Trailer or moor?

[Warpa]

Just a bit of a survey for my own daft thoughts

Those of you who launch every time, how quickly can you launch and retrieve? Would you rather have a mooring if you were closer to the water or if cost was not an issue? I'm only asking this because of the way i keep my boat, moored up it can get into a mess until i tow it home for a clean every couple of months or so, what annoys me is that it looks like a show boat and i would like to be out on it when it is always gleaming. BUT there is nothing nicer than walking or driving down to the mooring, pull the covers off, air the engine bay while we load up people and food...then just go! Same as when we get back, sometimes we just go past the mooring and up to the end of the river because no one really wants to go in, but the cruise at tick over speed with the sun out is so relaxing (also nice to p1ss people off in the park looking lol)

On the speed of retrieving and launching, there is then the re parking the trailer on the drive, not a long job, but more stress, or at least for me it is, depends where the neighbors have decided to park
I am thinking this season i may take it to my local slip way just to give it a wipe down, this will stop any growth even having a chance of getting a grip if i do it every 3-4 weeks

[Gazjen]

Well I was/am a trailer boater I live inland around 80 miles from the nearest coast so most of my boating is done on the rivers and canals.

The thing was if you wake up and its a nice day you want to take the boat out, you have to sort it all out get hitched up get it to the nearest slip get it in the water just to use the boat then I have to get it out by 5pm as the marina shuts at 5.30pm I could never relax I was always looking at my watch thinking how long its going to take to get back. As a result of all that the boat didn't get used very often

This year with the new boat it is moored at the local boat club, I can nip down whenever I want for a hour even it doesn't' matter or overnight so I'm hoping it gets used a lot this season

Of course the negative for me is I cant do the little jobs on the boat that I would do when I had a spare hour or so while it was on the drive and every time I try to go down and get something done I get visitors and end up going for lunch on it

anyway 1 vote for mooring (I think)

[mlines]

We trailer at the moment and I certainly like having the boat out of the water so would always look for the drystack or trailer option as it keeps the boat so clean and easy to access compared to being in the water.

We reckon that a complete launch or retrieve takes about 15 to 20 minutes with around 5 minutes on the slip itself, providing we are familiar with the slip. However this should be measured by the fact that I have a very useful 16 year old helping.

The arrival routine is:

1. Arrive at carpark/off slip area.
2. James in boat, preparing the inside, powering it up, fenders/ropes in position as necessary, stowing stuff I throw into boat.
3. Me outside, removing travel straps, number plate and throwing items from boot of car into boat.
4. Drive around to slip, James sitting in boat.
5. Reverse down slip just into sea.
6. James trims down and starts engine.
7. I reverse back final bit, unclip final strap and push boat off.
8. James reverses away and hangs around somewhere
9. I park trailer and put lock on.
10. James picks me off slip.


Retrieve is similar.

1. James drops me at slip.
2. I retrieve trailer and reverse down to sea.
3. James drives straight onto trailer
4. I clip the front strap on
5. Pull boat straight up the slip to flushing hose.
6. Connect flushing hose and run engine
7. James removes all loose items etc and throws them to me to put back in car.
8. Finish flushing, apply all straps and trailer board
9. Head off.

We really have got it down to an art, particularly on our home slip. We have retrieved so quickly on this slip the marina staff didn't believe we had done it apart from the clear evidence of the boat on the trailer.

However, it was not always this simple. The first few times were slow and we had a few incidents such as a rope coming off the towbar allowing the boat and trailer to launch itself.

We have refined the equipment we use, key to the exercise are:

1. A proper looped recovery strop (from an off-road specialist)
2. Fisherman waders (for me to go in and out of the water)
3. Trailer guides on rear of trailer.
4. Sainsburys carrier bag


Martin

[jokaboat]

It was the stress and hassle of getting the boat out of the drive and back again that pushed us to the dry stack. No regrets. Would have a moorings but for the cleaning and anti foul.

[rbcoomer]

Good post and probably a question most of us consider regularly!

I think this perhaps depends on a number of factors, but most of all how often you use the boat. If you use a lot then hull build up will be less and money saved on slipway and trailer parking will go a good way towards mooring costs.

However if you are an occasional user, the cost of maintenance, mooring, antifoul etc may make things quite a bit more expensive!

A friend of mine has a swing mooring on the Dart, his boat was anti-fouled when he got her, but we've found not very good and pulled out twice last season to clean. This took most of a morning with a pressure washer. The covers are also suffering badly from seagulls and deterring them is much harder than he thought!

There's no doubt it's a great convenience and even going down to the boat for routine checks is very satisfying - without even leaving the mooring!

I trail our 14' and have no problem with that because it's small and easy. I can launch where I choose, maintain at home, cheaper fuel from filling station, no sleepless nights when blowing a gale, no anti-foul and above all I see her everyday!

Once the 21' is rebuilt however I may need to rethink. I live on a very busy road where reversing a trailer in really isn't an option, but turning once driven in is also a major operation (5" clearance turning by hand!) I've not yet decided what I will do then, but will probably trailer her too. Possibly put on a visitors pontoon for a few days at a time when on holiday?

I'd love a marina berth or mooring, but cost for the former would exceed my annual budget and the latter's additional costs/wear and tear probably be marginal. It's also a fixed cost whereas 'pay as you go' boating is a bit more flexible to cash-flow fluctuations! (i.e. lack of )

[Noddy]

I used to moor on the Exe, but the costs got out of hand: Mooring, water taxi, anti-foul and repairs (barnacles can do so much damage). Not to mention the hassle: tide, waiting for water taxi, transferring stuff, and the seagulls, bl@%dy seagulls
We switched to trailering last year, much easier at the right slip, and great having the boat at home. We saved the cost of the trailer in the first year! The biggest hurdle was getting the boat up our steep narrow drive, from a narrow lane; a front towbar makes all the difference!
Vote for trailering. (although we often leave it in the water for a few nights)

[ian h]

When i had the Fletcher 17 it was kept in a compund at little Hampton marina. You just turn up book your launch. Jump in boat on trailer. tractor comes along and puts you in water, When back you get collected by tractor and trailer taken back to compound where you can wash and clean boat at your leisure. Best of all worlds. No getting your tow vehicle wet but keeping boat clean and out of the water.

Compund is all nice clean tarmac with a hose between 4 boats. to share. also quite a community spirit as well.

If went back to trailer boating would go back to this method again.

[betty boop]

not so much a vote for trailer but a necessity,

1st on location, we're at an hours drive from the nearest water, luckily placed so we can go east, south or south west for high speed days out or the Thames for a meander around - I did have it stored at a marina on the Thames the first year but it was crazy filling the car with gear & driving miles to pick her up, and cleaning / maint was a night mare, every time I went to do a small job I'd forget which tools to take etc.

2nd is cost and a bit of location, we seriously looked and a 23' cuddy in eastbourne/brighton but the marina costs and petrol/time to get there mounted up to more than many many trips away over night in a hotel keeping what we've got. so logic played a part and variation for days out seemed better than stuck in Brighton all year round.

3rd unfortunately time is free, so its me that gets up 1 hour early on a boat day, gathers all the gear/lunch / beer/wine loads and attaches the car, and drives miles whilst the ''crew'' take it easy to get us anywhere in good time for a day out-- then does it all in reverse to come back. Many a summer night getting back at 1AM on a sunday - I'd willingly pay the extra to move and/or dry stack but its not an option

as for easy launching trailering fans, I look on with envy at easy rollers, one push single handed launching, trouble free rehearsed boating pleasure, - you know who you are

[Noddy]

as for easy launching trailering fans, I look on with envy at easy rollers, one push single handed launching, trouble free rehearsed boating pleasure, - you know who you are

I bought a bunk trailer as I only intended to use it for winter storage, but now we are trailer boaters - Doh! Actually not too bad, but might invest in some guide bars this year to stop SWMBO fretting.

[Overfinch]

I am a big fan of trailering. It is simple with practice all you need is common sense, experience and a good slip ideally available at all states of the tide.
Assuming a clear slip and two people we can have the boat in the water in 8-10 mins add a further five to park car and trailer. Retrevail is quicker assuming you power load and have 1person to drive car and 1 to drive boat. If you clean or flush straight out of the water it will take much longer, I flush once the boat is home ensuring thermostat is open... and hose the boat down, its also undercover which helps keep it in excellent condition.
Single handed is more time consuming at least double in my experience, it is do able but much more of a pain.

Two things to remember:

1. Always put bung in I do it at home so I can not forget at slip.
2. Never unclip boat from trailer until the back of the boat is in the water.

I would also say that a full size 4x4 is handy especially if your rig is over 2 tonne.

[mlines]

I flush once the boat is home ensuring thermostat is open

Doesn't that mean you have to warm the engine back up as the Thermostat will have closed as its a cold engine after the trip home?

[Warpa]

When i had the Fletcher 17 it was kept in a compund at little Hampton marina. You just turn up book your launch. Jump in boat on trailer. tractor comes along and puts you in water, When back you get collected by tractor and trailer taken back to compound where you can wash and clean boat at your leisure. Best of all worlds. No getting your tow vehicle wet but keeping boat clean and out of the water.

Compund is all nice clean tarmac with a hose between 4 boats. to share. also quite a community spirit as well.

If went back to trailer boating would go back to this method again.

That may be an idea for me in the future just to have a change of views other than the Solent, would be nice to actually be out in the sea as opposed to the itchen and the Solent. For those that think mooring means antifouling, thats not the case, this will be the 3rd season moored up from April to August with no antifoul. I tend to trailor it home twice a season for a clean, i could get the yard to put it on blocks, but save the £70 fee Even with a propr growth of green it only takes 2 or 3 hours to clean and re wax.

This was worse case scenario, i had left wax on thinking it would better protect all it did was give the growth something to cling to, the smoother the finish the less grip marine growth has. Boat is used every weekend unless its raining.




Above pics were on a saturday, these were on the sunday if memory serves.

[Capn Jack]

When i had the Fletcher 17 it was kept in a compund at little Hampton marina

This one?

Nice exit......

[Warpa]

Just looked at that on google earth, on the website it only lists mooring costs and does mention keeping it on the trailor?

[ian h]

That the 1 was there from 2002 - 2009 .

This is charges for 2011 -2012

Boat Park Rates 2011/2012
Boat Park Agreements
Entitlement to remain in our boatparks includes the following:

Storage throughout the agreed period.
Launch and recovery at no extra charge during marina operating hours.
24 hour security.
It DOES NOT include for overnight stays on the moorings.

Annual Boatpark
Option 1 * Option 2 **
(01/04/11 - 31/03/12) Payment in full by 31/3/2011 £219 per metre £240 per metre
Payment by 10 S.O. APR-JAN £240 per metre £264 per metre
Seasonal Boatpark
(01/04/11 - 30/09/11) Payment in full by 31/3/2011 £188 per metre £208 per metre
Payment by 5 S.O. APR-AUG £197 per metre £217 per metre
Adjusted Boatpark
01/06/11 - 31/03/12 Payment in full on arrival £171 per metre £192 per metre
01/07/11 - 31/03/12 Payment in full on arrival £167 per metre £188 per metre
01/09/11 - 31/03/12 Payment in full on arrival £125 per metre £146 per metre
01/10/11 - 31/03/12 Payment in full on arrival £90 per metre £111 per metre
01/11/11 - 31/03/12 Payment in full on arrival £65 per metre £86 per metre