To keep your C-Dory in the water or not

[gary allen]

Just curious--how many of you keep your boat in the water all or most of the year? What made you decide to do so? Or change your mind after having done so?

[Alyssa Jean]

I have kept my 22 and my 25 on a trailer all the time. The longest the 25 has been in the water was 30 days on a RT to Ketchikan, AK last June. When we got back it had green trim tabs.

[Doryman]

I keep my Tom Cat in a slip a block or so from my house. There is a self-launch hoist at the marina but the marina operators told me the TC255 is too heavy for it and in any case I am assured it would be a hairy exercise to hoist it by myself. So, I pay the $230 a month and am able to hop on my boat and go anytime I want. The San Juans are a major reason why I moved here, so I felt it would be foolish not to maximize my ability to take advantage of it. I am probably going to buy a slip (think condo model) as soon as a good one becomes available. They have been appreciating rapidly.

My previous boat was stored in a dry storage facility here (think boats on forklifts) but they were not able to accommodate the two hulls of the TC255 or I might have gone that route.

There is a rather rundown city-owned ramp on the other side of the hill from the marina which I could have used if I kept my boat at my house, but I wanted to be able to go boating by myself with a minimum of hassle, and it was worth it to me to have the convenience of the slip.

Warren

[Pat Anderson]

Warren - I know your Tomcat is fairly new, how are you planning on dealing with the stuff that grows on boats in the water all the time? I assume you have bottom paint?

[Fairbro]

I have kept Minnie in the water (fresh) for the last 4 seasons and probably use it 50 times more than I would if she was on a trailer. One thing I would do differently now is not pressure clean the hull to remove the scum and algae growth. I think maybe this contributes to the little pimple blisters some of us are getting. These have only occurred where I have pressure washed in the past. I don't know if the stream can penetrate gell coat but it seems possible. Now I just scrub to remove with hull cleaners to get the most of it. I know that even if I get it 100% clean it will last only a month or so.

[patrick and linda]

hi gary,
congratulations on your 22' cruiser. i would encourage you, if you haven't already, to have the hull, from the waterline down, epoxy barrier coated in addition to antifouling paint, prior to placing the boat in the water for any prolonged period of time. for some reason, the gelcoat on some models and years have not held up as well as other models and years.
many of the seasoned posters to this site have extensive knowledge regarding this subject and are willing to contribute to same. i've been told by others that salt water is less likely to damage this gelcoat area as apposed to fresh water. good luck and safe boating.
pat

[SunFish]

I keep Sunfish in a slip at the Boat Haven in Port Townsend from April through October at a monthly cost of $130. From November thru March it's on the trailer. The bottom is painted. This is the best of both worlds for me. I can putter around on the boat during the season in the marina at a moments notice. It's no problem to pull it out and onto to the trailer like I did last summer for a trip on the Snake river. With a weather window during off season, it's easy to drop it back in the water.for a few days or just one day. I think this arrangement gives me the most use of the boat.

Lane

[Sea Wolf]

[patrick and linda]

hi joe,
you might have followed my dilemma several months ago, regarding blisters from the waterline down. well, the boat was only in the water for seven months, however, around the fourth or fifth month, i had the boat pulled for some engine maintenance work, while it was out i did have the bottom pressure washed. i do not recall any blisters at that time. it seems to me that i would have noticed this, as they became immediately apparent when i pulled the boat for the winter season.
can't believe pressure washing could facilitate blistering, but nothing in boating is for sure, other than the, Break Out Another Thousand, standard. sure is an interesting theory though!
as always,
best regards
pat

[lloyds]

Personally I don't think pressure washing has anything to do with it. There are other pressures exerted on our hulls from time to time which are pretty intense as well. I just don't think the pressure is the answer. Some gel coats are just a little more porous than others, and sometimes it is the application and conditions that contribute.

I have done both, kept boats in the water, and on trailers. With most of our boats being easy to trailer keeping the larger ones in the water for the season then hauling them home really appeals to me. There is a lot to be said for driving down to the marina, jumping onto the boat, and taking off. You will use your boat a lot more. For me it would probably double the time I would use a boat.

Just my opinion, worth about as much as the electrons to make this post.

[patrick and linda]

hi lloyds,
your point is well taken. i don't believe a simple pressure washing was a direct and proximate caused of my misfortune. just recollecting as to what i did or did not see. i also keep a 2001 2352 trophy, in the water year round, until i pulled it this past winter, it was in the water for three years, no epoxy, no bottom paint and no blisters, and never pressure washed either,, both boats docked in fresh water, both areas had simular water temperatures. maybe, luck of the draw!
it's behind me now, and "misty seas" looks as good as new.
best regards
pat

[Doryman]

[Cosmic C]

We keep the Cosmic C in the water typically from May until October on the St Lawrence River. For the first two or three years we had no bottom paint and the bottom was pressure-washed each fall. No blisters. We then had bottom paint applied (no epoxy barrier). This year, because we're on the Loop, the boat will stay in the water for 18 months. Had a good look at the bottom in Crystal River, FL in December (boat went into the water the previous April) when we had 200 hr maintenance done - no growth and no blisters.

[Wayne McCown]

We have no summer moorage. And, during the winter in western NY, the boat sits on the trailer in storage(may she RIP)!

Most of the time we keep the CD-22 at our cottage on L. Ontario. Two miles away is a commerical grade double ramp with dock at Golden Hill State Park. (This ramp receives very little use.)

It is not uncommon for me, when we are at our cottage, to launch and retrieve the boat twice in a day (early morning with breakfast on-board, often by myself; and then again later in the afternoon or evening, usually with my wife and/or guests). The CD floats on and off the trailer easily; at this ramp, I can manage the process single-handedly with no strain.

From our cottage, it's 12-14 miles to the two nearest launches into the Erie Canal. These ramps (also little used) are not so accomodating; although I have launched and retrieved the CD all alone, it's nice to have a second person along.

[oldgrowth]

I think Pat may have a point with pressure washing and blistering. At a very high “pounds per square inch”, it would be much higher than the boat would ever experience, in even extreme use.

Pressure washing can be done anywhere from 700 psi to several thousand psi. Comparing one pressure wash to another may be comparing apples to oranges.

I can see how pressure washing at a high psi could be possible to drive water through the gel coat and into the fiberglass.
_________
Dave