New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

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Tarheel28
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Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2016 8:55 am

New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#1 Post by Tarheel28 » Fri Jun 17, 2016 5:32 am

Hi Everyone,

I'm a new pontoon owner here in Raleigh. I've driven my share over the years but this is my first time owning a boat. We have a 5 year old and 1 year old and are very excited about making a lot of memories with them. We bought a 2011 Manitou Oasis VP Tritoon with a 150hp Yamaha. Love it so far.

The biggest challenges we are working through right now are the cover and parking. Would love to hear from other members about how they solved these.

First issue is the cover. It's a 15-20 minute process and with 2 very small kids it is very challenging. Time is precious with little kids and it's difficult having them wait on the dock while we cover it. So we are weighing the pros and cons to cover vs leave it uncovered. Obviously uncovered would save a lot of time, which means more time on the lake and less stress, but it would also depreciate our asset much quicker. Covering it would protect the boat but would give us less time out on the water and make taking it out much more challenging with the kids. What do you all do? Any suggestions as an alternative? I'd love for it to look this good 10 years from now but more importantly I want to use my time effectively with the kids so we actually use the boat as much as possible. So I'm torn on what to do.

Second issue is the parking. I have about a 25 yard wide canal that leads down our marina where I have to make a 90 degree turn to our slip that we share with another pontoon. It is tight to say the least. I'm getting better at parking it but it's daunting. Any thoughts, other than practice, to make docking it easier? Would an electric troll motor on front help me make a sharp 90 degree turn? Any other suggestions?

Thanks again, and I look forward to sharing info, learning a lot, and getting to know all of you over the coming years!
2011 Manitou OasisVP Tritoon w/Yamaha 150

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teecro
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#2 Post by teecro » Fri Jun 17, 2016 6:06 am

If you do not have a roof over your boat do not leave it exposed to the weather any longer than you must; if I did not have a roof over mine I would set my exposure limit to 24 hours. Even with a roof while I'm away I cover my boat. Sun and weather exposure will age a boat more than children age their parents...

Entry into a tight slip? First off have the wife & kids stay sitting down out of your line of sight, my father taught us that unless you have someone who is very able bodied it was best to learn to dock and tie your boat by yourself, he did this well into his 70's.... A slow approach at idle or less, try kicking out of gear and coasting some while still going straight to burn off even more speed. Start your turn very wide and early so that by the time your close to your slip you should be fairly well lined up and hopefully going slow enough that your out of gear and ghosting in...
T CRO
2017 Berkshire CTS 24 RFX with Yamaha F150/Simomized 200
2015 Caravelle 16 EBo with Mercury 90

Gonefishing
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#3 Post by Gonefishing » Fri Jun 17, 2016 12:01 pm

Agree I always cover mine if not able to dock under a roof. The NC sun will rune your seats quick. Have a friend who purchase his toon same time I did. I kept mine cover and he did not. Less then three years he was replacing his seats mine look like new. I agree the cover is a pain but worth the trouble. As for docking slow and easy is the key.
Bob Jacksonville, Nc

2013 Excursion X23 RFC
2013 115 Yamaha
Pulled with a Ford King Ranch

Bamaman
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#4 Post by Bamaman » Fri Jun 17, 2016 12:43 pm

I'm fortunate to have a boathouse, so my boat stays dry all the time. My last Starcraft pontoon lasted 28 years before I burned out the lower unit from a lack of maintenance. The old pontoon was still in reasonably good shape, however, due to it being kept out of the direct sunlight and kept dry.

I'm not a fan of leaving boats in the water at marinas any longer than they have to be. If you have a 3 month boating season, put it on the trailer and cover it the other 9 months.

And I'm not a fan of those $1,500 mooring covers that get mildew on them after a year or two and are a general pain in the rear end to put on the boat. (I use mine only in winter.)

I would prefer to keep my boat in dry storage out of the rain and out of the sun--or up on a lift with a roof over it. My cousin has a motorhome in a prefab aluminum carport with sides, and it does a nice job of storage.
'12 Bennington 24' SSLX Yamaha 150

Tarheel28
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2016 8:55 am

Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#5 Post by Tarheel28 » Fri Jun 17, 2016 2:55 pm

Good suggestions. I'm going to take your advice and go through the process of covering it. It will be a pain but sounds like over time it's worth it.

Thanks for the tips on the docking. I'll try these next time we are out. I've been coming in very shallow (almost perpendicular to our slip) and then using the ropes to pull her in. Next time I'm gonna be more daring and take a wide turn and try to get her in straight. Makes me nervous because if I miss I have very little room to back up and try again. Plus if there is a downwind, I will get pushed back even quicker into the rocks. But I think I need to learn how to get her in straight and not rely on the ropes so much.

Thanks again!
2011 Manitou OasisVP Tritoon w/Yamaha 150

ron nh
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#6 Post by ron nh » Fri Jun 17, 2016 3:17 pm

Welcome. Not that I'm hoping anything goes wrong, But could you have some one video It? :mrgreen:
2015 Qwest LS 818XRE Tri-toon w/mercury 115.

jediger
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#7 Post by jediger » Fri Jun 17, 2016 3:30 pm

Tarheel28 wrote:Hi Everyone,

Would an electric troll motor on front help me make a sharp 90 degree turn? Any other suggestions?
Skill and practice is obviously the best approach. That being said, you can throw money at the problem somewhat too. As you suggest, a trolling motor from the bow that pulls the boat rather than pushing it can help. Using both that motor as a thruster and your stern drive you can probably spin the boat 180 degrees in place with a bit of practice. This would work best if you don't have to worry about depth at the bow even when your slipped. Otherwise you might be trying to retract your trolling motor at the same time your trying to slow the boat and finish docking...

It's pretty expensive, but another option is https://sideshift.com/pontoon-thrusters/ It's basically a bi-directional trolling motor head with a joystick control at the helm, but it would make the maneuver your doing easier too.
Pinawa Bay, Manitoba
2014 Premier Cast-a-way 231, PTX; 2014 Evinrude 250HO ETEC

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ROLAND
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#8 Post by ROLAND » Sat Jun 18, 2016 1:14 am

Like some of the others have said, keep your boat covered whenever it's not in use... I'm lucky in that my boat is kept in an indoor storage facility so it doesn't sit out in the hot louisiana sun year round.. of course we do have to tow it everytime we use it but the storage building is right on the way to the lake... as for docking, yes, I supposed a trolling motor on the front end would help a bit... you could also make your turn, start to head in... then put her in reverse, back up a bit, line her up and then go slow and easy forward into your stall...
Roland & Jo
2010 Bennington 20 Sfi
Yamaha 75 4 Stroke
Shreveport, Louisiana

Tarheel28
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2016 8:55 am

Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#9 Post by Tarheel28 » Thu Jun 23, 2016 6:22 am

ROLAND wrote:Like some of the others have said, keep your boat covered whenever it's not in use... I'm lucky in that my boat is kept in an indoor storage facility so it doesn't sit out in the hot louisiana sun year round.. of course we do have to tow it everytime we use it but the storage building is right on the way to the lake... as for docking, yes, I supposed a trolling motor on the front end would help a bit... you could also make your turn, start to head in... then put her in reverse, back up a bit, line her up and then go slow and easy forward into your stall...

Thanks everyone for all the tips. Roland, I grew up in Shreveport right off Walker Rd. Spent many evenings on Cross Lake. I miss those days.
2011 Manitou OasisVP Tritoon w/Yamaha 150

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ROLAND
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Re: New Member from North Carolina with a few questions!

#10 Post by ROLAND » Fri Jun 24, 2016 12:47 am

Tarheel28 wrote:
ROLAND wrote:Like some of the others have said, keep your boat covered whenever it's not in use... I'm lucky in that my boat is kept in an indoor storage facility so it doesn't sit out in the hot louisiana sun year round.. of course we do have to tow it everytime we use it but the storage building is right on the way to the lake... as for docking, yes, I supposed a trolling motor on the front end would help a bit... you could also make your turn, start to head in... then put her in reverse, back up a bit, line her up and then go slow and easy forward into your stall...

Thanks everyone for all the tips. Roland, I grew up in Shreveport right off Walker Rd. Spent many evenings on Cross Lake. I miss those days.
Tarheel, small world my friend... my signature says "shreveport", but I actually live in a little community just north of there called Blanchard... I'm sure you know where that's at... as for Caddo lake.. that's where we always take the boat... almost always put in at the launch in Mooringsport, just north of Blanchard.... good to hear from you.
Roland & Jo
2010 Bennington 20 Sfi
Yamaha 75 4 Stroke
Shreveport, Louisiana

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