Boat has slight lean to starboard

Roger K Sterling

Active Member
Oct 23, 2021
203
Boat Info
2000 Sea Ray 240 Sundancer
Engines
Mercruiser 5.0L, Bravo II, Thunderbolt V ignition
I know I've posted uo alot on the newbie lounge and the support has enable me to get the boat in the water. Now I think I have a serious problem. The boat leans slightly to starboard. I did notice gelcoat missing on the starboard stern corner which I fill with gel coat. I think though the foam got wet prior to me purchasing the boad.
 
Rog,
Post all you want. You cant learn the answer without asking the question.
Almost all boats have a slight lean at rest. Mine rests slightly to port. 2 batts , hot water tank, outdrive pump all on port side, nothing on starboard side of bilge.
I suspect it’s cause if the original buyer had gone for a vacuum flush option the holding tank would have been on starboard side of bilge.
Even on plane the port side needs a little more down trim tab, while starboard is full up, to balance out.
Gelcoat problem is different from a slight lean.
 
Last edited:
Rog,
Post all you want. You cant learn the answer without asking the question.
Almost all boats have a slight lean at rest. Mine rests slightly to port. 2 batts , hot water tank, outdrive pump all on port side, nothing on starboard side of bilge.
I suspect it’s cause if the original buyer had gone for a vacuum flush option the holding tank would have been on starboard side of bilge.
Even on plane the port side needs a little more down trim tab, while starboard is full up, to balance out.
Gelcoat problem is different from a slight lean.
Thank you Pirate Lady you been a great source! ;-)
 
Naw, most would say I am full of shot on here. But I sometimes get it right.
But now that we eliminated the lean problem, missing gelcoat at/below waterline is/can be serious. Investigate.
 
Speaking of lean.. you know what amazes me? Naval architects that design aircraft carriers, you got a huge tower maybe 10 stories high offset to the starboard edge, with 100 aircraft, 6000 personal, all their stuff, and it sits level. Those guys are good.
 
We’ll that is certainly true, however, look for the boating smiles…..you’ll see very few. All that saluting, ordering others around and waiting to be ordered around gets Real old. Now look at the bunch of us…… LOTS of smiles around most of the time.
 
Had a buddy did time on an oiler during Vietnam. He said..
Pros
Shore time while the filled his oiler in port.
Cons
It was like being in prison when at sea.
I always wanted to join the navy when young, he taught me there is n romance about it.
 
Well in the interest of us all sharing good tidbits....it's a list, not a lean :)

I've never owned a boat that when fully fueled would be anything but level in the water. 21' Liberator, 24' Baja on up to my current boat. Only when my fluids are at extremes (full crapper, empty fuel, eg.) will I start to see some list.

Is it listing to starboard when it's just you onboard, seated in the drivers seat? If she runs great I probably wouldn't obsess over this but I'm not entirely sure the engineers at Sea Ray would tell you this is normal...
 
How much does it list when at rest with nobody on the boat? A 240 Sundancer would be very susceptible to a list in either direction from what most would consider not much weight.

Is your water tank full? Waste tank full?

My 400 will list slightly starboard if my water tank is empty.
 
My 1995 330DA always listed and it drove me nuts. I never found the cause and eventually lived with it. The 380DA does not appear to list at all, very happy with how it sits in the water.

My advice is you'll drive yourself nuts trying to fix it, just accept its normal. If you have twin fuel tanks maybe experiment with filling one less or more. If the water and holding tank are on one side of the boat the same thing.

Or just hire a big girl and keep her on one side of the boat at all times.
 
You really need both, the girl can tend the ice and open cans as needed…..
 
I start to see a list as the head gets full. It's almost better than the gauge. I would go with a hot girl and a full cooler of beer and ice. This way you don't need to drink all the beer for the girl to become good looking. Just saying.
 
I start to see a list as the head gets full.
upload_2022-6-15_17-20-33.jpeg

A5443801-B517-41D1-97F5-1C3181869CE1.jpeg
 

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