To moore, or not to moore, that is the question

J

johnbenj

New member
With apologies to William Shakespeare!

I am new boater with a 22' cruiser. I have an opportunity to grab a well priced slip at a local marina at a rate I can afford. For the sake of this discussion, please ignore the cost of moorage.

I am trying to understand the downside / cons of keeping the boat in the water all year (or keeping it on a trailer in my yard.)

The pros from my perspective are:
1. ease of getting out whenever (I have a young family (3.5 yr old twin boys) so i'd like the boat to be ready to use whenever we want to)

2. Since I am an independent consultant, I could actually do client's work on the boat a few hours per month. This would be a very useful alternative to my home office since I have the aforementioned twin boys.

So other than cost, what are the cons of keeping the boat in a slip in the Puget Sound area?

Thanks very much!
John Benjamin
Bainbridge Is, WA
 
I did not follow if you are considering a slip (boat tied to a dock) or mooring (permanent anchor requiring dingy or water taxi to get from ship to shore).

I keep mine on a mooring because I own it (mooring and spot), whereas to rent a slip in my area is about $120 a foot from May - October. Even renting, a mooring will be more than 50% less than the cost of a slip. The mooring does require a dinghy or water taxi. I have a dinghy with small outboard for this purpose as well as getting to shore during voyages.

A slip is the ultimate convenience. You show up, walk to your boat, load up, and go.

The downside of both is the fact that your boat is continually in the water. A boat kept in the water will require more attention. (Bottom paint, batteries topped off for the pumps, scuppers clear, lines, fenders, and/or mooring gear in good condition, etc. Bottom paint is not cheap. It would cost you about $500 - $700 depending upon costs in your area for a bottom paint job. In my area and with Petitt Unepoxy I can go two seasons with a single paint job.

Bottom line - boat in the water is more convenient and you're probably more likely to use it more but it costs more money/requires more maintenance. Boat on a trailer will cost you less and requires less maintenance.
 
I keep mine in the slip all year 'round. It is so nice just to go and read/write/draw/daydream etc., down there, even if I don't leave the covered slip every time I'm down there. I can drive to the boat Thurs. nite after work and come back Fri, Sat, or Sunday depending upon my mood and other entanglements in the city.

I think bottom paints last longer in the water than out of the water... some may be different. There is less trauma on the boat by not loading and unloading it frequently. You save alot of grief on the highway and ramp and can go enjoy a rainy or snowy day in just the time it takes to get there.

I use my boat as a private getaway frequently and would be lost without it. So, I suggest you take the bite and keep it in a slip. I think you'll get more enjoyment and your money's worth from the investment by having it handy.

John
 
I have had boats in slips for probably over 20 years. There is some additional cost in maintenance, and always a little concern about the safety of the boat, but for convenience of use it can't be beat. Overall, I would say it probably doubled or tripled the use of the boats. I even kept one in seattle and drove there on the weekends from oregon. And not just once in awhile but probably 3 out of each 4 weekends. There is also the advantage of being around your boat and around those of your slip neighbors and making new friends and sharing ideas and solutions to problems. A marina is a unique community. Each is different, but each has something to offer. Hopefully, you are talking of a commute of less than 20 or 30 miles. I did 350 miles roundtrip almost every weekend because I loved the boats and I loved the boating on Puget Sound. I wouldn't recommend that for everybody, but if boating is in your blood you will do almost anything to satisfy the need.
 
MISTY SEAS IS ON A HYDROHOIST IN A COVERED SLIP. I THINK THE ANNUAL SLIP FEE IS RIGHT AROUND 2900. I PLAN TO OPERATE THE BOAT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE THIS WINTER. SO FAR, IT'S BEEN GREAT, LITTLE TRAFFIC, FLAT WATER AND BEAUTIFUL SCENERY. JUST LAST WEEKEND WE SAW OUR FIRST EAGLE. IT WAS AWESOME!
GOOD LUCK.
PAT
 
Every November I have to decide if I'll keep my slip for the next year since I have to put down a non-refundable deposit to keep my slip.

So, I go thru the same decision process that you are currently going thru.

I like the trailerability of Hunky Dory, and do trailer it to other areas at least 6 times a year for day trips or longer cruises.

I also like having a slip because I know that I use the boat much more frequently for 2 reasons: 1. It's so simple to just drive to the Marina, hop on the boat and play, and 2. I feel the need to use it to justify the cost of the marina.

With the slip, most of my boating is for just a few hours at a time. I can fit my boating in any time, especially on really hot days ( I know, that's not applicable to you NW boaters!) When trailering, It's a whole day affair. Even if I trailer to a ramp 10 mi from the house, by the time I trailer to ramp, launch, play on boat, load and come home I take most of a day. And since I'm trailering I usually go much further than 10 mi to a ramp, and boat for a longer time.

So, what suits your intended boat use? My experience shows for Many quickie boat trips - use a slip. For fewer more extended cruising trips - use the trailer.

Rick from Maine
 
The slip, of course.

I was driving back from the office just an hour ago. The sun was out, the temperature was about 60 degrees; it was a beautiful, crisp, clear day with just a few small fluffy clouds in the sky. The ocean was calm with just a slight ripple. The birds were out having fun.

Instead of going straight home, I headed towards the marina, opened up the boat, grabbed a handful of peanuts, then just sat in the cockpit for half-an-hour watching the world go by...

What joy!
 
I used to have neighbors that kept their golf clubs on their boat. Every wednesday afternoon about 4 they would show up and untie and run over to Port Ludlow and golf, then return around dark. You could never do that if you were trailering. And just sitting on the boat is another great benefit. Did lots of that, even in bad weather. Can't do much of that in the driveway.
 
lloyds":30b0d2zp said:
And just sitting on the boat is another great benefit. Did lots of that, even in bad weather. Can't do much of that in the driveway.
Click to expand...

Au contraire! And we have the pictures to prove it!

First_Sundowner_in_Cockpit.sized.jpg
Daydream is Home at Last - First Sundowner in Cockpit 5-15-05

 
Rick from Maine":1vj7k54r said:
I can fit my boating in any time, especially on really hot days ( I know, that's not applicable to you NW boaters!)
Rick from Maine
Click to expand...

Define "really hot day"! To me it is anything over 58 degrees F., and we have quite a few of them actually!

 
OK, now for the other side! From Fall City, we can trailer west or south to Puget Sound, north to the San Juans and Gulf Islands (and beyond), and east to Lake Chelan, Lake Roosevelt, and the Idaho lakes (and beyond). We can sit in the cockpit and drink our sundowners or sit inside and listen to the Olga Symphony on rainy days (and unashamedly admit that we do). No bottom paint, no algae, no barnacles, no monthly fee. Frankly, I'd rather spend that slip fee on boat gas!
 
Pat Anderson":18ukqjya said:
Define "really hot day"! To me it is anything over 58 degrees F., and we have quite a few of them actually!
Click to expand...

Biting tongue... arrrrrgggghhhhh... not gonna say it...

Whew! That wasn't easy. :wink:

Regarding the slip question: we've done it both ways. We live on a canal, with our dock right out the door... it doesn't get much easier than that. But, as my buddy Pat said, trailering is certainly one of the great aspects of these boats. If you haven't tried the slip thing, I'd say give it a try. Tonight, we went for a sunset cruise... about an hour and a half; we sure wouldn't have done that if we were pulling the boat off/on a trailer. When we slipped in a marina in years past, we enjoyed the dock neighbors (well, most of 'em :disgust ) and the social opportunities. Now, when we trailer, we are going someplace, and are going to spend a lot more time per day out on the boat.

You can have it both ways: enjoy the slip and still trailer your boat to other places when the fancy strikes. After a season in a slip, you can re-evaluate and see if the benefits outweigh the costs. If you don't try it, how will you know?

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
I had boats in slips for about 50 years--and there is a wonderful socialization which goes on in marinas. That plus the ability to just go down there is very worthwhile. When I was working, I would visit the boat almost every day--noon to catch lunch or a nap, supper on the water, or just sitting and watching the water world.

As James, we have the boat in the back yard (which is a bayou) in a lift, and the trailer sitting on the lot next door. We put holiday decorations on the dock today, and just sat there, took photos and enjoyed the water. Nothing beats being able to be near the water in our books.
 
I'm a boat addicted junkie with two boats in the water in slips at Bridge Bay Marina on Shasta Lake and two more at home in the RV barn.

There is nothing like a moored boat in a slip! The reasons abound, many of them listed above. A boat in the water properly set up is an absolute INSTANT ESCAPE HATCH,. AN EJECTION SEAT FROM A SOMETIMES BOTHERSOME WORLD!

One Golden Key to really having the boat be your instant Bottle of Joy is to fully provision it with everything necessary for your full use without having to buy supplies or go home and load up. (Ice and cold beer excepted.) Everything else from prescriptions to posthumous thank you notes should be aboard to make using your favorite floating friend an easy, welcome, and inviting adventure.

As for the contrasting advantages of having it on the trailer ready to go to nearby or faraway venues, just bring it home with the trailer the time you use it before you want to go trailering, and you will have time to give it the required weekly/monthly cleaning and re-provisioning before the anticipated road trip! (Or, better yet, buy another boat for road trips that's more suitable for that type of use if you will!

We're paying about $435 a month for moorage, and for me, it's well worth it. With two boats (CD-22 and a Sea Ray 265 Sedan Bridge) 50 yards apart, I've got a second home on the water 11 miles up the freeway that I just can't get enough of!

Going there soon!

Joe. :teeth
 
Pat Anderson":1epzzik9 said:
[Define "really hot day"! To me it is anything over 58 degrees F., and we have quite a few of them actually!
Click to expand...

Come on down for an extended visit, little nephew. It's over 58 degrees F about 360 days a year here in Encinitas.

The Jenny B has been moored in it's slip almost 100% of the time since new. We have to stay within striking distance of home and our cruising time is limited for now. We love it because boating can truly be a "spur of the moment" decision or, in our case, I can actually wait on the boat for spouse to deplane at Lindburgh Field and still get to the pick up area before she clears baggage.

I like the trailerable option because a little trip with trailer is all it takes to save about $70 in refueling costs over stopping at a fuel dock. The boat itself is stowed in an Armored Hull plastic bathtub that does a good job keeping the critters off. Safe? Sea World accepts them in their marina whereas they have much stricter rules for painted bottoms. Disclamer: I don't have any connection with those guys other than being a user.

All in all, as long as I can't leave town for any extended period, the boat will stay in it's slip. We love it.
 
I guess I'll be the lone voice on this one. I have had my C-dory for only a month. This is my first trailerable. All of our previous boats ranged from 26-45 ft. None of them were trailerable. I love to putter and having my boat in my shop is a dream for me. The few times I have taken the boat out so far have been a piece of cake as far as launching and retreiving. I know the hassle of maintaining a boat that stays in the water and I don't want to do it anymore.
That being said. It's all about your your personal preference. The pros and cons have been well stated by the previous posts.

good luck

Jim D
 
My experience is similar to most of what the others are saying. Water moorage with your "own" slip absolutely leads to more frequent/easier boating, and absolutely is harder on your boat. If you can afford it, I say go for it! I would recommend the following: 1.Make sure your bottom is sealed with several properly applied coats of epoxy barrier coat, then apply and maintain bottom paint of high quality. In Seattle CSR marine is an excellent vendor for this, and there are no doubt many other good ones. 2. If moored in the Sound, take it through the locks and into the Lake occasionally (a perfect outing for you and the kiddos in almost any weather), and vice/versa if you're moored in the Lake. The crud that likes the salt water doesn't like the fresh and vice/versa. 3. Haul it out and keep it out for one month each year if at all possible to dry everything out and facilitate maintenance/inspections. Great idea IMHO of you can afford it and will use it. Best, Mike.
 
I agree with all the positive comments regarding keeping the boat in a slip. It is fun to just go there and not have to tow/launch the boat. And marinas do have a good social life. We even lived on board for a year (no, not a C-Dory.) It was terrific. Sitting is the cockpit and BSing was great, though it leads to drinking.

However I side with Pat and Patty. Journey On is for cruising, seeing new places and meeting new people. That's why it's trailerable. Especially in So Cal, where there are a limited amount of islands and the harbours are far apart. The weather is great though, so we can tow up and down the coast, and have a great variety.

If you start your trips from the same general vicinity, then get a slip, it's more convenient and has a better social life. If you never launch from the same place twice, keep it on the trailer. It all depends on for what you bought the boat.

Boris
 
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