I'd have to see your setup to really understand what you are dealing with. can you secure it to a line on the dock, to avoid it hanging in the water?

 

Paul - I think he is saying that the cord sits on the platform & then drags across it as the tide moves the boat.

Swim - Welcome to CSR! The best boating site on the internet!
As for your cord - Can you not get the cord clean? Purple Power or Mean Green. One of these should surely get it done.

 

LOL, you could always put a dinghy on the back Our cords rest on it.

 

We, and most every boat at every marina I have seen, come out of the trunk opening, run along the corner where the swim platform and transom meet, loop up and over the outer transom cleat and then go from there to the dock. All of the slack ends up off the boat between the cleat and the dock. And the cord is tucked in against the boat so it is not in the way when walking on the swim platform. The run from the trunk to the cleat never moves. Is there some reason you can't run your cord this way?

 

yes, what he said. I do exactly the same, and velcro it on the stern line (with stern in slip). but yes, a clean wire will help the situation as well.

 

Try some of a product called Marine Strip. I bought some and here's a link to a writeup I did on it. http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/67526-I-love-a-product-that-does-what-it-claims-to-do?highlight=Marine%2BStrip

 

At the boat. Snapped this pic of what I meant

 

Would this work?

http://www.defender.com/product3.jsp?path=-1|328|2290035|2290041&id=38597

 

Once you solve the issue of rigging your cord so it stays out of the water, buy some toluene (?spelling). It is a good cleaner for power cords. Cleans cords making them look new again without the sticky residue of acetone. Read the safety data sheet for handling and storage. I keep my small supply in a steel building away from our house and dock. We use it to clean the cords once a year and they stay clean for the season. It is cheap and much faster than the expensive cord cleaners on the market at boat stores. Found out about it from the company that cleans our boat each week.

 

I made a canvas cover for mine and installed some snaps to keep it in place.

 

I have a 34' Sundancer. I was wondering if anyone has had success with keeping the power cord from staining the swim platform. Because of the constantly changing water depth in our marina, I have to allow slack on length of the power cord. The cord gets really grimey, and it winds up all over the swim platform. It's almost impossible to remove the marks from the swim platform. I've tried cleaners specifically targeted for the power cord with no success. Now I've bought one of those fabric sleeves to go over the cord, but I really don't think that'll help. Any suggestions would really be appreciated.

I have this same issue too. In my case I think it's because the cord's rubber coating is starting to degrade from the sun. It's not cracking or anything but where I hang the cord (out of the trunk, along the edge of the platform and draped up over a stern cleat) I get a black grime/goo that is nearly impossible to get off except with cleaner wax and a LOT of effort. I plan to make a canvas sleve for that section of the cord (length from trunk to past the point where it hangs) to prevent it from contacting the fiberglass any more.

 

Thank you all for the suggestions! I am going to combine several of them and hopefully come up with a workable solution. Thanks again for your sollutions.

 

I too get the gummy/slimy residue smearing from the cord. Same deal after the hose lays in the sun a couple years. Polish takes it off but its still a pain. I've washed ours with laquer thinner and I'm sure thats not the correct way but it helped for a while.

 

I've always just sprayed my cords down with easy off oven cleaner, let her sit a couple of minutes, and the crud just wipes off. Not sure what, if anything, would work very well if your cord is breaking down.

 

make some sort of spring line for it like people do for dock lines

 

When we stay somewhere with lots of surge, I use a couple of bungee cords to give the power cord support, and keep it out of the water. You can run the cord with some slack so that it straightens out as the bungee stretches. We keep a couple in back compartment specifically for that purpose. I have never thought of using oven cleaner on cords or fenders! Also, never heard of 'PowerStrip'. Both look like excellent ideas. Next time my power cord gets a little dingy, I will have some new weapons in my arsenal. Thanks guys!