Preventing sinking at dock

pachanga27

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Dec 3, 2010
Messages
48
Ok... dumb question - maybe really more like I am paranoid..

Boat is a 1989 Sea Ray 27 ft Pachanga. Twin 5.7 Mercruisers, Alpha outdrives. Typical weight - about 6500lbs full of gas, gear, etc. Overall condition pretty good. All bilge pumps correctly.

In a few weeks I am going to be leaving the boat in the water all the time until summer is over instead of trailering the boat back and forth, unloading and loading the boat. Right this minute - the boat is having the port stern drive pulled to replace the shift cable boot, and every other item that could be questionable and allow water to seep or leak into the engine compartment.

Now - questions - are there any products that will prevent a boat such as this one - from sinking if a leak were to develop and the bilge pump quit pumping water due to power loss - i.e. - batteries run down completely? Are there mooring whips that actually hold a boat up? How about any device that would while tied to the dock actually "hold the boat up" or at least keep it from submerging the motors completely? Any floatation device that could deploy on its own if the water reaches a certain height in the engine compartment? Other than a mechnical lift - what could be used to prevent a boat from taking on too much water and either sinking or having water deep enough to cause damage? Being that the boat will be at the dock and will not be exactly monitored 24 hour every day of the week So ..short of a mechanical lift which can or could hold the boat up out of the water....any options? Obvisoulsy I am having the work done to ensure all ruber boots and seals are good - sure it should be safe -- however -- I know my luck.
 

RogersJetboat454

Commander
Joined
Jul 9, 2010
Messages
2,964
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Uh.. a mobile crane?

Mooring whips may be able to hold an unloaded inflatable up, but I should think you'd be expecting WAYYYYYY too much of them (not to mention the dock) to hold a 27 ft boat up.

Make sure your batteries are fresh, and fully charged. Make sure you bilge pumps, and automatic float switches are in good shape. Investment in a proper water tight cover if you don't already own one would be your best money spent.
 

oldjeep

Admiral
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May 17, 2010
Messages
6,455
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

The solution you are looking for is called either a shore station or insurance ;)
 
Joined
Jun 17, 2012
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Re: Preventing sinking at dock

X2 on the cover. I had a custom cover made for my boat and it sits in all weather with not a drop of water getting in :)
Not cheap, but still cheaper than restoring a sunken boat :eek:
PS. It's very unlikely that a leak will develop while it's sitting at the dock.
 

airdvr1227

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Jul 15, 2009
Messages
1,666
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

I understand your concerns. Nothing is foolproof and you're right to be a little worried. I read somewhere that most boats sink at the dock. So, what to do? Good suggestions so far. I'll add a good battery charger/tender. Your bilge/bilges are only as good as the batteries powering them. Hopefully someone would see your rig sitting low in the water and say something.
 

Home Cookin'

Fleet Admiral
Joined
May 26, 2009
Messages
9,715
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

run it up on a sandbar.

Boats are made to be in the water. But water is made to try everything it can to get into a boat. There's only so much you can do.

Bilge pumps can't keep up with a catastrophic hull breach so there's really nothing you can do but preventative maintenance. besides, your boat doesn't have flotation so down it goes; I know from experience that a smaller baot can be moored so that if it swamps it stays upright with minimal damage.

The biggest risk is at the bellows and you are doing the right thing--or as much as you can, with what some consider a design flaw.

Sea cocks are another risk spot. They can fail without warning at any age. Good idea to leave them closed.

A good boat will drain most surface water (rain) overboard without assistance; the bilge pump is for the little bit that inevitably seeps below. In short, your boat, if well made, can handle the rain just fine, including a sudden squall. You'll haul it for a hurricane. A boat your size an handle a lot of rain storms.

A major cause of sinking is improper mooring, and the boat gets caught under or on the pier with the tides. Get good local advice.

The best preventative, after maintenance, is a set of eyes on it. Is there anyone responsible at the place where you dock it, to walk by occassionally and look for running pumps, listing, etc.? If it sits unused more than 3 weeks in hot weather, to check or charge the battery?
 

greenbush future

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Aug 28, 2009
Messages
1,814
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Store your boat on a boat lift instead of floating, or run shore power to recharge your double stacked auto bilges. Redundancy will minimize your risk, and if all else fails you have insurance.
Don't sweat it if you have sound solutions in place.
 

haulnazz15

Captain
Joined
Mar 9, 2009
Messages
3,720
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Well, how about just installing a lift? It's what we use on our private dock, and our boats don't sit in water at all when not in use. It keeps the growth/stains off of them as well. I've seen them for 20,000 cruisers down to 500lb jet skis. I bet an 8-10K lbs lift would be sufficient for you, and they're generally only a few grand if that's what you're looking for.

HydroHoist Marine Group
 

Home Cookin'

Fleet Admiral
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Re: Preventing sinking at dock

I've seen boats sink at piers and I've seen boats damaged because they were on lifts. There is no perfect protection and if the only reason you put in a lift was because you were afraid your boat would spontaneously sink, it would not be cost effective.

The reasons to spend big bucks to install and maintain a lift for a 27' cruiser should not include "in case it springs a leak and sinks."
 
Joined
Feb 17, 2012
Messages
2,906
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

another person was asking the same type of question a while back and was looking at a mobile auto dialer. This is a piece of electronic harware that takes a input then calls your cell phone or texts you to alert you to a problem. That input with a few components can alert you to a flat battery or a water level detected in the bilge. The one i have seen was about $150 and should be able to run off the cheapest pre-paid mobile phone plan you can find


Auto Dialer | GSM Auto Dialer | GSM Auto Dialer 2 Inputs something like this (would have to check to make sure its compatable with US phones)
 

MH Hawker

Vice Admiral
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Jul 13, 2011
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5,516
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Or you can add full satellite telemetry with cameras and alarms to a dispatch center that specializes in boat care. Or you can do what most people do and have one or two bilge pumps on a group 31 battery and a custom made cover that dosnt leak in the first place.
 

airshot

Rear Admiral
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Jul 22, 2008
Messages
4,222
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

A boat that size should have at least two batteries, run one bilge pump off of each battery (two pumps) That is about the best insurance you can get with a well maintained boat. If you have shore power, then a battery tender for each battery.
 

Don S

Honorary Moderator Emeritus
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Aug 31, 2004
Messages
62,321
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

You are looking for something that doesn't exist.
Only one boat was built that was claimed to be un-sinkable. It was named Titanic.

The best you can do is keep up with maintenance, keep an eye on it, and don't expect it to set there all buy itself and be fine for months on end.
 

pachanga27

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Dec 3, 2010
Messages
48
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

First..wow.. thanks for all the replies - in all I now have a lot of information and also solutions and advice on how to proceed to minimize any chance of having the boat sink at the dock. First thing tomorrow - going to a shop to have a new waterproof cover made. The current cover leaks.... after all ..it is about 24 years old. After that ... the boat has two new batteries now and I am installing two battery tenders to keep the batteries optimal. Ditto for the bilge pumps... it has three factory installed pumps, but going to replace one that seems to be a little weak and will also install a fourth bilge pump with maybe a dedicated battery setup. I looked at the links provided to the lifts - looks like that may be the best solution (for me) that I can do in a couple months as my funds come back up a bit.
It is an old boat - but I do enjoy it and always have ... just got real antsy about leaving it in the water now after trailering it all these years. Yes..pain to load and unload... but never worried about it sinking... I figure that going a little overboard (pun intended) on doing everything I can to prevent an accidental sinking and having to replace two motors and a lot of other damage from water. Again thanks for taking the time to reply to my ..uh...little off the wall ..concerns.

Oh.. and as Don pointed out.... I really should have known.
 

crabby captain john

Lieutenant Commander
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Aug 6, 2011
Messages
1,823
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Prices of indoor dry slips are WAY down. I just purchased one a couple months ago. Kept out of the sun as well as the rain. All year inside. HOA fees include launch, retrieve, rinse hull, and flush engines - $120 monthly.
 

Home Cookin'

Fleet Admiral
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May 26, 2009
Messages
9,715
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Holy overkill, batman.
one new cover, two battery tenders, Three batteries, Four pumps, five grand for a lift and a partridge in a pear tree?

Us coastal boaters put our boats in the water and leave them there.
 

JoLin

Vice Admiral
Joined
Aug 18, 2007
Messages
5,146
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Us coastal boaters put our boats in the water and leave them there.

I've wet slipped all summer for 5 years with 3 different boats. Charged batteries and a good fitting rain cover are all you need. You are planning to use it once in awhile, aren't you? The boat won't be fine one day, and swamped the next. Check the bilge when you visit her. You'll know if anything funky is going on. Make sure the marina staff knows how to contact you, and trade phone numbers with a couple of people who are slipped near you. We keep an eye out for one another

Relax and enjoy the convenience of 'slip life.'
 

pachanga27

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Dec 3, 2010
Messages
48
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Eh! yes ...you are right...overkill... I can only say.... my wife nixed the lift idea.. I showed her the lift and the cost and she looked at me with a look that can only can be from generated from living with me for 35 years. Simply put... it said "are you nuts?"
 

JoLin

Vice Admiral
Joined
Aug 18, 2007
Messages
5,146
Re: Preventing sinking at dock

Look, if you weren't a little nuts you wouldn't own a boat. It's good to think of this stuff. We'll keep you from going over the edge...
 
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