Boat slip

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Frogmore916

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Joined
Jan 8, 2017
Messages
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Location
Beaufort ,South Carolina
Gentleman, my wife and I are considering renting a boat slip here on the south Carolina coast. I have read all the reasons not to leave a boat in water for long periods of time, but my question is ; is there anyone out there that does this and has had no issues bad enough to make them stop. We would be using the boat roughly 2 to 3 times a week. I would be trailing it home for deep cleanings every 4 to 6 weeks. This is our life and just wanting to try and increase our time on the water and try a slip for a few months to see how we like it. The bottom is not painted, and marina is close to our house and easy to check on and take out for bad storms, etc.
 
I've only had my boat for 3 months, but I keep it in a slip here in southern California. There are a lot of Parkers stored in slips here, several for multiple years, I have not heard of any issues related to keeping a boat in a slip as long as you undertake normal preventative measures. Most people put bottom paint on the bottom of the boat and have it cleaned at least once a month.

Personally, I think if you are using the boat that much keeping it in the water vs. that many launches put you at a greater risk of damage compared to keeping it in the water. I think taking it out to clean it is a great idea, I wish I could do that.

Best part about having the boat in the water is I've decided that i'm going fishing after work for 2-3 hours, pull out, fish, rinse the motor and boat off, go home.

PS, birds do like the target my Parker for "deposits."
 
Thanks so much for the positive feedback back. I see a lot of smaller outboards at slips but the only info on line is people talking about why not to use a slip.
 
wet slip is the way to go if you want to get the most out of your boat. All you need is some anti fouling bottom paint and call it a day. The frequency you use the boat leads me to believe you will have almost no growth on the bottom and no issues what so ever.
 
Have the bottom properly prepped and painted. I fish ~5 times a week, I jump in the car, drive 10 mintues to the marina, and can be underway in 6-7 minutes. When I return I can have it tied up and put away in the same time. More time enjoying the boat and far less time wasted. Good luck...
 
Depending on where you slip your boat you might be able to leave your rods/reels on the boat, what a huge time saver when launching. My motor is barely warm before I'm getting ready to pull away from the dock. I think the one downside that I realized today was fueling on the water is way more than a trailered boat. 3.99/gallon commercial price (100+gallon buy) for premium today... ouch.
 
If there is no bottom paint on it already, I'd start with an epoxy barrier coat to eliminate the problem of blistering. I have a seventeen year old 23DVCC that spends about five months of the year in the water with no haul outs at all during those months with no issues.
 
I bought my 2520 MVSC in 2002 and it has been wet slipped since I have owned it.
Take care of the topsides during the season and take care of the bottom (power wash) on haul-out.
Evaluate the bottom in spring and paint as needed.

These boats can live in the water with no issues if cared for properly.
 
Thanks for the information. Y'all are always a pleasure to talk to. We will definitely get bottom painted, and take good care of her. I appreciate the feed back that helped me come to a conclusion.
Thanks, again
 
The South Carolina and Georgia coasts are a real challenge for growth in the summer. I'm told bottom paint companies like to test out their products down here because hulls foul really fast in these waters. In the creek our boat lives the water temps gets up above 90 degrees in the summer. We do keep our boat in the water for 4 to 6 weeks at a time at our dock, but I'd be cautious to leave it in much longer than that. Our boat has bottom paint, and after 1 month in April this year I had barnacles all over the hull. I took it out, scraped them off sanded everything down. I asked around to what the best bottom paint was for our local conditions. The copper ablative paints are the go to around here, and the higher percentage the better. You really get what you pay for. I used interlux Micron 66, which is 66% copper, and its been working really well this summer. There's a couple of choices that contain a biocide, as an alternative to copper and are supposed to be better for the environment. They haven't caught on here yet but may be all that's available in the near future.
 
My Parker has been in a wet slip year round since December 2007 and has only come out to be serviced/bottom painted. I have the bottom cleaned once a month by a diver - very common in South Florida. (It even survived Irma!)
I have had no problems thus far.
 
I wouldn't even consider leaving my boat in the water for a month with no bottom paint.
No way, no how!!
 
Frogmore916":xim9qb6y said:
Thanks for the local info. We are going to try the slip for a month, before we get bottom painted. Just to make sure we like using the slip. Thanks again

I tried that and it was a big mistake. If you are putting her in a slip, get the bottom painted properly first.

Also, the first marina may have had stray electrical current. Trim tab anodes were almost entirely gone after just a month. When I moved to a newer marina next door, these anodes now last 6 months or more. Just sayin'...
 
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