Leaving boats in the water

[super dave]

Any of you guys leave your boat in the water over the summer?   what do you do from preventing it from sinking from rain water?  my brother in law tried that for one weekend and found the boat just inches from sinking.  

Looking for some possible solutions because I hate trailering the boat back and back to the launch.  i know bilge is an option, but worried about it failing or the battery dying.

Thanks.

[lew]

Put a cover on  it.

My boats sat in the water all summer long for many years with both an automatic bilge and quality covers and I never had a problem

 

 

Edited October 7, 2019 by lew

[cheaptackle]

Good cover, auto bilge & a solar panel to keep the battery topped up if you don't have power available.  Back in the day Dad used to just tie the boat up to mooring posts driven in the lakebed, no cover no pump.  My first job every Friday evening was to wade out & bail out the @##$%#!*&^%$ er!  Try that in May!

 

Michael

[buick14]

I have an auto bilge pump and no cover.

i have found my transducers seem to crack tho...

[DRIFTER_016]

I have an auto bilge pump that does the trick.

Make sure to clean the float switch occasionally as they tend to have algae buildup that can make them stick.

If you're leaving it unused for any length of time a mooring cover is also a good idea.

[super dave]

If you use a solar panel do you need a charge controller? 

[DRIFTER_016]

2 minutes ago, super dave said:

If you use a solar panel do you need a charge controller? 

Absolutely.

[cheaptackle]

Umm...the ones I had were direct connect trickles with "overload controllers", or so it said on the package.  They were the ones Canadian Tire often put on sale for 10-15 bucks.  I didn't have but the one main battery attached to it, real basic setup.

 

Michael

[ccmtcanada]

I have an auto bilge pump as well.  When away for a week or more I also cover the boat.  I 

Edited October 13, 2019 by ccmtcanada

[b2kptbo]

Cover worked fine for me, boat stayed in water all season. Cover was vented to circulate air...

[Loonietoon]

On 10/7/2019 at 3:24 PM, lew said:

Put a cover on  it.

My boats sat in the water all summer long for many years with both an automatic bilge and quality covers and I never had a problem

 

 

Hey Lew Does Misty River still have your old Crestliner?

[lew]

3 hours ago, Loonietoon said:

Hey Lew Does Misty River still have your old Crestliner?

Yup, he sure does Kelvin & the motor too, infact he just did the 1st repair on the motor a couple years ago, not bad for a '99  Merc with many many hours on it.

[Loonietoon]

That is EXCELLENT NEWS Lew   Always knew he got a GREAT BOAT Well cared for and looked after

[Beans]

The joys of leaving The Tin of Beans in the water over the season...

 

[DRIFTER_016]

3 minutes ago, Beans said:

The joys of leaving The Tin of Beans in the water over the season...

 

Yeah, I don't have that problem.

Maybe a bit of algae.

[super dave]

thanks guys.   

[aplumma]

Dave a 12 volt 500 gallon per hour pump pulls 2 amps per hour. If it is only to get rid of rain water meaning the boat does not leak much you should not need a charger if you are visiting it weekly.  Now if we get one heck of a rainstorm season then you might need to check on it. I have a 28ft that lives in the water covered and it has two pumps 2000 gallons an hour that are hooked to a bank of two house batteries . I haves been off shore power for a week at a time  with no charging except for the motors being run without any issues. 

Art