Wet slip tips

rasbury

I just need help getting in and out of a slip!

Chrisvr6

Well, they have an underground parking garage, which you get a designated spot in, playground with splash pad, pool and rentable party room. The beach is all next to this also. The website states you get two key fobs so I assumed all this was exclusive to slip holders except the beach of course. They've been saying they haven't even filled this 1000 slip harbor 50% yet as of 2012 when opened. They wonder why?

bigal6030

This will be my first year in a slip at the Hammond Marina. Great marina away from the crowds at the Chicago marinas. The Chicago marinas are so busy and crowded. See ya on the water
Have fun. Check out Hammond sometime.

frenchship

VC 17 it is recommended for power boat by Interlux marine paint

MarkB

Interlux recommended micron CSC for my power boat. Not sure what the difference is, and why you would pick one over the other (I'm sure it's more than just color).

Chrisvr6

The new harbor in Portage was my first choice. Marina shores in Portage. Super nice, pool, cheap but 40 miles away. 31st is waiving nonresident tax which is 25% also. Wish they offered something to residents like me. Looking at burnham harbor now. More money but right downtown.  bigal6030 said:

This will be my first year in a slip at the Hammond Marina. Great marina away from the crowds at the Chicago marinas. The Chicago marinas are so busy and crowded. See ya on the water
Have fun. Check out Hammond sometime.

andyd

Top Five Reasons I love my slip:

5) The 4th of July party/squirt gun fight/fireworks on the docks, it's legendary
4) Storage spot for kayaks, SUPs, a dinghy and cold beer.
3) I hate trailering and boat ramps, except as a spectator
2) It's cool in the summer when the inland areas sizzle
1) A 24/7 place to bug out, hang out, and visit with (mostly) good neighbors

Andy

Dream_Inn

Well said Andy!  It's a home away from home and available anytime!  I've gone down to my boat in the middle of the winter just for some R&R.  One more benefit if you have a lift slip!  Also, a lift slip, you don't have to bottom paint, zincs rarely ever need changed, boat stays cleaner, don't have to worry about tidal changes, if it's windy or a bit rough in the marina (or you have a dozen people on the boat partying) - just lift the slip enough the boat won't rock, easy to clean and do maintenance with a raft...but really, Andy's #1 is still my number one as well!

Handymans342

I have a better idea, just leave it on land with the shrink wrap on like me  

Dream_Inn

 Good one Handy!  but I think we are actually talking about using it more, not less!

raybo3

Why have it if you do not plan on using it.................LOL

Cableguy Greg

It always amazes me at how may people own boats, put them in the water each summer, pull them and winterize them in the fall, and never use them at all. I would say 40% of the dockers at the marina that I dock at never use their boats. That makes for a very expensive hobby.

rasbury

I hear you Greg- way to expensive for my lifestyle that if I were not going to use, would not have bought....and here in Central Florida we boat all year. But I see it in the marinas around here, boats that don't look like they have moved in years and probably don't even run!

MarkB

Cableguy Greg said:

It always amazes me at how may people own boats, put them in the water each summer, pull them and winterize them in the fall, and never use them at all. I would say 40% of the dockers at the marina that I dock at never use their boats. That makes for a very expensive hobby.

Greg, if you USE your boat it's an expensive hobby. If you pay for all that and DON'T USE your boat, it's not a hobby, it's called burning money.

We were considering buying a cottage or a boat. Well we decided on the boat, because it would be close by, don't have to fight through traffic to get to it, and we can go anytime we want. We use it a lot, but also view it as our "Cottage" in the summer months. Don't get me wrong, having a cottage is great, but we get a lot of fun out of our boat ALL the time, given it's 5 minutes away.

Chrisvr6

Ideal setup: a houseboat with a gofast boat tied up to it. 

Cableguy Greg

Mark, I agree that using your boat is expensive. I use mine pretty much every weekend along with many nights during the week. It is 25 minutes from my house, so it is a short drive after work to be on her drinking a few boat pops. Since I upgraded to a cruiser, I am able to use it a lot more than my cuddy. I put 110 hours on her last season, which in Pittsburgh is above average. I would put 75-80 hours on my cuddy when I had her. It just blows my mind to drop $2k to slip a boat, and another $1k for winter storage, cleaning, fuel, maintenance to not use a boat. To me, that is a lot of money flushed down the toilet or down the river...

Handymans342

When I retire ( in Fort Myers) I will practically live on my boat but for now I have to use it on weekends weather permitting.  

Dream_Inn

well, it may be snowing outside today...but, speaking of using the boat, I'll be taking the cover off tomorrow!  Planning on loading all the 'stuff' back on and running the heat a little, not sure if I will take it out or not, see how the day goes.  Either way, it's past that time!!  Next weekend I'll be sleeping on it from Fri-Sun!

JC290

I still need an ice boat gonna be three weeks or so before I can even think of getting the boat out

Stodge

I have a laundry list of things to get working on.  The shrink came off this week.  So I can get more of the "out of the water" projects done.  

Even the dock gets an upgrade this year.

rasbury

will be out this weekend, hitting almost 90 here this week so I hope the heat is moving north!

Stodge

We'll see 90.......
In July.....
Maybe....

craigswardmtb

I have been working on the boat this week.  I pulled the drive in preparation for the swivel shaft repair.  I did some bow thruster maintenance, scrubbed the tabs, props and drives.  Now I need some days above 40 to get the antifouling paint on..  Its snowing and 30 out today, ugg...

Dirtythirty

I love keeping our boat in the water...We spend more time at the boat without even going out than we ever would if we had to dry stack or trailer it.   One word for you to consider though......SPIDERS !!  You can give them names, feed them, talk to them....but get used to them  !!

Chrisvr6

I did hear spiders were a problem at the harbor. Is there a way to keep them to a minimum? Repellent?

JoeStang

I bought a couple of these recently, gonna give them a try. You leave them hung up in the cockpit while you're not there, and then air it out when you open it up.

If you use the boat frequently (like at least a couple times a week) it seems to me that the spiders stay down a little bit. If it sits for more than a week, they'll start to get under the cockpit cover and you'll have some juicy guys to get rid of. I'm also going to try to spray the dock & dock lines with Ortho Home Defense Max, to try to repel them a bit also.

Dream_Inn

I'm on my third boat over the last 16 years.  First 7 years, my boat was wet slipped, lots of spiders all the time.  Second boat for 7 years on a lift, very little with spiders.  The last couple years my current boat is also on a lift and basically no spiders.  Not sure if it has to do with location in the marina, being on a lift, or what it is.  I do have less lines tied, only two.  So, maybe if you guys spray those lines in the middle (not somewhere you'd be handling often), it could help.  Or maybe it's they don't climb 'up' as high as my lines go??  I'm doubting that one, although with wind up there higher maybe that has something to do with it.  Cause my current setup also go ups much higher than the lift with my last boat.  Any thoughts?  Just trying to see if there is something to be learned here that can help others, cause I do remember that spider poop being a real pain, and man, knock on wood I just don't have it!

Chrisvr6

Mothballs! http://www.sunsetmarina.com/smrblog/comments.php?y=08&m=05&entry=entry080531-121034

Mike_G

Ortho Defense MAX works for me.

I lay the lines I use at the marina out on my driveway, soak them on all sides and then let them dry.  I spray the sides of the dock, around the cleats (on the dock), the whole Shore Power station and any of the shore power cord that doesn't touch my boat (the cord that I leave at the marina).  I also spray my fender lines (except the part of the line that touches the cleat or bow rail).  -=Mike G.

Handymans342

Good advice but the only way to kill a spider is to get the spray on it or use stick traps. This was told to me by many exterminators.