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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

General Sailing Forum

Is my boat okay on the trailer.....for a YEAR!!

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nate
Navigator

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240 Posts

Initially Posted - 11/16/2004 : 22:23:20

There is a chance that we will not launch our boat next season and she will continue sitting in the driveway. I have taken everything off the boat and stored it indoors. My concern is having the boat sit on the trailer for so long. I've been checking the tire pressure on the trailer and they seem fine with the occasional top off of air. Would it be better to jack the trailer with 4 jacks positioned at the axles to take the stress off the tires. I could distribute the weight on some boards to keep the jacks for digging into the driveway. Any thoughts?

Nate Adams
C25 #5695 WK/SR/Trad
"Heeling Properties"

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ClamBeach
Master Marine Consultant

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3072 Posts

Response Posted - 11/16/2004 : 22:45:24

IMHO it wouldn't hurt to jack the trailer up, and take the wheels off.. or at least cover them up so they don't weather check.

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Leon Sisson
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1893 Posts

Response Posted - 11/16/2004 : 23:27:21

Speaking as someone who has in the past had sailboats on trailers at my house for up to a year at a time, here are my thoughts.

Know your local ordinances regarding boats stored on trailers, and try not to annoy the nieghbors. (That's the voice of hindsight there!

) A huge blue poly tarp tied around the whole thing would do wonders to protect it from the ravages of weather, but there may be asthetic issues to contend with...

As for jack stands, I like to put them at the major intersections of the trailer frame. It not only takes some load off the tires and undercarriage, it also stablizes the rig, and allows you to precisely level the boat to shed rain. Plywood pads under the stands are OK for a few months, but need to be checked for deterioration after that. I've also had good results with SOLID (not hollow) concrete blocks.

Covering the trailer tires to prevent damage from sunlight is a very good idea (which I plan to start doing one of these days...). The RV supply stores can provide fitted tire covers or you could sew your own from Sunbrella, but I've also seen people use old jackets. Nothing says frugal yachtsman quite like a mismatched assortment of camoflage, plaid, and faded denim jackets stretched over the wheels with the sleeves tied together where the axle grease oozes out of the inner wheel bearing seals.

Make provision for avoiding standing rain water in the bilges. Any bilge water raises the cabin humidity, and encourages mold and mildew. Automatic bilge pumps can't get it completely dry. When rain was collecting in my boat, here's what I did. This may sound nuts but, I drilled a couple holes in the hull at the lowest points. Seriously. They don't have to be big holes. Even 1/4" will do the trick. It's easy to seal the holes later with either SS or bronze machine screws and bedding compound, or plug them with reinforced epoxy. (Just don't forget to!)

Protect your exterior teak from the sun. This would be a good time to remove it all, tape over or otherwise seal the holes, take the teak indoors, and refinish it at your leasure.

Maintain your batteries. I suggest either a smart charger or solar panel(s). Check the electrolyte levels every month or two as required.

Remember to check on the boat freqently. Climbing up into the cabin for a few minutes every week or so can allow you to minimize the damage that can be caused by infestations of mold, bugs, rodents, kids, and other vermin.

-- Leon Sisson

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nate
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240 Posts

Response Posted - 11/17/2004 : 07:06:15

The boat has been dry as a bone due to be wrapped up tight under a couple heavy grey tarps. I check the bilges and the lockers periodicly to ensure they are dry. As I mentioned, there is nothing really left on the boat that can mold/mildew or be a home to little varmits.
The battery is off the boat and on a "smart charger". The outboard has been "pickled" and is in the shed safe and sound.
No worries about neigboors...I checked when we moved in and they were cool with the boat being there.
I will jack the frame and take the load off the tires. Maybe Santa will bring me some nice tire covers for X-mas.
I hate to see my baby sitting unused but it beats the thought of selling her after doing so much work over the last few years.

Edited by - nate on 11/17/2004 07:10:17

bear
Admiral

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USA
909 Posts

Response Posted - 11/17/2004 : 07:39:03

Nate, I have covered the four tires on my trailer with black plastic lawn and leaf bags the last three years during the winter months. Seems to work out fine and its a nice fit.

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lcharlot
Master Marine Consultant

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Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 11/17/2004 : 08:26:24

There is one other adverse consequence to long-term storage on a trailer - stress cracking. Since the trailer does not uniformly support the hull, the gel coat is likely to develop cracks in various areas, most commonly around the front of the cockpit coaming where it merges with the cabin bulkhead. Catalina 22's and 25's are notorious for developing a regular spiderweb of gelcoat cracks there if they are trailered for any length of time. When I bought #5857 last year, she was clean as a whistle, not a crack to be found anywhere, since the boat had spent her entire life in a slip (the PO didn't even own a trailer for the boat). Now, after 8 months of dry storage on the trailer at Folsom Lake, the boat has gelcoat cracks on both sides of the cockpit coaming right at the bulkhead. I suggest you aquire a pair of boat jack stands and place them all the way aft, to support the very back of the hull under the cockpit unless your trailer bunks extend back there (and I'll guess that they don't).

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Happy D
Admiral

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921 Posts

Response Posted - 11/17/2004 : 17:39:32

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"> There is one other adverse consequence to long-term storage on a trailer - stress cracking.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
My boat has been on the trailer for 10 years. This probably explains the 4,000,000 cracks in the gelcoat.

I talked to a tire guy about exactly this and he said to remove the wheels from the trailer, let the air out of them, and lay them flat on the floor, indoors.

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