Swim Ladder: Good Idea?

[pipes111]

Needing a solution to facilitate those hot windless summer days when all we can do is swim. Is mounting a ladder like this to the transom of an Oday 23 a good solution to getting in and out of the lake?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002G2XM6E/ref=pe_160230_23765170_pe_vfe_dt1

 

[Siamese]

That looks like the ladder on my Catalina 309. Works great, but the 309 has a sugarscoop/walkthrough transom, so the final step from ladder to boat is only about a foot.

I'm not sure how you'd mount it on a boat with a conventional transom. If you mounted it low, you'd still have to get from the top rung to the top of the transom. If you mount it high, it would tend to lie right on the face of the transom and not allow you to get your feet on the rungs.

Sorry, I don't see an obvious solution with that ladder.

 

[Sunbird22358]

That ladder COULD work, what you would need to do is bolt it to the transom about mid-way from top to bottom, then also attach a teak (or Starboard?) spacer to the transom about 3/4 of the distance from the ladder mounts to the bottom of the transom. That spacer will "kick" the ladder out a few inches from the transom giving room for your hands and feet to grip the ladder rungs. There was an article several years ago in SOUNDINGS describing how someone mounted a ladder like this to the stern of his Sailmaster 22. It worked for him! I was going to try something similar on my DS II, but finances have stopped me for the moment, have no $$!

 

[1977oday22]

After watching the movie - open water II, I've been thinking about a ladder too!

 

[Dougo]

I just installed a Garelick 3 step transom ladder on my H23. Haven't had occasion to test it out (too freaking cold up north here!), but it seems like it's going to do the trick. Got on the water last weekend. Like I died and went to heaven! Good luck.

http://www.garelick.com/product.php?pnumber=18017

 

[HukilauMike]

A swim ladder is always a good idea. I went even cheaper for my Oday 23:

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wc...toreNum=50304&subdeptNum=50353&classNum=50354

Buy a ladder with the "wide hooks" and the extra long standoffs to match the curve of the hull. The hooks fit over the gunwhales at the aft end of the cockpit. Before leaving the boat, I lash one hook to the stern pushpit so it can't come off. The ladder fits in the cockpit storage locker with no trouble.

Of course, this option has some drawbacks: it is not at the ready in case of a man overboard; you have to fish it out of the locker and attach it, and to make it really easy to use, you have to detach the lifeline. And it is of no safety value at all if you are singlehanding and fall overboard. On the other hand, it has the virtues of being cheap, and in my humble opinion, easier to use than a stern mounted set up. Any ladder you mount on the transom will require a swimmer to climb over the push pit (stern railing). Maybe easy for the boys, but not something the girls will relish. And the portable ladder does avoid the hassles of mounting something on the Oday 23 transom. If your 23 is like mine, the "open" side of the transom (i.e., the side where the interior of the transom is accessable through the inside of the cockpit locker) is already taken up with the outboard mount. Accessing the other side will require installation of at least one inspection port in order to get at the inside of the transom. Plus, you lose the ability to put your boat's name on the transom! Not a big deal for some people, but I greatly prefer the look of the name on the transom rather than the side.

 

[JonnyQuest]

I have a swim ladder mounted on the transom and it's metal rungs are a huge pain in the foot! Unless your a 70 pound kid you might want a ladder with wooden rungs or add them later. If I can figure out how to fix some wood steps to my rungs I'll be doing that too. Anyone add wood steps to their metal rungs?

 

[Joe11688]

I would go for a folding swim ladder and bolt it to your transom.

 

[Indysailor]

I have a swim ladder mounted on the transom and it's metal rungs are a huge pain in the foot! Unless your a 70 pound kid you might want a ladder with wooden rungs or add them later. If I can figure out how to fix some wood steps to my rungs I'll be doing that too. Anyone add wood steps to their metal rungs?

I installed these on my boat. They work well enough, but the bottom rungs on many ladders will not accept them. Even so, if you could retrofit something on the bottom rung, the torque of a person hauling themselves out of the water may require it to be pretty hefty. Anyway, the sole mates help.

http://www.westmarine.com/buy/products/14863-sole-mate-ladder-tread.html

 

[JonnyQuest]

I installed these on my boat. They work well enough, but the bottom rungs on many ladders will not accept them. Even so, if you could retrofit something on the bottom rung, the torque of a person hauling themselves out of the water may require it to be pretty hefty. Anyway, the sole mates help.

http://www.westmarine.com/buy/products/14863-sole-mate-ladder-tread.html

Hi Indy,
Those do look useful. I see they are plastic, makes me think of Trex material for complete width steps. Have to check out the hardware involved at WM. thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Indysailor]

They feel like Trex- I have been thinking of making a step for the bottom rung, but it would need to be through bolted in order to work, in my opinion. Not sure I want to do that. Also have considered dressing the rung with 1/4" rope to make it less painful.

I've seen a couple Hunters where the rungs are flattened, but my guess is the rungs are flattened before they are welded on.

 

[DannyS]

These are not the best photos, but I think you'll get the idea. I made my footrests from a Trex-like product called Timbertech. You can get it from Home Depot but it might need to be special ordered. It comes in a color called Pacific Teak. I ripped it to about 2 1/2 inches wide and then cut them to the overall width of the ladder. I bored holes the same size as the tube on each end and with a little work with the coping saw or bandsaw, cut out the ends so they can slip into place on the tube. If you're careful, they will drop in place nice and snug so no fasteners are required. Mine fit that way but I did end up attaching them with a little sheet metal strap.
The bottom one was made the same way except that I took a round rasp and did some creative filing to match to match the inside curve of the bottom rung.

 

[LordNelson]

I think it is the one of the most important pieces of safety equiptment you can have on the boat, especially if single handling. I believe it may even be required in Canada. I installed the transom ladder from railmakers on my oday 20. This has worked well and i would recommend it. Just make sure you have enough steps to get up on it, especially if you are an old gezzer like me.

http://railmakers.com/products/ladders-steps.htm