Post Bumpers

[chief14326]

I finally got the boat into the water for the season on Monday. I replaced the rubrail for the second time in two seasons. I like to solo quite often, and although it is quite difficult to back into my slip, I have gotten good at it. The only problem is that after getting into my slip, and while securing the all of my lines, I usually bump into the pilings which are covered in creosote. I have applied a coating of ArmorAll to the new rubrails (I heard it makes cleaning them easier)and of course I already had to clean the new rails after the first docking. I have been a volunteer firefighter for 28 years, however we have absolutly no old hose lying around. I have also served as chief twice so I have many friends in other departments, however no luck. West Marine wants a fortune for material to attach to the pilings. Any ideas on where to purchase or use of a different material for mounting to the pilings. I checked e bay, one length of hose available. I would need at least enough for 4 poles. There has to be another solution other than fire hose. Any ideas....

 

[Dick]

Bumper

Use pieces of old carpet nailed to post. Even better put padding on the post and cover with the carpet. It seems to work. Dick

 

[BillCat30tr]

Cheap Bumpers

I have seen people use those foam "Noodles" that they sell for swimming pools. They are about 2" in diamiter and about 5' long. Pretty cheap also!

 

[robert taylor]

three solutions

our marina replaces the fire hoses on the docks every so often. last time i checked, they had a lot of the recently replaced stuff just for tennents to use. second solution, is that west marine sells several different sizes of dock bumpers. they are closed cell foam surrounded by fire hose material. they have heavy grommets in them to attach to a pilling vertically. option 3 is to use 220 wet sand paper to clean off the rub rail. it is very quick and does not harm the rail. it also helps to prevent future mildew by allowing some air to penetrate the surface.

 

[John]

Carpet samples

I have been able to purchase carpet sample pads (square samples that they toss out after a spell) from carpet stores for one dollar a piece. They work great for a varitey of jobs needing padding or bumper material. You can glue them/staple them, punch holes and fasten nylon line to tie them to docks etc. good luck.

 

[Jim G]

Noodles

I'm one of those that went to swimming pool 'noodles' to protect the boat from a post I regularly hit on exitting the slip. I bought a few at about 1$ each, cut them in half then strapped them around the post with big tie-raps. They seem to last despite my abuse. An added benefit is that it's not hard to find my slip, even in the dark with the splash of color that they make. Jim G.