Salt water slip

[11 footer]

A friend of my dads is a member at a yacht club in Boston Harbor. He's been a member there for a long time, over 25 years. <br /><br />They have a thing where if a long time member sponsers you, and you are under 21 you can become a "junor member". Its like $40 a year and you have to put in a few hours of work. He REALLY wants me to do it. I haven't said yes yet, but I'm thinking about it.<br /><br />As a Junor member, I can keep a boat, under like 25' there for free. That is HUGE in Boston harbor, people wait years and pay huge money to docks boats. My dad wants me to do it, he figures that it will be good down the road for both him and I. Although there is a wait to get a big boat in the water at this club, if your a junor member you get bumped to the top of the list.<br /><br />The prolbem is,<br />Although my dad doesn't seem to care, I really don't want to bottom paint the nice smooth unpainted bottom of out 1980 BW Montauk, and dirty it up by keep it in the salt water all summer. I have a little 11' BW, but thats also unpainted, and I don't want to mess that one up either.<br /><br />What kind of damige does a boat sustain from being in the water all season? If I put the boat in the water, without painting the bottom and pull it out every mounth or so and clean it, will I be alright?

 

[JRJ]

Re: Salt water slip

I'd have it well waxed and pull it at 1 week. Then you'll know if you can leave it in longer. I left mine in too long and still have the barnical spots to prove it Go ahead and spoil your Dad

 

[zoom50]

Re: Salt water slip

While I have little experience, I know leaving your boat in salt water will make boat harder to sell in future. Unless you make a habbit of taking your boat out and flushing motor, waxing, etc...your boat will join the many in the junk boatyard...That is a deal, so I would take advantage, but make sure you bust your butt, don't get lazy, and be sure to take it out often for a good 4 hour cleaning. Also, be sure to clean salt water off leather after EVERY trip right away. Since a boat is the farthest thing from an investment, using it as much as possible is more important than saving a few bucks and trailering it to a ramp a few times a month. a couple hours of cleaning every few outings can save you big bucks when you go to trade it in.

 

[TwoBallScrewBall]

Re: Salt water slip

I would paint it, especially if your dad's OK with it. If you can get in a slip for $40 a year you'd be crazy not to. You will spend that much in gas on a few trips to the boat ramp. <br /><br />Be sure to prep it right, and use an ablative paint. <br /><br />My dad painted his 20ft Aquasport with some latex based ablative paint, and it's on it's third season now without a repaint. He is going to apply another coat before we drop it in, but it does not need it. I'll get the name of it for you if you're interested, about $80 a gallon around here. <br /><br />That montauk is a saltwater boat. It's up to you but if it was me it would be painted and in the water. <br /><br /> Have Fun Ryan,

 

[Sea Mitch]

Re: Salt water slip

No Brainer. Paint it! You'll get a free ($40 is free!) slip, you'll use your boat much more, you'll save enough money in 3 years to pay for that boat and the next guy you sell to is probably gonna paint it anyway. Don't even think about pulling it and cleaning it if it's in a slip. All it takes is one time blowing off the cleaning and your barnacled for life. The whole idea of a slip is not to have to pull your boat. I don't think too many people care if it's painted when they buy it. I think it's just the individual not wanting to do anything to remotely devalue the boat. Paint it, take the slip, and fish up a storm! Down the road when you have that slip, you'll be glad you did.

 

[Luna Sea]

Re: Salt water slip

Ditto what Nibbles said, it's a boat not a lawn/driveway ornament, paint the bottom, put it in the water, and use it...... What's the problem again?

 

[Mahoney]

Re: Salt water slip

Is your dad looking to adopt? I am available.

 

[mattttt25]

Re: Salt water slip

well, you never said you couldn't pay the monthly fee to be a member and then not put you rboat in the water. that's an option, right?<br /><br />40 bucks is free when it comes to slips, especially in that area. i would jump on it. i completely disagree that a painted boat is harder to sell or somehow drops the price. maybe in the middle of the country where they don't paint bottoms and like to see that nice clean hull when it's sitting in the driveway.<br /><br />don't go with the pull it often and clean method. will not work. in the summer, those little buggers will attach fast. you won't keep up. especially at your proposed monthly period. prep it right, use a high end ablative paint, and enjoy. oh, make sure you change your water pump once a year.

 

[BillP]

Re: Salt water slip

Is it your boat or your Dad's boat? If yours, do what you want. If his, do what he asks. Paint the bottom and quit worring about cosmetics and resale. Do you want to use the boat or look at it sit on the trailer?

 

[SeaJayacas]

Re: Salt water slip

Forget about your boat bottom vanity, paint it and put it in the slip.

 

[Tom2697]

Re: Salt water slip

Ryan,<br />The BW purists will hate me for saying this but paint it. I did this to an '89 18'er and had the same thoughts as you do before I painted mine. Yes, you will have people who will snub their nose for painting it and say that you devalued the boat by not keeping it original. But, you will devalue the boat more if you let the barnacles bore into the hull. Trying to clean it on a set schedule will work for the first month or so. But you will get lazy or run into a problem one day and before you know it, the boat will have sat for too long. Since I know your enthusiam for your boat, you probably will be keeping it for awhile. I recommend that you modify your boat to however gives you the most enjoyment from it. Let the next buyer (in 5-20 years) decide if he wants to return it to stock. <br /><br />Oh yeah, and about that $40 boat slip, are crazy?!?!? Get that NOW! I guarantee that you will use your boat more if it is in the water, ready to go everyday. Additionally, how much per month did you spend paying ramp and parking fees?

 

[DJ]

Re: Salt water slip

Ryan,<br /><br />You may want to read this.<br /><br /> http://www.iboats.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=30;t=005162 <br /><br />I would avoid "slipping" a boat like yours in saltwater at any cost.<br /><br />My father put his Whaler in a slip in Florida for four months/year for about five years.<br /><br />Those five years aged the boat terribly.<br /><br />If you can avoid it, I would.

 

[11 footer]

Re: Salt water slip

The local ramp we is free, along with the parking. This slip is also just a bit farther from home then the ramp is. Its final, the Montauk doesn't disirve to be painted and dumped in salt to rust away. We plan on keeping the Montauk forever, so resale isn't the prolbem. We just know that if we paint it, we'll have something bigger down the road that has to be kept in the water, and a painted montauk that we want clean. I don't think either my dad or I will use the boat more while its in the water then when its on the trailer. Its a VERY easy boat to trailer and launch, I can do it alone. Its nice haveing the boat at home to tinker with.<br /><br />With that being said, I don't want to loose this spot. I plan on working at the marina threw the summer, as a active member, ten or fiveteen years down the road, when I (hopefully ) have a big boat I want to keep in the slip, I'll have one waiting and ready. I'm going to either paint the bottom of my Sport-11, which isn't in as good of condtion of as the montauk. It will hirt, considering I worked my *** off last summer stipping her bottom!! Plan B, and my favorit one is I have a line on a old 13' BW, she cheap and dirty. They are asking $500 in the wantad,I'm looking to pay. $300. She needs some fiberglass work, no bigge, as long as its a dry hull. I'll keep it a tiller boat, use it as a dirty workhorse. I can move docks and stuff around with it.

 

[jeffmcc]

Re: Salt water slip

i bought a slip 2 years ago had a wellcreft excalibur did not want to paint it so i THOUGHT i would pull it every 3 weeks. This boat was 19 feet no problem. I pulled it the first 3 weeks, a skim of barnicles starting on the underside oh ya the boat gets slower with every passing week. Got some on/off spent all day on one of my nice boating saturdays cleaning scrubbing and killing my lungs with that crap. The next time it was 4 weeks the tipe after that is was 5 weeks for the dreaded chore id rather be in a fistfight at the old launch ramp. Sold the boat and bought a 23 foot four winns deck boat NO WAY am i going to scrub that S*** off that boat didn't want to paint so this is what i got http://airdock.com/ cant see it in the water works awsome for me check it out

 

[JGREGORY]

Re: Salt water slip

Ryan, I can't remember who makes it but they do make a clear antifouling paint if your concerned about the color. I tow my boat but I have left it in salt water for no more than 2 weeks at a time and have never had a problem. You may want to still consider the slip if you plan on some long weeks of boating then just pull it and flush it. My .02

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: Salt water slip

Wax the bottom of your boat and up your monthly haul and bottom cleaning and waxing to 10 days and put her in the water.If you go past 10 days or skip a bottom waxing you will be sorry.Charlie

 

[Dead Eye]

Re: Salt water slip

I borrowed a cousins boat first year in O.C., Md .Left it in the water for three weeks [no bottom paint] boy was I supprised at the groth. It took a whole weekend to scrape and use on/off to clean it. If you could of seen what three weeks did to a boats bottom you would paint it or wouldn't take the slip. Remember time off the water is time wasted.<br /> Dead Eye

 

[nightstalker]

Re: Salt water slip

Paint it with the best high quality anti fouling paint you can afford. The 80% copper is good stuff. Having the craft in a slip means you will use it a lot more and for short rides much more often. It's great to be able to just turn the key and go. I paint mine every year with Pettit and have had to problem what so ever. A little more maintainence is required butit's well worth it.Stalker

 

[Sea Mitch]

Re: Salt water slip

jeffmcc<br /><br />How does that Air Dock work! I've seen them at boat shows but always thought it was a gimmick. Do you still tie your boat to the dock? Do you motor on to it and then just blow it up? Is it hard to install?

 

[jeffmcc]

Re: Salt water slip

once you get it set up it works great think of it as 3 waterbed mattresses 2 side by side and one lengthwise in the front bottom painted mine with cheap west marine paint rolled it up brought it down to the dock put it together about 2 hrs hooking up the hoses ataching the motor box etc.the lift has 4 rings you tie it off on each corner if you have a finger on each side like i do if you only have one finger on a side thy have a pvc frame you install and tie to your 1 finger then tie off your lift to the four corners on the frame. the 3 mats have an internal chamber that puts air around the edge of the mat wich keeps it afloat and guids the boat on while the rest of the mat is submerged you drive your boat on hit the button 3 min it is up in the air about the same to let it down.best part is it keeps the outdrive out of the water that is problably the biggest reason i dont bottom paint ive seen many boats hauled out after a season and the drives look like crap. oh ya if you dont have dock power they have a motor that can be powered by your battery check out the web site they have a video of one in operation. very durable material.just a quick story I hit the jackpot last week reading the local paper under docks for sale and in this section it sed free air dock wow must be a joke right alled the number the guy lived in raleigh nc about 3 hrs away owned a high dollar house on the water in our area bought a airdock for his 23 footer couldn,t get it to work and said his son left the port controller on and walked off boat listed to one side and slid off the lift into another boat he was mad and wanted someone tojust pull it out of the water and they could have it went down to get it he only had one finger pier so instad of using the pvc frame he ran a clothsline from the bulkhed to a piling 30 feet out and atached bungy cords from the lift to the cloths line not a pretty site but guess what a FREE lift becouse someone was to lazy to set it up right so maybe youll get lucky look around in the paper or on ebay but they do work good if you set it up right the first time