I have a slightly sloped drive way where I store my H23 over the winter in Wisconsin. In the past, I have just cranked the tongue wheel up as high as it would go, put cement blocks for the tongue to rest on, tarped the boat, blocked the rear wheels, and waited until spring. Somehow, snow and rain still blows in past, up under, or around the tarp. In the spring, there is about 2” of water at the most forward part of the cockpit. This year I plan to raise the tongue high enough so that the water that gets past the tarp, drains out the cockpit drain. I have not put a plumb on it yet, but I think I will end up with the tongue almost 3’ off the ground to accomplish this. I will have to put the front wheel on several stacked cement blocks, crank it up and then use more blocks in the front to rest the tongue on for the winter. I am concerned that getting the tongue this high may be a foolish move. I welcome any comments or advice before I do it. Thanks, Bill Leathen
Storing the boat on a sloped drive way
- Thread starter Bill Leathen
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Is there any possibility of getting the trailer parked with the tongue on the high side of the slope?
Unless "slightly sloped" means suitable for downhill ski races, I think you may be over-doing it. Try setting it up with just a few degrees of aft slope, as measured on the cockpit sole. The quick and easy test being to put water in the cockpit and see if it runs aft to the drain. That should also be sufficient to drain any water off the slider. By the way, it sounds like good time to work on stern anchoring systems.
Jim Kolstoe, h23 Kara's Boo
Jim Kolstoe, h23 Kara's Boo
3 feet in 30 feet is a 10% grade. Kinda steep! However, I would not worry about water in the cockpit at all. If you are truly worried, jack the trailer up, take the tires off, and leave the trailer on jackstands set lower than the normal height. I would also not use the bow wheel at full extension, but instead use blocks of some sort directly on the tounge of the trailer.
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