General Boating Articles

When you entrust your boat to a marina, their trained staff know how to winterize your boat. Be sure that you put safety first, when attempting to winterize the motor(s) yourself. Carbon Monoxide is a silent killer.

In this series of newsletters, we are assuming that you have hired a marina to haul out your boat. The jobs we discuss are the ones that most marinas don’t necessarily do and that you the owner, can do.

Clean Bottom Plus....

Wash the bottom of the boat as soon as possible after it’s hauled, so that the algae and other growth on the bottom is fresh and soft--not all dried out and stuck like cement. It takes a lot less time and muscle when it is still wet and fresh. A pressure washer is the easiest way to knock it all off. Second best is a long handled brush, a hose and your favorite all purpose soap. Not only scrub the bottom, but also the exterior drive system components, transducers, thru-hulls, the works.

Before the marina hauls and winterizes your boat, there are many jobs that you, the boat owner, can perform. Most marinas will look after the motors and water systems, but they won’t do some of these more detailed jobs.

Protect your cushions and mattresses

If your cockpit upholstery has been damp during the last few weeks, lift it up off the seat foundations, stand it on end, drain it, expose to the sun and the wind. If your upholstery is going to stay aboard after haul out, go back to the boat after the marina has finished winterizing it to stand the cushions and mattresses on their side and lean them separately against the cockpit sides. This will provide good ventilation around them. There are always lots of warm days during the fall that will draw the moisture out of them, if there is good air circulation.

Before the marina hauls and winterizes your boat, there are many jobs that you, the boat owner, can perform. Most marinas will look after the motors and water systems, but they won’t do some of these more detailed jobs.

Make a List

Doug has just finished filing hundreds more brochures to our collection. Now we have thousands catalogued in our library. Since the 1950’s, Doug and Brenda have been gathering brochures-one of each. You can see the complete list at http://www.boatingwithdawsons.com/brochures/azbrochures.html . To keep the collection in tact, we scan boat models and email jpeg or pdf files for a small fee.

For years, people from around the world have been requesting brochure pages for various reasons:

Doug and Brenda Dawson have just returned from two weeks of boating in the Bahamas.

They were pleased to meet so many Loopers who had done the Great Circle Tour and were now in the Abacos.

America's Great Loop is the continuous waterway that circumnavigates the eastern portion of North America - along the Atlantic seaboard, across the Great Lakes, through the inland rivers, and around the Gulf of Mexico. It is sometimes referred to as the Great Circle Route.

Do your flares need replacing or are you just going to get some new ones and add them to the existing flares on board? If so, you may want to think twice about it.

Before you race out and just grab what’s on your marine store’s shelf, consider the following.

Boat sales (power and sail) are already spectacular this year according to reports from the major Boat Shows.

"The trends have the potential to make 2006 the beginning of an incredible era in the marine industry" says Boating Industry Magazine Feb 13, 2006.

"Robust sales at the 2006 Toronto International Boat Show are expected to resonate through the entire season". "The combination of low interest rates and memories of last year’s fantastic season, put people in a mood to buy. "These quotes are from Boating Industry Canada Feb 7, 2006.

If you did everything right when you put your boat away for the winter, you don’t need to read any further.

However, if you are like most of us, you probably noticed a few problems that you thought could be dealt with later. Well, guess what now IS later and you have a second chance.

Everyone knows the procedure for obtaining a driver’s license to drive a car. After studying the rules of the road, you are required to pass a written exam, then a practical behind-the-wheel, on-the-road test.

It’s a little different for boating. You study the rules of the water and pass a written exam. There is no practical on-the-water lessons nor proficiency testing.