I’d like to hear your opinions

[Capt’nKarl]

Here’s my dilemma. We currently have our R-23 on its trailer in a covered shed in the back yard 30 seconds from the house. It’s protected from the elements with 24/7 power and fresh water. I can pull it out of the shed to wash it, wax it and do all the routine maintenance. It’s free and it’s wonderful to have it so close. Here’s the down side. The closest good boat ramp to launch and recover is 45-60 minutes away which makes it a hassle to take the boat out on a “spur of the moment” to watch a sunset or take friends out on the bay. I don’t want to leave the boat in the water constantly because marine growth here is horrible. I’m looking into a dry storage marina 30 minutes from the house @ $350/ month. Right now the only site available is outside. No cover but there is power and water and it’s likely that within the next 6 months I’ll be able to move the boat inside for $400/month where it’s protected from the elements. At the marina when I want to use the boat I text the crew and it’s ready to leave when I get there. They’ll fuel it up and all you do is hop aboard and go. When you return the crew secures the boat, removes the drain plugs and puts her in storage. My question is. Which one would you use?
Thanks in advance,
Capt’nKarl

 

[Alpina]

Totally personal opinion, of course …

The financial logical side of me says, trailer it as that’s a lot of money when you can just trailer the boat.

That said, I totally hear ya, and having it in the water makes it that much easier to say, “let’s go.” I trailered my 21’ Cobalt for 18 years but when I moved to GA, I got a slip for the very reasons that you mentioned. Now I have an R29.

I looked at both options and but selected the in water option for two reasons, I was nervous of someone using a fork to handle my boat and I wanted the option to come hang on the boat in the water anytime. Now with the r29, I just keep her in a covered slip.

Franco


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Someday*]

I say give the new “system” a try…don’t have to keep it there forever if you decide it’s not what you want.

 

[S. Todd]

I understand your quandary. We had a R25SC and numerous Sea Rays that fit in the garage in the back yard for the last 3.5 decades. I liked being able to come home from a long trip spend a few evenings cleaning up the boat and having it stay clean and dry until the next outing. The one boat we had the longest, 18 years, looked and performed like new until we parted with her (including the canvas). Last year we sold our R25 and ordered a R29S (that does not fit in the garage) because I had friends that owned a boat dealership with inside temperature controlled storage that I was able to rent, even though it was 30 minutes from our house. I knew someday they would retire, but I thought that day was a few years into the future and I would have some lead time. 2 months ago they decided to retire and put the location up for sale and it sold within week to a construction related company. Right now I am paying $300 a month for a carport 15 minutes from our house but it is without a security fence so the boat sits in the weather in our back yard. I am paying for the carport because they tell me they are building enclosed private space within the next 6 months and as a customer I will get first dibs on the the new space. I really wanted to work on the boat this last Sunday but it rained all day. The lake is more than 180 miles away so for us there is no quick trip to watch the sunset from the water. Our preference is that if we are not on the boat, it should be indoors and on its trailer.
That said, we have relatives that live within a mile of their rack stored boat, a 18 foot bowrider, and they love their covered rack storage option and the lack of the need for a trailer or a tow vehicle. One call and the boat is in the water whenever they want and is otherwise stored safely, high and dry.

 

[Submariner]

We trailered our last boat for 14 years and are well aware of the work involved to launch and retrieve the boat.

We opted to not buy a trailer with our RT and moor it at a marina. Whether it be dry stack storage where you call and they launch and retrieve for you, or whether it's floating in the water on the dock, being able to just grab the keys, head to the dock and leave makes it easier to use the boat. If it's easy, you will go boating more often.

Everything has trade-off's. Instead of the cost of a trailer I have the cost of bottom paint. The trailer storage is by far the least expensive, but results in the most work required to go boating.

We pay for a covered slip in a marina. We also pay for a dry dock storage up on blocks. Why both?
The covered moorage of the marina is at the mouth of the river. So the no-wake zone is fairly short. The covered slip protects the boat from the sun and rain. Coming and going is super easy for an hour, an afternoon, a weekend, or longer. We bring a change of clothes and food with us on our way to the dock to head out to sea.

The dry dock storage we pay for is out in the open on blocks so we're able to get in/out of the boat easily. Sun and rain hit the boat. The marina pulls the boat out of the water with a forklift and sets us in our spot on blocks. They have fantastic, what I call, "princess service". I pull into the boat ramp, they grab the lines and take it from there as we walk away. We do whatever maintenance we need to do to the boat. Zincs, routine engine maintenance, cleaning of the hull and boat. The location is 3 miles of no-wake zone up the river with a train bridge that often closes for upwards of an hour. This makes coming and going slow and time consuming and is why we don't primarily just keep our boat there. This location is effectively our trailer. It's a haul-out for us that requires no appointment or advanced scheduling. They won't tell me "we're booked out until next year..."

We also try to put the boat away in her slip with an empty SAN tank and a full gas tank. We just look at the weather for the upcoming weekend, if it looks good, we head down to the dock with the boat keys in hand.

 

[Mastercraft]

Consider all the factors and you decide
- Talk to others at the marina who have done this.
- How much notice do you need to give marina to have boat ready?
- Is the marina crew available after your sunset cruise?
- Can you work on your boat in the water or in storage?
- Do you have access to boat in storage, even if not “working” on boat?
- Do you trust the marina crew?
- Have you ever left a drain plug out? (I wouldn't depend on marina for drain plug. I left one out for each of my first three boats.)
- Where do find a boat that is “hop on and go”, unless it is a friend‘s that won’t be a friend for long?
- Is it month to month rent with no long term lease?
- Are you still going to have a trailer? (It is a great option.) Is trailer storage at no cost?
- Does your state have a life-time trailer license option? (For about $200, Washington state does for trailers under 2,000 lbs.)
- Are there unlimited haul-in and outs each month?
- Is power available for covered storage too? Extra cost for power?

Never try to justify it financially. If you can’t really afford it, then don’t do it.
My opinion of covered moorage is that it is like having a party on your boat while its in the garage. It is just not the same. It doesn’t sound like you are considering that.
If the marina seems the best option and it is month-to-month, go for it.

 

[gwishon]

Literally tens of thousands of boat owners here in Florida keep their boats in the water. Most will pay a diver to scrape their hulls once a month for about $100. Even this can be avoided if you can find a friendly neighbor with a vacant lift for rent.

Gordon

 

[Capt’nKarl]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Right now I’m leaning towards taking the boat to the marina for outdoor storage. Hopefully it won’t be too long a wait to get it indoors and protected. A couple of things I should expand on. First, I’ll always have the option to bring the boat back to the house after any extended trip or really whenever I want to for as long as I want to. I’ll have to continue to pay for the storage but that gives me the best of both worlds I think. There’s a nice boat ramp right next to the marina where I can take the trailer, load the boat and bring it home. I have 5 acres of room in the backyard so space for the empty trailer is not an issue. I can move my camping trailer into the boat shed to get it out of the elements. The cost of the storage hopefully will be justified by more time on the boat. That’s why we got the boat in the first place. I really appreciate everyone’s thoughts and experiences.
Cheers,
Karl

 

[trailertrawlerkismet]

Adding to the already great advice given I’d say this…..if your boating is all or mostly all in your local waters then it would seem to make to moor the boat as described by others. On the other hand if you’re into trailering to far off boating destinations and occasionally boat in your backyard then having the boat stored on your property or close to home would seem to make more sense financially and or logistically.

Jim F

 

[HookedUp]

I've had my last 3 boats in a 'boatel'. Like everything with a boat, there are trade offs. Short of it is, if it works for you, it works. There are drawbacks, but advantages too.

I particularly like no sun damage, less cleaning, less waxing, MUCH less opportunity for theft.

The disadvantages I've noted are: only get fuel at a marina (more expensive), limited hours for in/out, and additional cost to have in the boatel. I can help limit some by having the boat put out at closing if I want to go out late, or very early and finding less expensive marina for fuel.

Hope you enjoy it Capt'nKarl.

 

[Toki]

Boat ramp = 45 to 60 minutes away

Dry storage = 30 minutes away.

If the dry storage can put her in the drink at a moments notice, so when you get there you're ready to go, I guess you've saved a little time. But even still, is that little amount of time savings worth the expense? And the convenience of having your boat covered, powered, and handy 30 seconds away?

If it was me, I'd stick with the trailer

 

[Capt’nKarl]

Ok, now I really have to open up another aspect of my situation. I thought I could keep this part “my secret” but now know it has to be exposed. The R-23 on its trailer with the guide rails has a width of about 9’8”. When we leave our property we have to go through a FIXED HEAVY STEEL GATE that is 10’6” wide then make a sharp right hand turn to get on the road outside the house. It’s a harrowing anxiety provoking experience and almost the hardest part of our departure but then we know we have to return to the same situation. As I write this I’m reliving how the first mate is standing at the gate giving me instant feedback on “you’re not gonna make it, or it’s gonna be tight or STOP!” So as I see it our options are widen the gate ($5k), move altogether to a different location (??k) OR take the boat to the marina for dry storage ($400/month). I received very good recommendations on the marina we’ve chosen so tomorrow we’re signing papers to move the boat. No more nightmares. No more TUMS.
Cheers to all those who tow a boat through close quarters. I know your pain.
Karl

 

[Diatom]

I've thrown a few bucks into my 2012 C26 since purchase last year. Most valuable upgrade in my opinion was selling the trailer. Now boat lives in the water, marina instantly adjacent to mechanic shop. Ready to rock at an instant's notice. If I ever have to move it over land I'll cheerfully pay a pro to do it. Originally had idiotic visions of dragging the thing around with a VW Touareg... car stuffed with kids/wife/cat/gear... have space to park it on dacha property but tight gate like Capt'nKarl plus a 12% grade immediately follows; in the unlikely event of survival I'd have to join all those Dodge RAMs skidding around the ramps. Watched a few YouTube videos of the inevitable sequelae... tragedy waiting to happen. "A man has to know his limitations".

 

[CaspersCruiser]

Around here a place where “crew puts it in the water” is called a valet service. I had my Four Winns deckboat at a valet service for three seasons. Be prepared for what in the aviation world is called “hangar rash”. Your boat WILL get dinged. The longer it’s there, the more dings it will accumulate. It’s a fact of life when your boat gets handled a lot by employees in a hurry, as they will be on a nice day when some of the dozens of other owners decide at the spur of the moment they want their boat in the water. Of course, any rash will be blamed on YOUR handling of the boat. I would take A LOT of photos of the boat as delivered to the valet service.

 

[pbjsammich]

I have now done just about all of these situations.

For about 8 years we lived on the water and had our boat in a covered slip with a lift. Although super convenient, you still need to take steps to combat mold/mildew and overall keep the sun and bugs off the boat. So every time we came in, unless I was taking it right back out, I was opening everything up to help it dry out, putting a fan inside, covering the whole boat, etc. Convenient, but still time consuming. Also I ultimately "worried the most" with this arrangement.

For 2 years, I had my ski boat in a valet service type place that came and picked you up. Have to say, this was my favorite (with a caveat). We got to the storage unit, threw in the cooler and the kids, and off we went with someone else dropping us in the water. At the end of the lake day, I could accomplish most of my little "put the boat away" tasks on the tow from the water back to my stall. The caveat is the pricetag. Overall I struggled with the cost of that every month, especially during the spells where we weren't using the boat much. Convenience and my boat was completely out of the elements....but a monthly payment I'd never recoup.

Now we have our C28 that remains on the hard unless we're floating in it. It's stored in our barn about 100yds from a boat ramp. Not exactly "free" storage as the initial investment was high, but it's not money completely lost. I appreciate your comments about not being ready to just hop in and go, but the family has gotten into a pretty good routine where it's not all that time consuming to get us from barn to water.

All that said, I REALLY enjoyed the valet service, but the monthly cost ended up irritating me more than I expected. And I think it depends on how much you value having the boat out of the elements. This rates VERY high in my book, so the trailering part is worth it to me. That said, I also appreciate that most will call me crazy for trailering this sized boat. Boats are designed to float, hehe!!

If I were in your situation, I'd widen the gate and keep it close!!