DefectiveDave Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 I'm considering sub-letting an unused boat lift for next season rather than trailering my boat to the lake. However, for that approach to be economical I need an affordable and transportable boat lift solution. This will be an open boat slip, so any lift solution needs to either mount directly to the dock or float. I've done some research into the ballofspray archives and so far the best solution to my problem that I've found is the airdock. I can get one to fit the ski nautique for around $2k. Are the ballers here aware of any other options which are affordable and easy to breakdown for transportation? Also, does anyone have any experience with the airdock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAJ0004 Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 A friend of mine has one. It has worked very well for several years now. The other possibility is get a stand alone boat lift like a shorestation, or shoremaster, or Hewitt. There is a device called boat lift helper which you can use move it. boatlifthelper.com My brother has one.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefectiveDave Posted January 21, 2014 Author Share Posted January 21, 2014 @GAJ0004, Thanks for the info. Any idea how long it takes your friend with the airdock to drop the boat and lift it again when done? My only real concerns with the airdock are reliability and the amount of time it takes to load and unload a boat. You've answered my reliability concern. :-) Unfortunately I think the shorestation, shoremaster, and Hewitt may be out of my price range. The manual models clock in at around $2700, and adding in the boat lift helper brings it to around $4000. I wish I could afford something that nice at the moment (electric would be even better), but it'll have to wait for another year, hehe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inland Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Have you thought about buying a used one? I bought mine used for $1300. Something to think about. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xrated Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 boat lift helper? I thought that was called cold beer for friends? Guess I have been undercharging for my lift moving skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldjeep Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Down side to the airdocks is that it makes it tough to keep the bottom of the boat clean. There are several where my FIL used to dock his boat, and they are really handy - go up and down pretty quick and they ran them off of a battery box (no idea how often they recharged) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefectiveDave Posted January 22, 2014 Author Share Posted January 22, 2014 @inland, I've been looking for used lifts around here and haven't found the right deal. Something might pop up tomorrow, but I need to either have the right deal in hand or find something commercial that fits my needs before I go in on the slip. Thus far the used lifts I've found in my area are in the $2k-3k range and nothing so far that looked like it would work with an inboard. I've been checking craigslist. @oldjeep, Do you mean that algae and such starts to grow when using the airdock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldjeep Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 Not so much stuff growing - I don't think, but just that the bottom is always sitting on a wet mat with lakewater on it so you get waterline staining like you do on boats that sit in the water all the time. On a lift you can at least wipe/wash everything except where the bunks are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller BraceMaker Posted January 22, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 22, 2014 Another point that many people miss. Water fluctuation - if you have lots the airdock is worth it. If you have medium - then the vertical style lifts work great - because they have long lift ranges. If you have low fluctuations - the cantilever style lifts work well, they have limited lift range in general, but because of the fact that the cable is not lifting the boat straight up they crank smooth. Another thing that is either good or bad is that boat lifts are often regionally available, in Michigan "harbor master" makes a fairly inexpensive, but more importantly simple and easy to crank lift. some brands like shorestation are distributed widely - but look for a good regional brand and you save several grand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I5boi Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 What does everyone prefer for bunk covers? We just have carpet on our lift. Is there something better that doesn't trap moisture, etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller RichardDoane Posted January 22, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 22, 2014 @defectivedave - spend the money, it's worth it not to have to haul the boat around, plus the time saved can be spent skiing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Not_The_Pug Posted January 22, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 22, 2014 Summit Marine uses a plastic/ploy type (softer than hard plastic) material on their bunks. Should last forever. As @richarddoane said, the only way to go is a lift, the time savings with just lowering the boat into water. Also don't look at the cost over just one year, amortize it over the number of years of use you will get and it looks a lot better. It took a while to convince the wife to go with one, but now she won't even go without one, we have had one for about 7 years now. I finally upgraded to a hydraulic on last year and will never go back to cable. I highly recommend checking out Summit Marine, well worth the expense and I don't think anyone else can touch their warranty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller DW Posted January 22, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 22, 2014 Harbor Master uses a pretty hard rubber, it works really well and is very durable & long lasting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefectiveDave Posted January 22, 2014 Author Share Posted January 22, 2014 @richarddoane, @Krlee, @BraceMaker, @oldjeep, I'm definitely excited to get a lift, I know I would save at least 40 minutes a day. Cumulative time saved over the season would be about 60 hours. I think portability and storage are my main concerns. I'll be leasing the slip, so I'll have to store it 4 months out of the year. As long as I'm in the $2k to $3k range on price, I think I can easily justify the cost. There seem to be plenty of options in this price range based on feedback I've gotten here. I was considering the hand-cranked lifts, and could probably work with one, but I have no idea what I would do with it in the off-season (stupid HOA rules). It also seems like it might be a bit of a pain to set up and take down during the offseason (even with the boat lift helper), whereas the airdock I could probably just throw in the back of the truck and store it in the building at home. Does anyone know how much the airdocks weigh dry? I think at this point I'm almost sold on the airdock given my constraints. If I'm able to work something out long term with respect to boat slip lease I might go with something more permanent like the vertical style lifts. But if I'm installing and uninstalling every year then the airdock currently seems like it might be a better choice for me. Does this seem prudent? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldjeep Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 I'd just call them up and ask for sure, but I can't see the bag weighing more than a couple hundred lbs at most and maybe 50 for the inflation box. After helping to remove my FILs shorestation and transport it 20 miles I can certainly agree with them being a huge pain to move around. Took 5 of us to get it out of the water and onto the trailer using all sorts of un desirable methods Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAJ0004 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 If you get a stand alone lift, get the cantilever style. You will have to replace a cable eventually. The vertical lifts usually have to be taken out of the water to change cables. The cantilever style you can change the cable without taking it out of the water, and easier to crank up. My friend who has the air dock had to replace one of the air chambers after several years. He is able to deflate it and roll it up like a sleeping bag and store it in his garage. It think it was the victim of a fisherman. I have a shore station vertical lift which has 4 cables. If the leveling cables fail I have to take the lift out to replace the. The winch and the lifting cables can be changed by removing the winch tube. I replace the winch cable every 5 years as a precaution which is the one that wears out due to being wrapped and unwrapped on a spool constantly. The airdock drops in less than 5 minutes. It has spots where you can attach weights that pull it down when you deflate the chambers. It does not keep your boat as clean as a lift, but it is better than leaving it in the water. My shorestation vertical lift is 29 years old it has been very reliable, but it is tough to crank up. I have replaced 3 of the 4 cables 3 times over the years, and the other every 5 years. If I had to put my lift in at a marina I would get the boat lift helper so it can be moved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefectiveDave Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 @GAJ0004, I hadn't considered the bassholes on the lake. There was an incident down here a few years ago where a fisherman attempted, or at least feigned to attempt, running over a skier. I wouldn't be surprised if one were to slice open an airdock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefectiveDave Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Here's the video, it's the same lake where I ski: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I72jJ4wor_w Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller foxriverat Posted January 25, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 25, 2014 Fisherman like to cast there lures next to the boat lifts for fish lurking underneath. I have found a few lures and line wrapped around my shorestation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller foxriverat Posted January 25, 2014 Baller Share Posted January 25, 2014 Fisherman like to cast there lures next to the boat lifts for fish lurking underneath. I have found a few lures and line wrapped around my shorestation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAJ0004 Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I would get a freestanding cantilever style lift and install the boat lift helper on it. It will cost you more initially, but I think it will save you more on your boat in the long run. If you are using your lift at a public marina you will be able to use the boat lift helper to move your lift around. You would however have to consider a lift that has a wheel kit available so you can move it around once you get it out of the water. Our lift including replacing of the cables has paid for itself many times over. My boat is 20 years old and still looks like new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAJ0004 Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I would get a freestanding cantilever style lift and install the boat lift helper on it. It will cost you more initially, but I think it will save you more on your boat in the long run. If you are using your lift at a public marina you will be able to use the boat lift helper to move your lift around. You would however have to consider a lift that has a wheel kit available so you can move it around once you get it out of the water. Our lift including replacing of the cables has paid for itself many times over. My boat is 20 years old and still looks like new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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