Land Locked Boat

[dmjr]

What if a boat becomes land locked? How can it be moved with out causing damage? Currently I have a customer whos lower unit is hitting bottom with it all the way up.

[brk-lnt]

Probably depends on where it is, how far it would need to go, etc.

[michael c]

Of course it all depends upon where it is and if it is now landlocked because the lake is down so much ...from what I am thinking, I would go to home depot or Lowes and buy 4 -5 cedar fence posts ,,the thicker the better. put one right under the bow and roll it a foot or two then add another log until you use them all .of course as they come out from the stern as you push ,the first log that became the last and now becomes the first again .Of course it all depends on location ...
Mike

[Rattlesnake Guy]

When I was a newbie, I once got myself stuck on a sand bar. What worked for us that day was having the family move to the front of the deck boat, which lifted the back enough for me to back out. Nothing was damaged but my ego. Don't tell anyone.

[Captain Zipper]

Darn it.............

3 options......

1) put a fat person in the bow and see if it raises the rear just enough to clear the rocks and yet the bow still clears too. What is the distance to deep water?

2) Are you a sea tow member? See if they are willing to use the float bags like they did for the sunken boat......one or two on each side with a bit of air might do the trick

Now number 3 is a bit tricky

3) Put some gas on a rag......open your fuel cap and insert......light the rag on fire.........get back quick...........cover your ears............you can now easily remove all the pieces of your boat from the water.











I was kidding...........don't really try the third one!

CZ

[upthesaukee]

I can tell you that if you are on a sandy bottom, and not marooned high and dry, a pull from someone like Towboat US can get you back floating. Of course, not wanting to have a problem again in a week, I decided that discretion was the better part of valor, and pulled my boat out. It was not easy to get off the sand, and I had between 1 and two feet of water at the stern, and about a foot at the bow. Thank goodness for the Towboat US service !!!!!!

[George]

If the boat is sitting on the sand, dig out the sand directly under the outdrive so you can put it down. start the engine tie the boat secure so it will not move forward and put it in gear forward at dead idle speed. Let it run that way untill it blows out the sand behind the boat. If that is not enough to move the boat to deeper water keep moving the boat to the rear and blow yourself out a channel until you are free. Doesn't take long to do.

[Airwaves]

Let me make the assumption that the vessel is too big to be trailered?

If the boat is trailerable then move a trailer into place, secure the trailer under the boat and have a tow truck wench the trailer and boat out keeping a sharp eye on the lower unit.

Beyond doing what George is sugggesting since I'd be concerned about sucking up sand and muck into the cooling system, you might try a winter fan that is normally used to keep docks clear of ice. Use it to 'dig' a trench into deeper water by pointing the fan into the sand, blowing the sand away and walking.

If those things failing, a friend of mine had this problem in the channel of Gov's Isle a number of years ago when the water dropped before he expected. He ended up having to leave his cruiser in the water all winter and he surrounded it with fans to keep the area free of ice. Vigilance is needed if you have to go this route.

Let us know what happens and good luck.

[Kamper]

Remove as much weight as possible. Be careful not to upset the trim though because you will have a bigger problem if it rolls over. So start at the top and work your way down.

As suggested above, adjusting the weight/balance may help too. I'd probably start with this since it's the easiest job to do.

Good luck!

[Weirs guy]

My neighbor used the "several drinking buddies in the water" technique yesterday with good results.

[Kamper]

Originally Posted by Weirs guy

... "several drinking buddies in the water" ...

Hmm.. How much beer did it take to float the boat?

[KBoater]

The FL solution is a combination of all of the above plus

1) Wait for the tide while enjoying the food and drink on board.

2) Off load the boat by throwing your passengers in to the 18" of water around the boat and have them all push.

3) Use an anchor throw to pull yourself off and hope

4) Get a friend to tow you off.

5) When all else fails open the beer and Call Sea Tow

[idigtractors]

Originally Posted by Kamper

Hmm.. How much beer did it take to float the boat?

The question is, how much did it take to get him there.

[Rattlesnake Guy]

Originally Posted by George

If the boat is sitting on the sand, dig out the sand directly under the outdrive so you can put it down. start the engine tie the boat secure so it will not move forward and put it in gear forward at dead idle speed. Let it run that way untill it blows out the sand behind the boat. If that is not enough to move the boat to deeper water keep moving the boat to the rear and blow yourself out a channel until you are free. Doesn't take long to do.

I think the DES dredge permits are available on line. I don't think you are going to beat the ice.

[tis]

LOL RG, I hardly l think so! Probably not even next summer! And to think after next April everyone has to get a BUILDING permit from the state!!!

[Rattlesnake Guy]

Originally Posted by tis

LOL RG, I hardly l think so! Probably not even next summer! And to think after next April everyone has to get a BUILDING permit from the state!!!

What next year, I had to get a permit from the state this year to build stairs. That permit included a study of impact to any endangered species that my stairs would create. I figured they could use the stairs if they really wanted to. Same permit next year (minimum impact) is $200. I think everything within 250 feet of shore from cutting a tree to building anything will require a permit and more importantly a fee.

Born in a red state, living in a purple state, probably die in a blue state.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by dmjr

What if a boat becomes land locked? How can it be moved with out causing damage? Currently I have a customer whos lower unit is hitting bottom with it all the way up.

Borrow a pair of 17-foot kayaks and sink them on either side. Run a pair of slings from their bows and sterns underneath the customer's boat, then pump out the kayaks. Wait for a boat wake (or make one), and "bump-out" your landlocked boat.

[tis]

Do you stairs lead to the lake? What I meant was getting the building permit for a house or remodel or whatever from the state rather than the town. All permits on water for anything will be from the state, what a joy!

[Kamper]

Originally Posted by Acres per Second

Borrow a pair of 17-foot kayaks and sink them ...

In theory, pontoons or floats would work the way you suggested but kayaks might not be the best choice of tool for this job. Most of them have floation voids that cannot be accessed without making a hole in a partition. At $300 and way up, I cant imagine any intelligent person wanting to risk their investment for this purpose.

Better to use barrels or salvage/lift bags to increase the bouyancy. Maybe even a huge net bag loaded with basketballs.

[Skipper of the Sea Que]

Originally Posted by dmjr

What if a boat becomes land locked? How can it be moved with out causing damage? Currently I have a customer whos lower unit is hitting bottom with it all the way up.

Trying to think outside the box.

What about lifting it a few inches and floating it by AIR. That is, helium filled balloon(s). the location of the balloons depends on the type of boat.

A balloon in the engine compartment and another in the cabin? Or, attaching the balloons to the boat lift rings. Or maybe fashioning sling(s) under the boat tied to the the helium balloon(s). The idea would be to lift the boat an inch or two rather than using air bags to float the boat higher.

Maybe Mac can do the math and let us know if a few weather balloons and a tank of helium could lift the boat an inch or two. Wonder if the upper decks could support the lift of helium balloons if they were in a cabin or engine compartment...

I reason that a few extra people on board lowers your boat a few inches. Removing those few people lets the boat rise a few inches. The helium balloon (at the Weirs last season) is large and lifted several people at a time up over 100 feet. So, a floating balloon much smaller than the one pictured, may provide adequate lift to get your still floating boat up an inch or three.



Just a thought. Good luck and let us know how you solve the problem.

[Rattlesnake Guy]

I am in the market for some low mileage swim platform floats if you are interested in the float her out concept. Maybe we could work something out.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Kamper

"...In theory, pontoons or floats would work the way you suggested but kayaks might not be the best choice of tool for this job..."

OK, two borrowed canoes then. A used 17' aluminum canoe shouldn't cost over $300, displaces a lot of water, and the risk is minimal anyway. (My two kayaks have inflatable—and removable—flotation bags).

Depending on the size of this landlocked boat, you could lash 2x6s under the canoes—catamaran-fashion—then bail them out using a sump pump. (Or invert them, and use air).

If there's any "V" to this boat's hull, any tilting effect would increase the lower unit's clearance with respect to the bottom.

[Kamper]

Originally Posted by Acres per Second

... —then bail them out using a sump pump. (Or invert them, and use air). ...

I think the inversion and inflation would be more possible. Getting the load balanced would (imo) be simpler by putting a little air in each side than partially pumping out a swamped shell. Never mind that you might be fighting in-flow over the gunnels.

Lashing them to a couple cross members or straps, under the "victim" would help spread the load, either way. It sounds like they only need a few inches clearances to make the escape.

dmjr, maybe you should should check with MistyBlue to see if there are any of those barrels left.

http://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums/...ead.php?t=5071

[Rattlesnake Guy]

DMJR,
How is it going? Have you fixed the problem? What did you do?

[John A. Birdsall]

two maybe three years ago the lake had a bad storm and my boat sank. I got the boat nosed into the boat house and took a pipe and comealongs and raised the rear end of the boat. that and a pump finally got the boat afloat. The biggest surprise was that the battery was still good, and nothing happened to the outboard. but the seats were wet. It was about this time of year also. So their was not much water in the boat house and with a pump I could raise it slowly.

[dmjr]

I want to let you know that I was able to sucessfully get the customers boat moved with out incident, used a jet ski and pulled it out and placed it in another slip that was deeper.

[Captain Zipper]

otherwise I'd hate to see the bottom of the hull.

Without seeing the conditions first hand, I would have used the drunken friends.......slow but sure.

I wish you had filmed it..........

Glad you got it off.

CZ