Dry Storage vs In the Water

A

amllorck

Member
Joined
Jan 2, 2023
Messages
13
Fluid Motion Model
C-242 C
Hull Identification Number
FMLT2304F223
I am fairly new to boating and own a Ranger R-23 and have the boat in Edmonds Marina in a slip. To save on monthly cost I am thinking about switching to Dry Storage on the rack as they will put the boat in the water for you whenever you need to go out. I also have allot of nerves when docking as I am a newbie!! I think with the dry storage method it will be a little easier and help me to get to know my boat better. I have a solar panel and was thinking of storing on the lower rack vs up above. I am pretty sure that I will still get light to the solar panel to help charge the batteries. Does anyone have any tips on dry storage vs being in the water for an R23. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!! 🙂
 
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I have my 2018 R27 in the water 24/7 and take it out about every two weeks for a minimum of two hrs. I don't fish only at Costco. I still don't like docking my boat but knocking on wood never had a real problem. My advice is SLOW SLOW when docking. So I like it in the water even hanging around inside the 27.
Jim from Gig Harbour.
 
My feeling is that if you rely on this type of storage and service it may only delay getting over your nerves. These ships are so easily maneuvered. Bow thruster and outboard combination make it so you can literally walk the boat laterally. In my situation I have to thread a maze of pilings departing/arriving. In my humble opinion this has accelerated my close quarters maneuvering skilz.

And best advice I’ve ever gotten… “SLOW IS PRO”

The temptation to rush when docking can be high, especially when people are watching. Slow slow slow…
 
We are in the water 24/7 and like the ability to hang out on the boat, eat lunch, take nap, etc. and be on the water with out having to leave the marina. The first slip we had was okay. We then got on a wait list to change slips and ended up with a great end-tie slip with plenty of room. We’ll ever let that slip go if we can help it.
 
Thank you all for your replies greatly appreciate the responses. Being in the water definetely has its advantages of being able to go down to the boat even when you are not going out! Still wondering if anyone has any thoughts on pros and cons of dry storage vs having your boat in the water. Thank you all again for your feedback!! 🙂
 
I keep my C-28 docked in a slip. My previous boat too. My brother, on the other hand, is a high and dry guy.

Couple of observations. I do a lot of my own work on the boat, I can do that at any time. Don't have to put the boat in the water. I sometimes sleep on the boat the day before I go fishing so as to get an early start. Sometimes hang out on the boat just to watch the bay. Over time we made many friends on our dock, there is a community aspect to being in the water full time. You get to exchange anchorages, weather reports, technical knowledge. On a tough weather day people will often come down to your slip to help with docking once you get to know each other.

My brother has to call ahead. They don't put boats in very early in the morning, I think it's 830 am. If he gets back after 5 PM he has to dock it anyway and the techs pick it up in the morning. He's annoyed because the boat above him is dripping water and rust on his boat. There isn't any spontaneous "gee it's a nice evening let's go down to the boat" potential. If it's after 5 PM you are SOL.

As another poster stated, fluid motion boats are, in general, easy to dock. Practice is key. Perhaps take a day with good conditions, and practice docking. Do that for several hours. You will learn the skill and reduce the stress.

-martin610
 
Thank you Martin610, you have some good points which I will definetely consider. There are pros and cons to everything!!Appreciate your response!! Thank you!
 
We’ve dry-stacked our 25-ft Ranger Tug since we got it in 2013. It’s never been bottom painted and the gelcoat isn’t fading. Zincs last longer too. Not hauling it out for maintenance just about covers the higher storage cost for us.

The shape of our hull requires stacking on the ground level so we get indoor access to do work. We can always put it up on the blocks outside too. That came in handy earlier this season when we ran over a log, heard a rattling sound at low speed, and wanted to check the hull and prop for damage. Fortunately, we just had a loose prop zinc!

One chore is lowering and raising the antenna and radar mast for stacking. And no home dockside parties for us :cry:
 
My wife and I would not boat if we didn’t have a slip. We go to the marina often and use the boat for sunset cruises and are quite spontaneous. We hang out with friends and sometimes have dinner on the boat. We have two friends that have used dry storage for there boats and have been in slips for years now and would never go back to dry storage. We also have friends that use dry storage but only use the boat once a month or less. We just moved to a new floating dock which is a lot narrower and a narrow fairway compared to our old slip. Definitely going to take some practice to maneuver With single engine. Just my thoughts.
KKRCRACE
 
In terms of hours spent. We use our boat more in the marina than out of it!
 
The third option between marina slips and dry stacking is trailering. I’m guessing a tandem axle trailer for a R-23 is probably in the $10-12k range. And a trailer would have a reasonable “residual value” when you sold the boat.
We keep our boat in the driveway 6 months a year. Since we are 550 miles from where we launch we don’t use it those 6 months. But if you were close I don’t see a problem with launch in h and retrieving during the “off season”. Loading up and launching typically takes 90 minutes. Retrieving takes 45 minutes. We spend nothing for storage on the off season. I typically work on the boat off season about 100 hours averaging 2-3 hours a day when I work on it. Commute time to the boat under 1 minute. And I love knowing it’s always on our house’s shore power with heaters in the cabin and bilge running during the cold winter.
During the season the boat is stored on the trailer 40 minutes from our launch site in Bellingham. Dry storage cost is $95 per month. Time to take it out of storage to launch is about 2 hours with 1.5 hours to get it back into storage. We tend to do 4-5 long trips per season. Our total annual storage costs are for our C-28 under $600 or under $650 if you add in all the launch and retrieval fees.
This would not work well for someone who is fishing several times per week during May to October.
But if you stored on trailer 6 months off season and had a slip or dry stacked for 6 months May to October that could be the perfect combination for quite a few owners. I am aware that in the PNW it may be difficult to find a slip just 6 months a year.
 
We rack store our R27OB indoors. The solar does not keep batteries up so I have to plug it in once a week. The maintenance is much lower. We have a floating condo (1988 38' Aft Cabin Carver) we keep in a slip. We take the R27 out about every other weekend. I get 4-6 years out of bottom paint and two years on wax.

If fear of docking is your primary motive for rack store I would either sell the boat, get a experianced captain to give you pointers (did this on bothe boats) or just go on a week day when no one is there to watch and practice (also did this on both boats)

If you ever get over the fear of docking you are too cocky.
 
My dock here in Southport, NC is opposite the forklift storage launch. I can sit in the cockpit and watch them lift boats in and out all day. This would be something I would consider for our R-23, but we stay on our R-23 A LOT, which wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t have a slip.

So, think about how you are boating. If it is day trips and overnights away from your home marina, dry storage would save some maintenance. If you want to spend as much time on the boat as possible, a slip is much more convenient.


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Thank you for your post, yes dry storage would definetely save some maintenance and day trips and overnights are pretty much our plan for now. Just have to figure the best plan for charging batteries, whether to use antifreeze or just empty out water tanks, and engine maintenance while stacked during the winter months. We dont typically get allot of freezing temperatures here in Seattle, but some we do. There is so much information on the web so can be overwhelming. Thank you again!!
 
The Ranger Tugs YouTube channel has a winterizing video that will show you how they do it. It’s not difficult and I can do it on the trailer in about 30 minutes.


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Will check it out, thank you!! 🙂
 
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