Leave boat in water overnight???

[castone001]

Similar to my splash guard question.....
anyone leave thier jet boat in the water, anchored or tied to a dock overnight? Can you actually sleep?
I am thinking about it when I am out at Bullhead this comeing weekend. There is a dock at the house im renting on the river. Just not sure if its a good idea?
Thoughts?

[riverbound]

I left mine in the water all the time. and my cousins boat (72 cheetah) has been in the water for almost 2 months straight tied up to the dock. he runs it almost every day though. but there are tiems where he has left it in the water for a week and not ran it once. invest in an automatic Bilge.

[n8dawg]

I left mine in at Lost Lake but only because there's a lagoon that is sheltered from the current. I also leave it in the water when I go to San Antonio, and thats because my tent is right next to the water.
With the current up there in bullhead, I would take mine out every night.
There's my .02

[Fire on the Water]

know what your boat takes on in the bilge per guestimate per hour. I went with an auto bigle, harder on the battery but a little more piece of mind.

[BadBahner]

know what your boat takes on in the bilge per guestimate per hour. I went with an auto bigle, harder on the battery but a little more piece of mind.
I leave my boat in the water all the time even in the current. I have a good permanent mooring and a good auto bilge. My bilge pump is not hard on the battery at all. In fact mine is more efficient because is uses a float switch and only runs when the water raises the float. Some pumps run every 2 seconds and if there is water then it pumps it out - if not it shuts off for 2 seconds and repeats.
Eric

[Wicked Performance Boats]

I leave my boat in the water all the time even in the current. I have a good permanent mooring and a good auto bilge. My bilge pump is not hard on the battery at all. In fact mine is more efficient because is uses a float switch and only runs when the water raises the float. Some pumps run every 2 seconds and if there is water then it pumps it out - if not it shuts off for 2 seconds and repeats.
Eric
If you have an automatic pump AND a good mooring, it's ok BUT if you don't feel comfortable with it in , take it out. Budlight

[Cas]

I leave my boat in the water all the time even in the current. I have a good permanent mooring and a good auto bilge. My bilge pump is not hard on the battery at all. In fact mine is more efficient because is uses a float switch and only runs when the water raises the float. Some pumps run every 2 seconds and if there is water then it pumps it out - if not it shuts off for 2 seconds and repeats.
Eric
I have the same type and they do work great. You just need to make sure there is nothing in the bilge that may cause the float switch from turning off. I had a leaf in the bilge that held the float up just enough to keep the bilge running. Had it been at night, the bilge would have run the battery dead and who knows how much water would have come in. Just another little item to keep an eye on.

[wrenchdaddy]

I never leave mine in, I saw 3 boats get beached when a storm came up in the middle of the night, it wasn't real big just windy, and in the morning those 3 boats weren't even touching the water. Plus mine takes on some water and I just don't feel comfortable with it out there. I know it likes to be on the trailer tucked under the cover at night, lol.

[3 daytona`s]

I live on the river here in Bullhead,tie the boat by the bow let it float free will have to be constant bad wake action to cause you trouble.My concern is the dropping of the water level over night.I`ve seen boats in the rocks before.If a ramp is close load it every idiot in the West will be on the water over the 4th.

[Captain Assin' Off]

I go overboard on almost everything that has to do with loss prevention, here's what I did, it's easy, works like crazy, and is reliable;
Grab a hot lead, ampacity does not matter, get a cheap car alarm horn, wire it hot, and run the cold lead to a rule auto switch, mount it on an L bracket, on top of your stringer, in the engine area, run the switched side to battery cold. If the switch gets raised, it yelps so "F"ing loud, you can hear it from a mile away, also, while you are running, if you are taking on water, you will be notified.
As a note, I parrelleled an oil pressure switch on the same circuit, so if I lose oil pressure, I get the same alarm. A quick glance at the oil gauge lets me know the problem. Do it cuz it works!

[SmokinLowriderSS]

Lowrider spends nights anchored offshore is no bad weather is expected. I did this before upgrading to an auto-bilge pump last year.

[GunninGopher]

I always prefer to leave the boat in the water, but I've never had one worth over $10,000 either. I'd rather come off the water and relax than hassel with the crowds and etc.
I have two tips with storys behind them that you probably would rather not read:
If you are anchored, have a good anchor:
Last spring break was the first trip on my current jet. We were at Parker and I used a flute anchor for the first couple of nights but knew that it wasn't set well and wasn't sleeping good. I had the stern tied to shore so I knew it wasn't going far, and the beach wasn't crowded. Both mornings the anchor had slipped and the boat was lightly against the shore, still pointing out. I was having nightmares and everything about losing the boat so I went and bought a box anchor and set it on the evening of the first night and slept well for the next 4 nights. That box anchor stuck like I had tied off to a 10 ton rock. I'd never had that much problem with a flute anchor before, but that thing is riding pine from now on.
Have an automatic bilge pump:
On my first jet I didn't have an automatic pump, but the boat was really dry so I never worried about it. I came out one morning and it had sunk. Luckily the water had come down and I had about 1" of transom above the water. I turned on the pump, floated it, changed the oil and battery and was on the river by 10:00. I had logs and there was a small leak in where the logs connected to the tubes to the flappers.
I bought an autopump for the next trip.

[AZKC]

Gota have an auto pump my boat should have sunk years ago :crossx:

[GunninGopher]

Oh yeah,
This may sound stupid, but don't forget to take the bimini down. I've seen people leave them up.
It is a big sail if the winds come up.

[Dan Lorenze]

We also rent a river front place in Bullhead from time to time. I just left my boat in the water there for 4 days and had no problems with taking on water or theft. Like others have said, it all depends on how much water your boat takes on. As far as someone breaking into your boat during the night, I would tend to think that it's safer on the water than out on the street where little tweakers roam around, I think that it takes more effort to sneak on to someone's property and walk down the dock to steal valuables than having someone access your boat from the front of the house. If they want to pull your plug (s) it would take some effort on someone's part to get in the water and pull them, I think tweakers are more interested in your valuables than vandalism in Bullhead.
Most docks in that area take a good beating during the daytime, especially the two London Jets that go by once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Make sure your boat is secure, away from the dock using poles as standoffs and use bumpers to keep your boat off the dock.
I'll bet you'll have a tough time sleeping the first night but it's sure nice not having to go through the lauching drill twice a day...
Have fun.....
Dan

[NoGoSlo]

I always leave mine in the water. Just came back from two weeks at Parker, with no problems. I have an automatic bilge pump and use a fluke anchor. :cool:

[GunninGopher]

I always leave mine in the water. Just came back from two weeks at Parker, with no problems. I have an automatic bilge pump and use a fluke anchor. :cool:
I have a 35' line with 5' of heavy chain on the end, but the flute wouldn't stick into the hard mud. The water was 8'-10' deep. I think the flutes are better for sand and loose mud/silt, but not hard stuff, unless you can bury them by hand or stick it under a big rock.
I tried swimming down to set it several times, but just couldn't stay down long enough to getr done. It was cold, too. The box anchor worked like a champ in the same conditions. I was impressed. Now I have both.