Annual Maintenence

This is my first post. I have a 22' Sun Deck in Barnegat Bay, NJ. I am a complete novice and bought this boat 5 years ago. Each year it costs over $1500 to pull the boat and store it for the winter and another $1800 to get it back in the water in the spring. (By the way, we used the boat exactly 2x last summer!) Are these costs within reason, or are they taking advantage of the fact that I am a single female with no clue? What are the minimum maintenance requirements each year? I really need to get these bills way down!!! Help!

The $1500 for pulling the boat, winterizing, storing, etc does not sound too bad. What are they doing in the spring for $1800? Do you keep it in a slip or trailer it?

Owning a boat is an expensive hobby/habit/addiction so I don't think they are taking advantage of your gender or marital status.

Regardless if the costs are reasonable, you need to ask yourself if using the boat 2x per year is cost effective for your financial situation. Only you can answer that question.

You may consider selling the boat in order to get your boating expenses down.

I am not being sarcastic...just honest.

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Tonka Boater said:

The $1500 for pulling the boat, winterizing, storing, etc does not sound too bad. What are they doing in the spring for $1800? Do you keep it in a slip or trailer it?

Owning a boat is an expensive hobby/habit/addiction so I don't think they are taking advantage of your gender or marital status.

Regardless if the costs are reasonable, you need to ask yourself if using the boat 2x per year is cost effective for your financial situation. Only you can answer that question.

You may consider selling the boat in order to get your boating expenses down.

I am not being sarcastic...just honest.

.

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Good points. Being a boat owner I am frequently asked questions about buying a boat. The first thing I tell someone interested in a boat is the expense does not end with the purchase. Slips fee, storage, maintenance, fuel, and other expenses quickly add up. The bigger the boat, the bigger the expenses, and even if you do your own work on it there will still be annual operating cost. There is some “rule of thumb” percentage of estimated operating cost of the boat per year verses purchase price, but I forgot what it is. Maybe someone else will chime in with it.

There are some things you can do to eliminate some of the cost you are having, can you trailer your boat and store on your own property? The thing is if you only use the boat twice a year, you are not getting any value for your money.

To me that spring commission sounds high. What exactly are they doing for that $1800?

Do you have a detailed list to share? I have found when people post up the details, everyone chimes in against the "fluff" items in it.

Youre a single female who only used it twice? Best way to meet good men: tell them you have a boat

Better (cheaper) way to get a boat: let them know you are a woman. A six pack or a bottle of wine helps too. :^o

Do the maintenance spec'd in the owner manual which you can probably download at searay.com.

I keep the boat in a slip I own. (That's how this all started: bought a condo that came with a slip.) I have no place to store a trailored boat since my town does not allow boats or trailers of any kind on private property. This is the spring detailed invoice:
Remove and sispose of shrink wrap $55
Wash, clean, wax hull $308
Bottom painting $352
Install Zincs 6@$14=$84
10059A Zinc Anode Kit $62.50
Reinstall batteries 2@37.50=$75
Recommisiion Engine $100
Outdrive Mounting Kit $10.50
Reinstall Canvas $120
Clean and Paint Outdrive $155
Service Outdrive $150
plus tax and misc. items

I don't even know what these things are, or even if I have 2 batteries. And what's a zinc?

You must be using a dealer. They overcharge out the ying-yang. It's not a gender thing. It's an "Are you dumb enough to pay this?" thing.

First. . .can you store the boat on your property? The local haulers (in yellow pages) in NJ would charge you $150 each way ($6.5/ft) to get the boat to/from your house. Figure another $20 for ramp fee. Might even be cheaper since a 22' shouldn't require a fancy hydraulic trailer for transport. Check your local town haul for zoning restrictions regarding boats on your lawn. My area allows ONE boat up to 28x10 in your yard, and every other house has a boat in the yard.

Shrink wrap (if you use it) should be $300-$500. Custom cover, maybe $1000? I seem to remember paying about $800 for yard storage of my sailboat which includes mast de-stepping and storage, as well as haulout/relaunch.

I use a local mechanic. Winterizing for twins runs $600-$800 (biggest line item is for oil changes). I would expect a single to cost about half. I had a similar bill for the spring (including drive pressure test, and storing the drives off site -> Replacing drive impellers would have added a few hundred. This also includes engine tune up)

Numbers look right to me, I trailer my 240 Sundeck. Marine Max has types of yearly maint. Year 1 it costs about 600 year 2 it costs $1200 year 3 should be the 600 cost again but I've not gotten that far. The Yearly maint, pulling the drive, changing all the fluids, etc is alot of labor. I can tell you just the parts are about $400-$500 then you add on the labor at $98 an hour and yo uget to that 1200 real quick, and I don't have to winterize.

Mickey said:

I keep the boat in a slip I own. (That's how this all started: bought a condo that came with a slip.) I have no place to store a trailored boat since my town does not allow boats or trailers of any kind on private property. This is the spring detailed invoice:
Remove and sispose of shrink wrap $55
Wash, clean, wax hull $308
Bottom painting $352
Install Zincs 6@$14=$84
10059A Zinc Anode Kit $62.50
Reinstall batteries 2@37.50=$75
Recommisiion Engine $100
Outdrive Mounting Kit $10.50
Reinstall Canvas $120
Clean and Paint Outdrive $155
Service Outdrive $150
plus tax and misc. items

I don't even know what these things are, or even if I have 2 batteries. And what's a zinc?

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Oh boy, I so wish you were MY client. Id sell you lightbulbs for $27.50 each :smt001

Just kidding of course, but others will chime in with experience on those items Im sure.

Reinstall canvas $120? Seems fluffy.

Recommission engine? I may be wrong, but in my boat, I put it in water and turn the key. Engine recommisioned. How do you spell recommissioned? Damn it.

Morpheus said:

Numbers look right to me, ....

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I agree with Morpheus.

The numbers do not look out of line given what is being done. This is the issue when you do absolutely nothing yourself. You dont even wax it yourself.

If you are only going to use the boat 2 times a year you may want to consider selling it.

Most of us here do at least some of the items on your list ourselves. Plus most of us use out boats much more the 2 times a year.

To answer your question “What is a zinc”
In simple terms, your outdrive is made out of metal. It can and does corrode. It’s expensive to replace.
If two dissimilar metals are in contact with each other, the less noble metal will sacrifice itself resulting in less corrosion of the noble metal.

So you replace anodes often to protect the outdrive.

Yup. You are using a dealer.
Only a dealer would charge $55 to remove shrinkwrap.

My first year, I talked to two marinas regarding services. One had a detailed quote for which included the $55 shrinkwrap removal and the $37 battery installation fee. The other yard refused to give prices. . .for items that they do 20 times per week. I bet your winter invoice has items like "power washing" ($200) and "Battery storage" (2x$50)

I am a bit surprised that your bill doesn't include "tune up". . .My guy replaces plugs (which get fouled with oil during winterization process) and distributor as routine.

You will see that some things are VERY easy to do yourself. . and you are getting charged $100/hr to have someone do it for you. Probably half of your bill is for items that you really should look to do yourself. And yeah.. . that is why the bills are so high. Maintenance by checkbook is always the most expensive maintenance.

The wash/wax/clean hull: $352? on a 22' that's probably 4 hours if you did it yourself, plus $40 in cleaners/wax, plus $150 for a nice porter-cable buffer (one time cost). Make sure the yard where you store the boat ALLOWS you to do this. If the yard does not permit you to clean the boat. . then you are dealing with the wrong yard (the type that charges you $55 to remove shrink wrap. . )

Install canvas: $120? To install the bimini? I do that every weekend. . takes 10 minutes (plus a friend). Another 10 minutes to put on the mooring cover. . in the dark, with the decks wet from washing. .

I think you need to find some friends who like boats. It will save you a PILE of money. You give a guy a beer. . he will install both batteries in about 10 minutes. Then you will probably go out to Water's edge and buy YOU a few beers

Yes. . you have zincs. They are "sacrificial" and prevent corrosion on the outdrive. They get replaced either every year, or every other year depending on corrossion.

Two batteries. Not standard (?). . .but a real nice extra if you lay out on the water with the stereo running for a few hours.

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I am with Presentation. You probably need to use the boat a bit more. . then some of this stuff will come naturally, and it won't seem so foreign. Or . .. sell the boat and get rid of the headache.

Hmmm. Condo on Barnegate Bay. . . Only a limited number of those

Yeah. . you need some friends to hang out with on the water. You can take some nice trips. Tice's shoal (At Island Beach State Park) (near parking area A-7) only draws about 3000 boats each weekend. You can then go ashore and walk to the beach!. F-Cove just past Mantaloking Bridge on the West side is another popular hangout spot. Not many places where you see 38' Dancers beached. . but that is the place. . . For the family hangout spot, you have Silver Bay, next to Cattus Park (off Fisher Blvd). Less crowds, but calm(ish) water. Real nice at sunset.

Watering holes: there are two places on Forked River which are OK. And of course there is Water's edge in Bayville.. . .(although, the anchorage is non-trivial). It seems like we are there 8 times a weekend. . .

Morpheus said:

Numbers look right to me, I trailer my 240 Sundeck. Marine Max has types of yearly maint. Year 1 it costs about 600 year 2 it costs $1200 year 3 should be the 600 cost again but I've not gotten that far. The Yearly maint, pulling the drive, changing all the fluids, etc is alot of labor. I can tell you just the parts are about $400-$500 then you add on the labor at $98 an hour and yo uget to that 1200 real quick, and I don't have to winterize.

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You might want to shop around.

Thank you. Now I don't feel so foolish- only that I was so naive when I bought the boat in the 1st place!

Thanks for all the input. Very helpful. Guess I just have to suck it up or DIY. No doubt using the boat more would make me feel better. Plenty of boating friends, but they all have bigger boats, so they just take me along! Now that's the way to go!

Don't feel foolish - but waxing with a friend can save you some money - my friend and I alternate waxing boats - it makes it go faster and have someone to chat with. I would put your canvas up yourself. But if you are only going to use the boat two times a year - get ready for your bills to start increasing from lack of use. You can rent a boat for a few days and save a bundle. But boat more often and the expenses seem less painful. I find DIY - is required - because most dealers don't handle things the way - I want them handled.

I think that is a fair "full service" price. Obviously you need to use the thing a lot more to justify that cost. I DIY the service on my boat, but I pay for a storage warehouse. Price tag on that is close to $4000/yr. Yikes, I need to start using that boat!

springer3 said:

I think that is a fair "full service" price. Obviously you need to use the thing a lot more to justify that cost. I DIY the service on my boat, but I pay for a storage warehouse. Price tag on that is close to $4000/yr. Yikes, I need to start using that boat!

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Hmm, your post made me think. For this size boat if you have a trailer and a tow vehicle you may want to shop around for indoor heated storage and not winterize at all. No shrink wrap either. OK put some stabilizer in the fuel. Leave the top on. This may end up costing less.

Indoor heated winter storage for this boat would be about $1200 by us.




I still think selling it is the way to go.

I don't have the annual bills handy, but in the NJ area, the winterization cost is not that severe as it includes oil change, drive maintenance, tune up, and a mechanic giving the boat the once over.

But you are now making ME think as well. I do the driveway routine. The hauler dude sets the boat up on blocks. . and there it sits till spring. I don't do shrinkwrap, because I am comfortable with Tarps (note: tarps are not zero maintenance through the winter).

I just got a quote for a winter cover (not a tarp) for my boat for $1500. A 22' would be less. Rule of thumb (per the canvas guy) is that the winter cover has a three year payback vs shrinkwrap. Probably better if a dealer is doing the wrapping.

But say you didn't want to shrink wrap OR get a proper cover. . .then putting the boat up on blocks in a rented garage might work. . .then the hauler dude just sets up the boat and BINGO! done. ($300 for hauling is much more cost effective than buying a trailer plus tow vehicle!)

Of course. . if you don't USE the boat -> none of this makes sense. Better to sell the boat and RENT the slip to someone. Better to let a FRIEND use the slip, and get "usage rights".

One thought on using your boat: You have an ideal "water toy" boat. Great for hauling tubes, quick joyriders, and hauling skiers. Using bigger boats really isn't ideal for that. If you are not into that, and do the cocktail scene on a 38 Sundancer. . . . .then SELL.