Problem with my slip??

JRacer · Jun 21, 2013

Depends on how the slips were constructed. If you have fingers (walkways) on either side of the boat, there could be a horizontal bar that connects the finger on the port with the finger on the starboard to give the fingers structure to keep them from twisting and being unstable when you walk on them. You might be able to tell if there is steel structure that runs down into the water at the end of each finger. If so, odds are that there is a bar connecting those structures. Ours are built that way and the clearance is about 5 feet in general, we also have some that have a "V" bar that runs horizontal for a bit then has a V in the center to give extra depth in the middle of the slip.

Chris Patterson · Jun 22, 2013

I think that I want the owner to be able to accommodate my boat. If they were unable to do that, somebody else can.

I wouldn't buy a house where the ceilings are only 5 1/2 feet high..

THECUSCUS · Jun 22, 2013

Silly question here, but how deep is your slip? Backing out with the swing keel down will not let it kick up, but it will dig in.

finding41 · Jun 22, 2013

I rise my DB when I'm tied up. It lets the boat rock a bit more and if there is a catastrophic water release from the reservoir I won't bust a DB. I've seen the water drop 1.5' in a few hours.
At my dock the water is about 1' deep at the bow and 8' at the stern. About the same slope as the hill I have to walk down to get to the boat.

Merlin Clark · Jun 22, 2013

As a former Navy and commercial diver, I can tell you that you can find anything in the water that you can find on land.
Chairs, BBQs, drums, engines, trees, even found a washing machine and dryer in a Mass lake one time.
Definitely poke around with a boat hook first and if it's something to big to haul out yourself or heaped up dirt/ sand the marina should take care of it.

Brian D · Jun 22, 2013

And by all means, if not done so or offered yet, speak to the marina manager and ask them to survey the bottom at your slip. There must be something submerged there.

tkanzler · Jun 22, 2013

I always pull the centerboard up at least half-way when pulling into my slip, and I leave the rudders uncleated once in the marina so they can kick up with no risk. Since the CB is deeper than the rudders, and is the first thing into the slip, I can tell by feel when the lake gets low how much water is under there, and I only drop the keel enough to have some control when backing out.

I'm not suggesting you ignore what's under there, and I think you should ask the marina manager what it is in case it's a hard bit of structure that isn't going to move, but do realize that you don't usually need the full CB depth for any normal docking maneuvers. I get away with what amounts to a deep skiff keel and one rudder with my boat, and it's got nothing but wind area (high free board) to get pushed around by, though I did rig a bridle to keep me off the neighbor's boat when the winds are too much.

StinkBug · Jun 22, 2013

We are all lucky that we can bring up our centerboards, but what if it were a fixed keel boat? Seems to me any marina with slips big enough for our boats should have enough depth for a normal fixed keel of the same size.

Squidd · Jun 22, 2013

Not neccessarily.... the deeper ones on the end of the dock go to the full/fixed keel boats and the shallower ones mid and near shore go to the CBers and stinkpots...

When I transient slip they always ask length, beam and draft...as I'm sure they did with the OP.

dlandersson · Jun 22, 2013

If you get tired of the problem - I'll buy your boat.

Ross · Jun 22, 2013

maybe another boat.

Pat · Jun 22, 2013

Roadking Larry said:
I've got a Macgregor 26S.
I've recenty discovered a problem at my slip. While backing out I seem to get "hung up" on something. The first couple times I thought I was just dragging a fender on the side of the dock. Tonight I started with the same problem but I was hung hard. I had to pull back into the slip and raise my keel to get out of the slip.
It seems that there is something underwater that is hanging me up. I'm new to the whole slip rental thing. I'm going to fish around with my boat hook tomorrow and see if i can figure it out before I contact the marina manager.
What should kind of action should I expect from the marina in response to this?
I've been in the slip less than a month now.

I'm guessing the slip fingers are supported w/a horizontal bar for stability..
I believe you may want to raise the centerboard/keel if possible. See if that
helps.

Claude L.-Auger · Jun 23, 2013

At my club, the fingers are held by a chain hooked to a rail car wheel that gets buried in the bottom. No problem however when the water level does change as in your case, if the wheel is misplaced towards the center of your slip space, the chain will get in the way. Fishing down with a pole will let you find the chain if it's the case. and the marina will need to reposition the weight.

TLW · Jun 23, 2013

No mention has been made of "type" of dock. All discussion of water level is moot if you have floating docks. And you are in the state that is home to one of the largest and most respected floating dock manufacturers - Atlantic-Meco. I do know of Meco systems with individual slips (i.e. a finger on each side of your boat) the employ a crossbar at the end of the fingers. Centerboard boats have a draft much deeper than many fin keel boats - the trade-off for having much less draft when raised. I think it is reasonable to expect centerboard boats to raise the board somewhat when entering a slip. That's one of the reasons you have it.

Crazy Dave Condon · Jun 24, 2013

The advice given to check the construction of the slip could be a horizontal bar. There is never a dumb question when asking about safety in my books to people and boats.

There is one marina where I use to place boats at when I was a dealer and now retired. I would tell those with swing keels to bring up the keel to avoid the bar at the entrance to the slip and then put the keel back down. Why? The keel if heavy and with the age of the boat of course is a factor to take into consideration. If the cable is worn out, it may be ready to go and if a heavy swing keel should the cable break will come down hard and damage boats. In some cases, the damage caused the boat to sink . I have always advocated in swing keel boats to lower the keel back down when in the slip to avoid the above situation as a safety issue.

NotCook · Jun 24, 2013

Some floating docks have cables or chains crisscrossed out from the end of the dock in an attempt to keep the cable away from the slip. If the water is high the cable could be taut, whereas when the water is lower, it might hang down and out of the way.

Problem with my slip??

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