Boat Preparation and Storage

In the off season, some boats are stored underwater in ponds and some are dry on trailers. At different times, we’ve tried all approaches to the boat storage issue and found each to have serious pros and cons. Storing underwater seems to keep boats well but the boats become food for worms and quickly take on the appearance of driftwood. To take the new Anthony Rucker after all the time, energy and money spent on it and leave it in the water during the offseason seems criminal. However based on our experiences over the past 20 years, we reluctantly have stored the boat in the water during it’s first off season.

The disadvantage of dry storage is that the wood dries out and shrinks so much and the wood moves so much that it is very hard on the wood, and nails. The 3rd boat was stored on the trailer the first several years and boards which were tight when wet had cracks in excess of 5/8 inch between them when dry. This shrinking had to have loosened the nails and we’ve seen evidence of this in terms of loose and bent nails. However if you choose to leave the boat on the trailer during the off season you will need to have the boat back in the water and submerged at least three weeks before the boat is to be used again. Regardless of how you store the boat, it will be an annual ritual looking for new leaks and packing oakum.