Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

new to the boards so here is a little info! last summer we bought an 88 bass buggy, it was fine, but needed more work than dh and I knew to do or had time and money for! so last fall, we traded it in on a year 2000 Neptoon Dolphin, by JC pontoon, 20 feet long. We took it out the lake yesterday, with 10 people (8 adults and two young kids) Immediately the boat really leaned to the left. we re arranged people and put thinner people in the front.. still leaned some not as bad. Now, though, we had water coming up over the front deck, we had to open the door to let water out, this happened when we slowed down. twice we had a boat full of water, the kids were scared. it was a little rough on the water, but not too bad, could have been from waves I guess?

so, a couple of silly questions, should the motor be tilted up, down, or straight when we have so many poeple in front ? I forgot I think its a 45 hp motor. and is there a way to check to see if there is a hole in the pontoon?

thanks for any input, like I said this is all pretty new to us.

Lory

First thing I would check is to make sure that you weren't overloaded. There should be a capacity sticker somewhere on your boat. It will contain the number of people your boat is rated for and also a maximum weight limit for you boat (people & gear).

did that, its rated for 14 people, or 2700 lbs. we had 10 people, probably total weight was 1700,, not much gear, just a cooler and some towels.

Lory

Sounds like you were within the capacity.

I'm no expert, but it doesn't seem that 7our boat should not respond that way. I have a 1984 20' JC (rated for 12 people) that I've had loaded up with passenger counts similar to what you describe. While my boat will ride a little lower in the water, I've never taken on water, or had a listing problem.

Do you toons have plugs on them (mine are on the back of each toon)? Trailer your boat, and remove each plug to check for water within the toons.

When I trim my motor up, the nose will come up higher... Maybe try that?

I think that if you are sitting that low, to hell with your toon rating...

FYI, my 21' three toon has a max rating of only 9 lbs... But when I have nine people on my boat, it doesnt ride very much lower...

Good luck...

well, I did find the plugs, I unscrewed one and air came hissing out so I plugged it in quickly.. these pontoons also make a banging sound occasionally throughout the day and night, when they cool and heat up. I emailed the manu.. they said it was normal.. sounds like someone is hitting them.. anyway, I uploaded the pics I took on the lake, here is one just after we launched.

we did re arrange folks and put the kidlets in the front after this.
Lory

is the lean in that picture from a wave or is that how bad the boat is listing??

that is right after we left the dock, listing that much! we did move the kids to the front instead of in the back seat, it did straighten out some,, then right after we moved people, we had the water come in. there is little deck out front, maybe a foot in width. I think we had too many people in front for the conditions.
Lory

Wow, that does not look right at all. Your boat should NOT be listing that much. Does it list (even the slightest bit) when it's sitting at the dock without any passengers?

I had a leak in one of my toons once. It listed ever so slightly when at the dock, but once you got a couple people on it the problem was more exaggerated. Ended up taking it to a welder to have fixed. Ended up being just a tiny pinhole leak. What he ded was pull the plug, add a little die to the water inside the toon, connected an air compressor to the plug hole, and observed where the die leaked from.

At any rate, you might take it back to the dealer and ask them to take a look at it.

The pontoon banging sound is normal, mine does this all the time too. The air pressure inside the toons changes as the temperature changes, causing the toon walls to pop in and out.

thanks, we will see what happens next time we get out.. if it does, we will be calling the dealer.
Lory

my toons have had some air pressure in them when i pulled the plugs out but in 2 years of owning it ive never heard the poping noise.

you know, since I pulled that one plug out, I havent heard that banging noise! its like someone hits it with a ball or something. strange to hear that in the middle of the night, makes you wonder what the heck..
Lory

Seriously, the popping noise is fine. It's just the air pressure changing as the temperature changes. One of the toon walls is popping in and out, much like the lid on a pickle jar (when you first open it).

oh, I am not concerned about the banging noises, it just takes me by surprise.. we keep the boat on a trailer in the driveway in front of our house, so we hear the banging often, and it with all the kids, including ours, outside playing, I alway think just for a brief second that someone has hit a baseball or golf ball into one of the pontoons, leaving a dent.

Lory

Well, I'm no expert, but it should not lean that much unless you had all your passengers on that side. I'd bet you a cold one or 2, you have water in the left toon. Something is rotton in Denmark! I'd get it to the dealer before I put it in the water again.