestly the bilge is always dryer when I return than when I left--totally bone dry. Sure, something new and catastrophic could happen and if it does, then I'll see how good my insurance really is. I am friends with my lake neighbors though and I think they would notice if my boat was riding significantly lower in the water due to a leak or if the cover somehow was lost in a storm before it sank. My boat can be in the water up to 16 days between my trips there though usually less. I will admit I'm always a bit nervous the first week of the year that I leave it there.

My boat isn't really secured. There's not much on it to steal other than a few skis/boards/jackets/tools. But again, I have neighbors and although they are not always there either, especially mid week, we do notice people if they are on a private dock and look like they may not belong. A public dock in a marina is a different story. As far as the boat itself, if they have a trailer and can tow it to a ramp I guess they could steal it. For storms etc. I do have an elaborate system of ropes. 4 bungy type ropes to take up most of the waves and 3 fixed ropes on top of those that kick in when the bungees get stretched far. My current dock is new with strong cleats but when I started I had only fixed ropes with poorly secured cleats and learned in the first month that was not going to work. We don't often have big waves but 0-2 times a season there will be a big thunderstorm that will produce big winds and waves. My boat has always survived though I've fished dock furniture and my cover that was off the boat but on the dock out of the lake before. My neighbor has a small 12 ft. super light fiberfoam boat and one storm deposited his boat on his dock with a wave and another storm did sink it. I had just taken my boat out of the lake the week before the sinkage so not sure how my boat would have done. My cover is tight fitting and propped up with 1 pole so rain does not usually pool except for the walkthrough if I forget to put a few life jackets there to take up the space.

[ecoastkid]

Are you allowed to have lifts at the marina? That would be my first choice. If it were mine, no way would I turn of the bilges while it's floating, no matter the length of time. The marina likely has shore power, so I would just get an on board charger and then leave the auto bigles on. It may not keep it from sinking if something tragic happens, but would help with rain or leaks around the shaft, etc. Hopefully the marina has some security features (locked gate for owners only, or similar). If that's the case, I think you just put the cover on and hope your fellow owners are respectful. Not sure what else you can do besides the obvious of not leaving stuff in the boat.

I don't think the marina has lifts nor would my budget allow it...lol

I purchased a battery tender and will install it soon so I did inquire about shore power but have not gotten an answer yet. The marinas website says they have 24 hour surveillance but I doubt they have gates. Nothing will be left in the boat when I leave except a few life jackets and the anchor so I'm more worried about the boat itself. I guess that's what insurance is for though.

When I first put it in, I'll make sure I visit the boat after a day to two to ascertain how much seepage there is and extrapolate from there. Ideally I'd like to not have to worry about it if I cannot get to it for about 2-3 weeks.

It will come out a few times during the summer to go on trips to other lakes so it wont sit the entire time. My friend is an Opticoat dealer and they conveniently just launched a Marine line. We will coat the boat before its put into the water so hopefully that protects it some or at least makes it easier to clean.


Thanks for all the great answers.

[Blamey]

I rent a slip at a local Marina over the summer for my boat I also rent a parking spot at a unit nearby for $60 per month. I usually don't leave the boat in the water during the week. So I will dock the boat on Friday or Saturday and then pull it Sunday. That said during peak summer I will use the boat during the week and during that time I will leave the boat in for longer. If you think you are going to be away for up to 3 weeks at a time, I would look at getting a spot to park the boat. Call up the local storage places and see if any of them have room.


As far as leaving the boat in the water, here are my thoughts.
- I personally wouldn't leave the boat in the water without a bilge pump on.
- The battery on my boat tends to die if I leave the boat in the water for more than a week without using the boat. If you plan on leaving the boat in for longer, maybe add an additional pump that runs off a float switch, this will only turn on if there is water in the bilge. Better than nothing and won;t drain the battery.
- Get a custom fit Sunbrella. ($1000 to $1500). If your cover doesn't do it's job a couple weeks of strong rain will drain you battery and you can have water up to your engine.
- If you leave your boat in the water you run the risk of blistering the gel coat . It happens to some boats, doesn't happen to most but if it does it is very expensive to fix.
- I would also suggest drying out the bilge as best you can then letting the boat sit for a few hours without the pumps on and see how much water it takes one. Try do the same with the cover on during a rain storm to see how well the cover works.

I get real paranoid about leaving the boat in the water. I keep my boat at Greenwood Lake, NJ, which is only about 50 Miles east of Wallenpaupack and we get a lot of rain in the summer. I haven't had the same experience as Rouge 14 (maybe they get lucky with dry summers). I always return to a bilge full of water. I am hoping my new cover helps with that as I am pretty sure it's due to rain.

[Infinity]

The other thing I will mention about leaving boat at marina is that many times after using it for the day, there can be a decent amount of water in it. Just from people getting in/out of the boat wet will bring in more water than you think. If you have power for charger, then I would also look into some kind of small fan to circulate the air or at the very least, some damp rid pails. If there is moisture in the boat and then you install the cover, over a hot week, you could come back to mold, etc. Even if not mold, especially if you have carpet it wont take long for the boat to develop a smell. Doesn't need to be standing water for this to happen, just moisture.
If you pop the seats open before covering and have vents in your cover and have a small fan to circulate the air you will be in much better shape. If you get more water than normal in boat, you may have to pull stuff out to dry it before covering....especially life jackets in the lockers can get moldy pretty quick.
I bring this up cause I am fairly anal about keeping my boat dry, I probably take it too far, but after every lake day I bring boat home to my garage, open all seats and put a fan in there. Deckedence is what I have in main cabin and that dries pretty easy, but I have carpet in all my lockers and is what I am most worried about. A good cover from someone like Evolution Covers can certainly help in a situation like yours where you cannot check on the boat easily.