Boat Lift Questions

[wallter]

Heard good deals at the sportsman show. Bought cabin on Mille Lacs NE corner. Shallow sand.

1. What style?

2. Canopy or not (windy on Mille lacs)?

3. What to buy / avoid?

4. Your 2 cents?

By the way. How do you people put gas in their boats?

Thanks

[solbes]

Ah, congrats on your purchase. I would think that'll be a property you enjoy for years to come. Post up some pics if you get a chance.

1) You didn't mention boat type, but you have two choices: vertical or cantilever. If you have a heavy boat, as I suspect you would on Mille Lacs, then the cantilever makes winching up/down easier. I have a cantilever for a 16 foot Lund and it's pretty easy to winch up/down.

2) Canopy or no, I would think yes. We are on an 800 acre lake, so much different than yours. But wind is not a problem at all on our lake. There are some metal slats that go in the canvas that secure it to the lift. It should be able to handle anything short of a weak tornado (which would probably throw the whole boat&lift combo) If you have a canopy you just winch it up when you are prepping to leave on Sunday. If you didn't have a canopy a mooring snap cover might be another option, but it takes extra time and all that exposure to UV/rain would probably limit the cover life to 6-7 years at best.

3)As far as brand I dunno. We bought ours used; it's an older aluminum Shoremaster. It's a little heavy for aluminum, but it's built like a tank. Fell off the trailer at 55 mph and not a dent or scratch (well maybe under the pads).

4) Make sure you have enough weight capacity and enough room for your boat beam width. We have at least 4" on either side and I never hit the sides. Also think about your loaded boat weight when you consider capacity (fuel, fishing stuff, pleasure boating stuff, etc). Consider adding wheels if you are going to be moving around more than 30 feet in and 30 feet out (we move ours 100 feet downshore to store on dry land). I bought a single axle home made setup at FF for $50-60 if I remember correctly. We also use inner tubes sometimes to float the lift (2 will do).

[solbes]

Forgot about the gas. I just fill my 2 portable tanks if we are going to be using tbe boat alot. They sell bigger tanks that have wheels. I usually only fill the tank when I trailer up to go to another lake, which is sporadic at best.

[LightningBG]

Heard good deals at the sportsman show. Bought cabin on Mille Lacs NE corner. Shallow sand.

1. What style?

Like stated earlier, depends on how heavy the boat is.

2. Canopy or not (windy on Mille lacs)?

Wind shouldn't be an issue. we have canopies on Gull with no problems. Canopy makes it really easy to come and go, no cover to deal with, just crank it way up.

3. What to buy / avoid?

One of ours is a Floe, works good. Not sure what the other 2 are.

4. Your 2 cents?

By the way. How do you people put gas in their boats?

We use a jiggle tube (siphon). I couldn't say enough great things about them. They cost under $10. We just set a 6 gal can on top of the boat, start the tube and it will drain it in about 2 min. No lifting, no gas in the water. (this use of the jiggle tube is not on Gull, its on another lake with no gas docks). On lakes that have gas docks, you might be required to use them. Check the regs.

Thanks

[Walleye Guy]

Unless you have a hugely heavy boat, go with an aluminum lift. I'm not a fan of equipment that sits in water being made of steel. I have Hewitt aluminum cantilver lift and its a great lift. Maede in MN too. Generally you can lower a cantilever lift lower in the water so they work well for shallow situations.

Canopies are a must have as far as I am concerned. They help keep you boat clean and out of the sun. Its not as clean as having a cover on it however.

[BoxMN]

I am not on big lake (small, long and narrow), but have friends with resort on big windy lake in westerm MN (they won't allow their summer renters to have canopies anymore on their lifts), and relatives with lifts on Crosslake (WFC). The problem with canopies isn't when the boat is on the lift, then the boat will hold the lift down. The problem is when it is windy and the boat ISN'T on the lift (or real windy when it is on the lift). The whole lift turns into a kite. I have seen plenty of them upside down and not just from tornado strength winds, or see them bouncing out on WF or Cross in the wind. Maybe some from OT Lake have good advice, its gets windy up there and lake is sort of shaped like ML - big round and open.

That is not to say don't get one, just consider it. Maybe getting a steel lift if you use canopy might be something to consider, as you know ML can get a tad breezy With wheel on them, if level shore would make it not hard to get out.

Congrats on your cabin, you will love it!

[LightningBG]

There is no way a wind could take our lifts. They are aluminum but there is no way they are budging. It takes 4 guys to move the thing even when its on wheels (but then again the smallest boat is 19ft fiberglass, so they are sizable lifts).

[solbes]

Mine is not light either, but it's midsize at best @ 2500# capacity. The back pads sink down into the muck a little on our lake, helping to keep it anchored. The fronts ride on top of the sand.

Moving boat lifts around is one of life's grand adventures. Of course winching your boat up and down at your leisure makes the twice a year adventure all worthwhile.

[BoxMN]

Hey LBG, not saying it will flip yours or the potential OP new one. And not sure what lake yours is on, but I have seen lifts (2 were pontoon lifts, so not small) flipped on Pelican Lake (WC MN) where our friends have resort, and also on Ottertail, and also on Crosslake. I would bet there have been maybe a couple on ML that have flipped... Just saying... ask around up where your cabin is, or look at what the long time neighbors have.

Anyway, canopy would be nice no doubt. Just don't take the word of "us" who don't know the lay of your lot. Better to check with those in your area. ...or not Good luck.

[Ralph Wiggum]

1. What style?

We've got two cantilevers--one for a v-hull Alumacraft and a biggun for a pontoon. A friend has a big vertical for his pontoon--it's pretty awesome. It really allows for a big range of movement.

2. Canopy or not (windy on Mille lacs)?

Canopies are awesome, although one spring we made the mistake of putting up the canopy before we got the boat out of storage. It flipped in a storm, so it can happen (and we're on a ~500 acre lake). We've never had a problem with the boat on the lift, though. Something to consider if you regularily take your boat with you, though.

3. What to buy / avoid?

Both of ours are Hewitt aluminum. They're nice. If you have a big boat, a motor to run the crank is the bee's knees. We have one on our pontoon lift, and it saves a lot of cranking.

[TruthWalleyes]

Tractor weights hung onto the lift could add enough weight to keep the canopy from becoming a kite - I'd think. Plus, when it comes time to remove from the water, the extra weight isn't perminetley attached to the lift.

[LightningBG]

Hey LBG, not saying it will flip yours or the potential OP new one. And not sure what lake yours is on, but I have seen lifts (2 were pontoon lifts, so not small) flipped on Pelican Lake (WC MN) where our friends have resort, and also on Ottertail, and also on Crosslake. I would bet there have been maybe a couple on ML that have flipped... Just saying... ask around up where your cabin is, or look at what the long time neighbors have.

No doubt it could happen, I just dont think its a major factor. Not trying to doubt ya.

One thing I noticed about some pontoon lifts is, if they are the ones that lift in the middle (vs under the tubes) they are very narrow.

Anyways. I think a canopy is worth the risk, but you'll have to be willing to accept it personally. Weights would be another idea.

I wonder if it matters how deep your putting it in, for the tippiness or tendency to get caught in the wind?

[JeffB]

I love my boat lift set up. Its a 4000 lb vertical lift, canopy, and a shore comander electric lift motor with remote control. On windy days you can raise the bunks up a little to guide yourself into the lift and start powering it up while in the boat. When leaving the lift I put the boat in reverse as the bunks lower enough to take off. At night the remote also turns on a light under the canopy for driving the boat in. The remote is like one of those you use for door locks on a vehicle.

[Ralph Wiggum]

JeffB, you've got me drooling on my keyboard. That setup sounds way awesome.

[Cast A Way]

Vertical lifts IMO are better. A canopy keeps the sun and rain off your boat. I have a 19 foot boat. Purchased my Shoremaster vertical lift in Chanhassen(Lake Shore Equipment) ( good people ) with canopy and 12 volt electric lift motor. 15 years of trouble free use.

[pureinsanity]

Heard good deals at the sportsman show. Bought cabin on Mille Lacs NE corner. Shallow sand.

1. What style?

2. Canopy or not (windy on Mille lacs)?

3. What to buy / avoid?

4. Your 2 cents?

By the way. How do you people put gas in their boats?

Thanks

First off congrats on your purchase of your cabin! My family has a cabin on the SE side of Mille Lacs. We opted to get a lift because during a big storm depending the wind direction water would be over the dock, or the boat would be hanging by the ropes out of the water until the storm passed.

We use an aluminum vertical lift and I love it! Its nice to get the boat just floating and back out, and than make it easy for motoring onto the lift as well.

I would highly recommend a vertical lift, with an electric motor winch for cranking up the boat. We have to crank our boat almost up as high as it goes when we leave just to ensure a big storm wont cause waves to take the boat off the lift. Our bay sometimes gets pounded by waves and rising water during bigger storms.

We thought about getting a canopy until we started to see some of the canopies around the bay. I am sure your familiar with "bird island" on mille lacs? If not its a big rocky island that well looks as white as snow. We didn't want to have a "bird island" canopy so we opted to not purchase the canopy. Be prepared if you get a canopy to have seagulls on it... Instead we had a custom snap on cover made by top gun boat covers out of shakopee. for around 500 bucks we had a custom made boat cover that takes less time to snap on than it does to crank our boat out of the water.

I can assure you an aluminum lift is heavy enough, we hire guys to take out a series of neighbors lifts (about 75$ a piece including a tip). It takes several guys to move them, and a few more to help lift them on a trailer. As long as you do not have a canopy it will not blow away when your boat isn't on it.

If you can afford it, hire someone to take them out and put them in. I volunteered to do it, and all the neighbors decided to hire this guy and after seeing how cold they were after doing the first lift I was more than happy to help pay that money.

[pureinsanity]

For gas we go over to a neighboring resort and fill up. I think they give us a deal since we are next to them.

[solbes]

I don't know how much the water fluctuates in Mille Lacs. If you want to get extra height for LARGE waves, a vertical may be better. Or if you want to deal with dropping levels, the vertical may be a bit better too.

Advantages for cantilever are lower cost, the cables aren't under tension when the boat is up, and the pivoting action means it's easier to crank the last 1/3 or so since the boats weight is on the pivot point.

[pureinsanity]

For instance on a calm day the water is about 2 - 2 1/2 feet from the top of our dock. During a storm water with the wind blowing into our bay we had water flowing over the dock. Another time a storm blew the water out of the bay and the boats were hanging by the ropes attached to the dock. I didn't believe it either until I saw it happen.

[Gus]

I would get a cover solely for the seagull factor. Removing a mooring cover from your boat every weekend covered in droppings... would get old very fast.

Maybe not all parts of the lake are like this, but every lift and dock I pass on 169 seems to be covered in it.

[pureinsanity]

I would get a cover solely for the seagull factor. Removing a mooring cover from your boat every weekend covered in droppings... would get old very fast.

Maybe not all parts of the lake are like this, but every lift and dock I pass on 169 seems to be covered in it.

That is why we had a custom cover made for the boat. Canopy is pretty flat making it easy for a seagull to land on it (not to mention tweetie birds building nests inside of the canopy). With our boat on the lift and a custom cover the birds usually stay away from it because of the angles of the custom cover. Sure we get hit by a random fly over bomb but that's about it. cover is a few years old now and still in brand new condition.

[Tom7227]

I have a 23 ft pontoon and the first season I didn't have a lift. It is a PITA to attached the cover every time you go out. Also it gets awfully hot under there in a short time and so taking it off was like a sauna. I bought a Shoremaster vertical aluminum lift with a canopy and love it. I got an after market winch and it is simple to raise and lower the boat. I also bought a solar charger and tie it onto the top of the lift to charge the battery and that has meant no more lugging the battery to the house every two weeks.

Cantilever lifts required that the boat be further out from the dock if you set it up nose in. The cover issue could be touchy in winds. Two neighbors on Bald Eagle had their rigs turned over and damaged in a freak wind storm a few years ago. Lifts 30 yards either direction weren't affected at all. I'd still recommend a cover to protect the boat from rain and sun. Birds are birds and they're going to do their thing but with a canopy I don't have the mess directly on the boat.

I recommend that you get four wheels to move the thing in and out. No wheels just means you're going to kill yourself, and two wheels mean that it's going to teeter toter and dig in when you try and move it.

I also have an attachment that allows me to put a canoe under the lift and ratchet it down when putting it in and out. That makes it a lot easier, particularly in pulling it out of the muck on the way out. Getting the wheels on and off in the water is a major pain and I wish I had some better way to deal with that.

Finally, go with a bigger lift than you think you'll need. The extra strength in a 4,000 lb capacity lift is well worth it. Besides the boats aren't getting any lighter and if you go too small the next boat may be too heavy. I didn't have much luck trying to buy used but there are a lot of lifts available if you take the time to shop around. Tough to move some but you can figure something out.

Good luck.

[LightningBG]

What's really weird with the seagulls is, on Gull, where we have a couple boats, the seagulls seem to pick and choose which lifts they are going to destroy. We've never had one on ours, but 4 docks down, their lift is completely white (covered in [PoorWordUsage]). Some people have fake owls or little wire things that keep the seagulls away, but we've never had them.

[diederich06]

1)

Definenently get a vertical lift, your on millacs and will want to get the boat higher up and away from the wave action. Cantilever lifts are outdated and not very popular anymore...

2.)

Define toy get a canopy, you will not want to be covering your boat after each use, for worry about the lift being moved/tipped over by wind, just get screw anchors with a chain and anchor the lift down any of the install guys in your area I'm sure can do that and will be used to doing that.

3.)

Old steel lifts!!!!!!!!! Get a vertical from a dependable company, quality is everything, especially if your on a big lake where it will get abused by the wind. ShoreMaster / shore station brands are the best in my opinion. ShoreMaster has air vents in there canopies to help on wind issues.

Just avoid Newman, Hewitt, Ridgeline..

4.

Buy a 10' wide lift, you will be happy down the road if you ever upgrade boats and the price is usually not much more.

Sometimes it's easier to just load the boat up and bring to the gas pumps.... While its out of the water check things over and clean the boat up...

Hope this helps a little.

I found this at the show also it's a promotion from ShoreMaster. www.shoremasterrewards.com. It's free and there giving a lot away. Including a 10k gift card next Friday.