Wet storage at Marina

[alex roundhouse]

Hey all, new to the forum and need some advice. I just leased a slip at the local marina on the lake near our home. This is my first time leasing a slip and am wondering what is recommended to maintain the boat in long term slip storage. It's a covered slip with no lift. I guess another good question is, is there a problem with leaving my boat in the water for long periods of time?
Thanks for any advice!

 

[seadoosnipe]

Wet storage....

There is no real problem with wet storage as long as you take a few steps to provide protection to the hull and pump.
With the boat in the water for a prolong period of time, marine growth will begin to grown on the bottom of your hull in the form of algae and small crustaceans such as barnacles, etc......The type of growth depends on the type of water your in and the geographical location.
Boat owners that keep their boats in the water for most or all of their life span, coat the bottom once a year with an "anfi-fouling" coating. It's a barrier coating (like paint) with a "pesticide" type component in it that deters marine growth. It's not harmful to the marine life, it just deters them from colonizing on your boat. This coating is applied in two parts. The barrier coating, which seals the fiberglass from "blisters" and then the "anti-fouling" coat. The more expensive anti-fouling coatings can last upwards of 3 or 4 years but yearly inspections are necessary. Blisters in the fiberglass are also a good reason for yearly inspections. Caught early, a blister is easily repaired.
The axial flow pump has an anode attached to each ride plate. With it being left in the water, I'd buy a few more anodes (small ones) to attach to the metal surfaces of the plate, to prevent electrolysis from taking place. It would be a good idea to start the motor once every two weeks at minimum because you can't keep anti-fouling on the impeller.

I know it sounds like a lot, but it really isn't. I had a 22ft. Catalina sailboat in wet-dock and once a year, I paid $150 to have it hauled out. I could do all my work in one (two if I had to re-do the barrier coat too) day and have it back in the water the next........good luck:cheers:

 

[alex roundhouse]

Well I just purchased a 1997 Challenger 1800 and wasn't sure if I'd have any problems storing it in the water at the marina. First Jet boat and wanted to make sure if I left it in the water for a week or so that I wouldn't come back to a submerged boat, Ha! Wasn't sure if there were different circumstances for storing a jet boat in water as opposed to a normal I/O prop boat. Any extra advice on things to check would be great. This board seems very helpful! Thanks again.

 

[seadoosnipe]

That's a different story....

Alex, that paints a completly different story. If your only going to have it in the water a week or two at a time, then the only thing you should have to worry about is the battery. Just make sure it is either very reliable or new. If you look inside the boat, toward the back, you'll see a thru hull fitting, about 2 inches in diameter. That's a drain for the cockpit of the boat. I call these boats, "wet boats", because you can take on a big wave over the bow and it'll wash out the back through that hole. The other end passes through the engine compartment and out the back. You should inspect that hose to make sure it isn't dry rotted or cracked.
The other thing you need to check, is your bilge pump. With a hot battery, the bilge system has a water sensor that turns on your bilge pump automatically when water level covers the sensor for 10 seconds and will shut the pump off, after it's been dry for 30 seconds. You can test this by taking a piece of wire or a screwdriver and short it across the two poles, that face down. This sensor is near the pump and the wiring harness for the bilge pump, will also have the sensor wires coming out of it.
If you don't cover the bottom with anti-fouling and leave it in for a long time, you will have marine growth and you will eventually get blisters. The new boats are less prone for blisters because of a change in the marine fiberglass products..........:cheers:

 

[alex roundhouse]

By "hot battery" what do you mean? so the automatic bilge should work as long as the battery is connected? Thanks again!

 

[seadoosnipe]

Terms....

Yes, when you hear the term of someone saying I got a hot battery, that means they know that the battery is either new or holds a damn good charge. If you rely on a deep cycle battery without knowing it's gonna do the job during a good rain, or a leak in a plug, then you could have a flooded engine compartment.
Biggest issue before trusting the boat, outside the battery is the water sensor. This system is set up to operate two ways. You can manually turn on the bilge pump on your dash panel, or if it's left in the off position, the water sensor shorts out to water across the post and the pump comes on after ten seconds. With the age of your boat, I'd test that sensor switch several times to make sure it's going to work as it's suppose to. I say that, because I just took half my motor apart trying to trace down the shorted reason why mine didn't work. I almost flooded my Challenger (1997) last year. Take nothing for granted on these older boats.
For storage purposes, you may even think about going to wall mart and buying one of their small self contained automatic pumps, disconnect your battery leads from your engine, and hook up this pump. Place it in the lowest part of your bilge. That would pretty much be good security.
If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask!.........:cheers:

 

[alex roundhouse]

Thanks for all of the help. I actually took it to a shop and had them check over the electrical system and automatic bilge sensor and everything was good. That being said, I read the users manual and on the last damn page it says "do not store in water" so now I'm pretty bummed because we have leased a slip and can't leave it in it. We are going to try to find a used hoist but man it is expensive. So yeah I'm pretty bummed.

 

[seadoosnipe]

hmmmm....

hmmmmmm, I guess I should read a "users manual"........After all the shop manuals I've poured through, I've never read a users manual.
BTW, they also tell you not to make hot coffee in a microwave.....

 

[TxToby]

and one last note, since you are new to leaving your boat at a marina, SECURE YOUR SKI Lock it up and take your registration card, key to the ski, jackets, tubes, etc. Even in the nice marinas these items seem to grow legs & walk off. You don't want to show up on a beautiful day and be lacking any of the forementioned items :rant: I learned the hard way! :ack: