Weight Distribution

[Foristoon]

I'll try to keep this brief...

When we got our toon, it had two batteries on the transom. I added a 24v trolling motor (more on that later) and two more batteries dedicated to that, also on the transom. Tight fit, but they all got in. Of course, the motor and the gas tank are also at the back of the boat...

When I had it out last week for the first time since the trolling motor and batteries were installed, I noticed that it seems to draw really low in the back, and really high in the front, when sitting or when moving. So much so that someone at the dock actually told me they've never seen a toon slanted like that and they thought it was going to sink. I don't think it is *that* serious, but it is very uneven. The motor sits so low the water is almost up to the motor cover. I had a chance to test drive it before we bought it, and it wasn't that uneven in the water then. I had the family sitting up away from the rear to help level it out but it didn't help much, and that's not really a permanent solution anyway.

So, I'm thinking I would like to move the batteries off the transom and put them in the under seat storage, middle-front. I'm handy enough to do this and re-do the wiring as well. My question is, has anyone seen toons tilt this way, and is it normal/risky? Any issues with moving the electronics up to the mid-front and under the seats?

 

[Scott Danforth]

move some weight up front. depending on the batteries, you added up to about #150 to the stern of the boat

without knowing if you have an 11' pontoon with 12" logs or a 40' pontoon with 48" logs, we cant really answer on how much capacity you have left, etc.

also, check your logs for water. most of the time if there is a leak its at the top of the log at the M brackets. sinking the M bracket under water, just fills the log up.

 

[Foristoon]

Fair enough, I guess information is always helpful. Sorry.

It is a 2007 G3 20' Suncatcher, 90hp Yamaha 4 stroke.

And for a noob question... How do you check the log for water? They're (according to the website) foam filled logs so it already doesn't sound hollow so I'm not sure how to go about checking.

Two of these batteries were added...

https://www.samsclub.com/sams/durace...prod3590216.ip

 

[ahicks]

A 20' 'toon with a 90hp 4 stroke was already sitting low in back when you started. Adding ANY more weight back there is just going to aggravate the condition. I would move the batteries (and anything else you can) forward as far as practical.

 

[Foristoon]

Thanks. I can move them as far as within ~2 feet of the bow, and measuring the storage area indicates they can be recessed under the open part of the seat so they would more or less be out of view, out of the way for storage, and would be maybe 1-2 feet in from the sides. I think at this point that's where I'm wanting to put them. Two on each side, a smaller main battery and a large trolling battery on each side. Sound reasonable?

 

[Scott Danforth]

the group 31 marine battery is about 68# so adding two of them, plus wiring, etc. you added 140# to the very back of the boat

 

[Foristoon]

the group 31 marine battery is about 68# so adding two of them, plus wiring, etc. you added 140# to the very back of the boat

I wish I could say I'm a seasoned pro but this is my first pontoon experience. I didn't realize how much that would change the dynamics. Perhaps I'm even lucky I didn't swamp the darn thing. It will not be on the water until Spring now so I have plenty of time to make it right. I'm ashamed to say I really had no idea that would happen.

 

[ahicks]

Not a mistake (no loss of life or property), just building experience. Now you know.

4 strokes are awesome engines, especially on a 'toon, but they are not without a downside!

 

[Foristoon]

Not a mistake (no loss of life or property), just building experience. Now you know.

4 strokes are awesome engines, especially on a 'toon, but they are not without a downside!

I guess the downside you're referring to is weight?

I expect a bit of ribbing and chiding here due to my all but complete inexperience. I appreciate the positive responses.

So I've been reading all morning and I see things like getting bigger logs, re-configuring the furniture, etc. Funny enough, I thought I was getting a big floating living room that I could just put anything on anywhere as I wanted...but there's clearly much more involved. (And I'm not stupid, I know there are weight limits and such. I just assumed weight distribution wasn't quite the factor it seems to be.)

This boat, and I assume most pontoons as well, has a channel up the port side for running cabling and such, so the wiring relocation isn't going to be a big deal. And while I haven't look super close, it seems getting a good ground under the seat won;t be an issue either with the cross bars there to tie into. So hopefully I will get it done without too many sentence enhancers.

Thinking about swapping the carpet for woven vinyl, but there's another thread right there, too.

 

[ahicks]

Yes, the weight is the downside. It's not that they are THAT much heavier, just enough to make a difference. That, and 20' boats are picky when it comes to such things (weight distribution), especially as compared to the 24' boats.

Vinyl flooring is awesome too, but you might as well wear out the existing carpet prior to replacing it. That's a big job.

 

[Foristoon]

I'm already starting to see why people have long said "Bust Out Another Thousand". But I also see that refers not only to money, but labor hours too...

 

[ahicks]

When it comes to new floor covering, you have to strip the boat right down to the plywood deck. The upside to this project is at that point you have a completely blank slate to work with. There is nothing that says everything has to go right back where it was. That's the perfect time to do any floor plan changes for instance.

I did our 24' boat 2 seasons ago, updating to a 90hp 4 stroke at the same time. In addition, I added a permanently mounted swim ladder to the right rear, reinforced the engine pod supports, and moved the entire railing system forward 2' to help balance the boat a little better. We then added padded vinyl flooring and all new upholstery. It turned out really nice, but a lot of thought went into it! Took me about 2 weeks picking at it retired old man style a few hours a day. -Al

 

[Foristoon]

Hmm, swim ladder... Is that a mandatory item or can it be removed? We will not use the boat as a swim platform and I would rather remove it altogether, as I have plans to put the trolling motor there when I move all the batteries up to the front, and those plans will be foiled if the ladder must be there as a matter of law. The other side of the rear is where the gas tank is, so no platform available.

I like the idea of moving the furniture all the way to the front, but I really like the foot or two of open platform currently there for fishing off the bow. Without getting new furniture with individual seats rather than the long 90 degree seats currently there, I don't know a way to do it though.

 

[poconojoe]

When you spoke about getting a good ground under the seat, it made me think you would be using the frame of the boat as a negative conductor. Correct me if I misunderstood your intention. From reading these forums, I recall that doing this is not a safe way to do that. I have read that the proper way would be to run both negative and positive wires from the source to the loads.
Let the experts chime in and correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[ahicks]

Correct, never not use the frame of the boat for a ground it leads to corrosion levels that need to be seen to believe....

No ladder laws to my knowledge.

Out 24' boat is used on a clear fresh water lake, so summer swimming from it happens frequently, and the ladder is a big bonus.

On the other hand, we have a second, 20' boat here in Fl. that came with a permanent ladder from the factory. That ladder has never been used! After having been raised on northern lakes with clear water, there are darn few places, other than near springs maybe, here in Florida where I'm getting in murky water and sharing the water with alligators and snakes.....

 

[Foristoon]

When you spoke about getting a good ground under the seat, it made me think you would be using the frame of the boat as a negative conductor. Correct me if I misunderstood your intention. From reading these forums, I recall that doing this is not a safe way to do that. I have read that the proper way would be to run both negative and positive wires from the source to the loads.
Let the experts chime in and correct me if I'm wrong.

I will be running it post-to-post but I assumed that somewhere an earth ground was made. May not be the case, again I don't have much experience with the boat yet.

 

[ahicks]

You're speaking of battery post to battery post?

 

[Foristoon]

You're speaking of battery post to battery post?

Yes, I haven't gotten into it yet so I don't yet have knowledge of the setup to speak of. So, maybe there's some earth ground there somewhere or maybe everything is just terminal positive to negative, but I can only assume somewhere there's an earth ground. On the motor perhaps? Sorry for the lack of the big picture...

 

[Foristoon]

I'm probably not too smart, right? If we're talking DC only, I guess it only needs a ground reference point, which is the negative terminal... so there's no need for a ground to the water. Am I thinking correctly? Maybe I am overthinking this.

 

[Cat nip]

Yes no ground to the boat itself or the water. Its not set up like a car. What kind of trolling motor did you get, a bow mount or transom mount? Ideally one would get a bow mount and put it and the required batteries up front and leave the other stuff alone. You also dont want too much weight up front because the closer it is to level the better the chances of stuffing the nose under water. I learned that the hard way.