Today will be first time on the boat. A few questions...

[KyLakeGirl]

Hi all. I just bought my boat on Wed. Will be heading to the lake in a bit to stay over night on the boat. This will be the first time for me staying on a boat ever. I am not at all what I would consider a "boater" the only experience I really have is with the 2014 Sweetwater Pontoon I own and that has only been for two seasons. I am wanting to know what I should plan on getting to take with me if I plan on staying over night. Either things to always have on the boat(leave on it or stored in the slip area) or even things that I should always plan on taking with me each time I head to the lake. I realize this is a really basic question but being so new, I can only imagine some of the most basic things I will surely not think of Thank you in advance for any help!!

 

[HUMPH]

Welcome aboard and congrats on the new boat! If you are leaving the boat in the water, you won't want to have to provision it every time you go stay on it so make sure you keep an ongoing list that you populate each time you think of something you need. Some of the bare essentials would be:
Adult beverages of choice (easy enough to bring fresh beer when you head down but liquor is a pain)
Snack foods that have a decent shelf life
Spare clothes and swim trunks
Dishes and silverware (or paper plates and plastic ware) as well as other cooking utensils
Towels
Cleaning rags
Basic tools
Spare parts (there are lists on this forum)
Cleaning supplies
First aid kit

 

[KyLakeGirl]

Thank you! I also am wanting to buy those chairs that I see people sitting on when out on the front of the boat? I'm assuming they are made so as not to scratch the boat? Also am planning on having a deck built for the end of the slip. Do most people do this? Anyone know what I can expect to pay for that??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mistercomputerman]

You are aware that leaving all the lights and stereo on will drain the battery unless the engines are running?
You are aware that if the engines are running that you have to worry about carbon monoxide?

 

[BurgundyS24]

You are aware that leaving all the lights and stereo on will drain the battery unless the engines are running?
You are aware that if the engines are running that you have to worry about carbon monoxide?

I didnt see where anyone said leaving the lights and stereo on?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

 

[LTD.330]

Welcome to CSR and congratulations on your new Sea Ray.

Think of all of the things you will need for a weekend on the boat. The big things are easy, food, clothes, beverages. Other things, towels, napkins, cooking utensils, bug spray, suntan lotion, toothbrush, toilet paper are things you will want to outfit your boat with so that you don't have to haul the stuff back and forth every weekend.

I didnt see where anyone said leaving the lights and stereo on?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

Not speaking for mistercmputerman, I think he was trying to point out a couple things newbies do and don't realize the consequences.

 

[BurgundyS24]

Welcome to CSR and congratulations on your new Sea Ray.

Think of all of the things you will need for a weekend on the boat. The big things are easy, food, clothes, beverages. Other things, towels, napkins, cooking utensils, bug spray, suntan lotion, toothbrush, toilet paper are things you will want to outfit your boat with so that you don't have to haul the stuff back and forth every weekend.


Not speaking for mistercmputerman, I think he was trying to point out a couple things newbies do and don't realize the consequences.

Understood

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

 

[dwna1a]

Welcome to CSR. All I can do is tell you the things I forgot! Bottled Water was the biggest thing, I couldn't make morning coffee. Enough water in the fresh water tank to do any dishes and flush the head. Trash bags.

M.C. had a very good point, all those lights and the stereo will kill those batteries as will a 12v fridge. Something like that will kill a great night out on the water.

When we go we set an extra anchor, it helps me sleep better at night.

 

[KyLakeGirl]

Appreciate the info! One of the first things I did was make sure the carbon monoxide detector was in working order. Right now I am running off the marina electricity so good there though I know the previous owners and when we were all out on the lake they always had the stereo going so I will look into that. That said...first night on the boat was not such a success The problem I ran into was BOTH refrigerators have the most god awful noise coming from them. Sounds like a generator kicking on and off. Very loud deep noise that killed my ears. I finally turned the one downstairs completely off and the noise from the one up top was far enough away I was finally able to sleep. So....anyone familiar with this? With both making identical noises I'm concerned replacing them may not take care of the problem. If not I'm not sure what the solution will be short of not ever using the downstairs one which will completely suck. Any suggestions??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Creekwood]

If you are going to do any basic cooking get some basic spices, salt & pepper, some olive or cooking oil. Basic pots and pans. Cooking tools and knives of various sizes. A cutting board.
Plastic wine glasses (don't use glassware on the boat due to bare feet not being compatible with broken glass). Get a couple of pairs of scissors.

Sleeping - Pillows from home. It gets really dark below at night so a couple of cheap solar charged LED lights can be charged all day. then brought below at night. One in the head and one in the cabin gives plenty of light to move around with.

As for the fridge, the original ones are known to be noisy. Mine died last fall and I replaced it with a Nova kool, but others have used different ones. New fridges are much quieter and the new compressor technology is also much lower power consumption. So if you want to spend some money, it might be worth it. You can also turn it off at night and as long as you don't open it, it may not get too warm.

 

[boatman37]

you should have multiple batteries. be sure to keep one battery unused for starting purposes. i have 2 batteries. when i cruise i use battery 1 but when i anchor and run the radio etc i switch to battery 2 and keep battery 1 solely for starting the boat. another idea is to keep a battry jump box onboard always charged just for emergency starts

 

[northern]

If all you have are two batteries you might consider a car boost portable battery. Once you figure out your power demand you can add more batteries. Look at your batteries if they are deep cycle they are good to run refrigerator and light. If start batteries they are not designed to run a refrigerator.
Top up your domestic water tank and pump out sewage when ever you have chance. Running out of water is not fun.
If you plan on eating on the boat can food is good it will keep.

 

[trflgrl]

Congrats on the new boat!

One or more LED headlamps with spare batteries.
One or more small LED flashlights with spare batteries.
A pigtail/adapter and an extension cord in case you need to plug in at a guest dock or to a neighbor. (Some people may carry an extra shore power cord, but an adapter/extension allows a different flexibility if you find only a 110/120 source, and may take less space for storage.)

A jump start box is a good idea; we happen to have long, heavy duty jumper cables.

Are you outfitted with all required safety gear? You may be if the previous owner was and sold you everything with the boat, but FWIW: a 29 ft cruiser is considered a yacht so doesn't have a passenger capacity indication like some other boats you may have piloted or visited. As a point of reference for a similarly sized boat, we have 10 basic type II PFDs, three jackets, and two throwable cushion-style flotation devices. We've never had more than 7 people on at any time, including First Mate and me, but we're covered in case anyone is visiting during a raft-up or if an emergency happens. Think about whistles/air horns, flares, etc.

Comfort items to consider as you spend more overnight time:

Battery operated fans (combo battery/AC are nice, too, for when you're dockside).
Baby wipes/personal wash wipes. Increases your trash output, but reduces amount of fresh water you use for bathing/showering.

Portable carbon monoxide monitor. Although we have one that's integrated with the boat's wiring, we like to have a backup system.

Ear plugs that are good enough to stifle refrigerator noise and some noise from other boats (or snoring guests), but not stifle alarms like that of a CO monitor.

 

[ZZ13]

Appreciate the info! One of the first things I did was make sure the carbon monoxide detector was in working order. Right now I am running off the marina electricity so good there though I know the previous owners and when we were all out on the lake they always had the stereo going so I will look into that. That said...first night on the boat was not such a success The problem I ran into was BOTH refrigerators have the most god awful noise coming from them. Sounds like a generator kicking on and off. Very loud deep noise that killed my ears. I finally turned the one downstairs completely off and the noise from the one up top was far enough away I was finally able to sleep. So....anyone familiar with this? With both making identical noises I'm concerned replacing them may not take care of the problem. If not I'm not sure what the solution will be short of not ever using the downstairs one which will completely suck. Any suggestions??


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had a similar problem on my 300 Sundancer. I turned on the fan for the Crusair system while sleeping and also got a small 12V fan that I ran for more constant ambient noise (often I had it turned away from me so I wouldn't get too cold). But like, you I often just turned off the fridge for the night. Everything stayed cold enough during the night. Or I would move things to the cockpit fridge for the night.

Does your boat have a generator?

 

[MrHappy]

Congrats on the new boat!

Think about whistles/air horns, flares, etc.

.

While on subject, make sure flares and fire extinguishers are up to date.

 

[trflgrl]

Thank you! I also am wanting to buy those chairs that I see people sitting on when out on the front of the boat? I'm assuming they are made so as not to scratch the boat? Also am planning on having a deck built for the end of the slip. Do most people do this? Anyone know what I can expect to pay for that??

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I suggest using the boat for a while before making large purchases like chairs, to get an idea of how and where YOU like to relax, and how much gear you want to deal with while under way and stowing once the boat is slipped. You may find you're not keen on climbing around the sides of the boat carrying large objects to the bow, or you may find that's your favorite place to be--everybody is different. If you're acclimated to bow chairs after knowing the previous owners, though, then go for it. There are indeed chairs specially made for marine/boating use, but you can find inexpensive rubber tips to add to other styles.

 

[trflgrl]

So how's it going? Have you been out and about beyond the slip?