Boats taking up space.

[jmauld]

Do any of you have a boat taking up space in your two car garage? I work in my garage and would like to see some ideas on how to maximize the work space in the remaining area. I park my car in the garage and would like to be able to rebuild my old 4wheeler from when I was a kid, without leaving any vehicles out in the cold.

Ive got a 24 deep by 26 wide garage. The boat is in the garage at a slight angle to make it fit so it takes up almost 1/3 of the space, and effectively kills access to one wall.

Getting rid of the boat is not an option. Again just looking for ideas from others that have made the best use of space when it's shared with something like this..

 

[philwire]

What kind of boat is it? Maybe you can jack it up and use the floorspace under it? If it's not shrinkwrapped, maybe you can use it as storage for a few seasonal items?

 

[jmauld]

It's a bowrider style boat. My son parks his go-kart by the tongue of the trailer, and I store scrap metal and wood beneath it.

 

[Nova_Guy]

Does the tongue fold on it? My dad had a trailer that had a folding tongue and it made a big difference. You also didn't run into with your shins as often.

 

[2drx4]

Build a lean-to on the side of the garage and park the boat under that? It's not like it needs to be sitting on a nice concrete slab. Depending on how well it's been winterized, it should be fine outside (you have winterized it, right?).

 

[gorilla]

Put the boat in storage or put outside in a tent type shelter.

 

[Zelatore]

Wow- that sounds familiar.

My 22 Donzi has been garage-bound for a while now while I restock the engine building kitty. On the trailer, it won't fit in the garage even at an angle. So I made a couple of dollies out of square tube and some second-hand casters. Lets the boat sit as low as possible so it's easier to get in/out and get the motor out over the side (I have a gantry for this, but it's still tough when it's on the trailer). I also pulled the drive to save a couple feet and pushed it around on a diagonal to make it fit. Sadly, haven't had a car in the garage now for over a year. Of course, I do still have 3 bikes in there with the boat though. Priorities...

The dollies will let you push the boat around with the bow right up in a corner or wherever will let you maximize the usable space, just like the car dollies let you move a car sideways. They can be a PITA if you have a crack or unlevel floor, but you should be able to move it fine. Of course, if you want to use the boat regularly this won't really work for you but if you're putting it away for the season it might work and they're not hard to build.

The good news: I think after Christmas it'll be time to start the engine project on the boat and get it back in the water where it belongs. Perfect timing, since I just sold the BMW and don't have a car to put in the garage at all now!

(I refuse to put the wife's company Traverse in the garage. I despise it)

Here's a thread on the Donzi digest where I made mine:

http://www.donzi.net/forums/showthread.php?60628-tribute-to-George-C.&highlight=dollies

Or here's a link to a set that's pretty much the same thing:
http://williamsengineering.net/7m.html

 

[Kev442]

Don't know if it will work for you, but I would back my boat up a pair of car ramps to elevate it some and then suspended the tongue up to near the ceiling. I actually gained enough space to store a car under it, so you would certainly gain some space back. I was lucky in that my boat liked being tilted up, it was not any trouble to do.

 

[bazzateer]

You need to get that boat out of the garage, a boatshed in the garden, lean-to etc is the way forward.

 

[SweetD]

I've wrapped up my boat in this manner for nine years and never had an issue, and we get some decent snowfall. Heavy duty tarp, wrapped around the boat through the grommets with a rope, and then tented down tight with bungee cords to the trailer. Tented with two 2 x 4s running from top of outboard to console, and console to bow rail:

Those three pics are from three years ago. This one is from this past Sunday - same tarp, etc. Look how the hedgerow has grown behind the boat:

Is there some reason you don't want to, or can't, keep the boat outside?

Dave

 

[Zelatore]

If you decided to wrap or cover it outside be sure to include venting and some damp-rid or you'll uncover it come spring to find everything coated in a fine layer of mold...

Best to take out any seats, carpets, etc you can if you want to store it covered.

 

[fromnwmt]

If you decided to wrap or cover it outside be sure to include venting and some damp-rid or you'll uncover it come spring to find everything coated in a fine layer of mold...

Best to take out any seats, carpets, etc you can if you want to store it covered.

You can use solar powered fans which are taped into your tarp problem mostly solved....

 

[Skysurfer]

Mine wouldn't fit in the garage so I built a boathouse out back. Sold the boat and now the Suburban gets to stay under cover.

Simple construction. Rolled roofing on top and paver-in-sand floor.

 

[Marmaduke]

I bought a port a garage (poles and tarpaulin type) bought at Ctire for about 300 bucks, and set it up on the patio, I put the boat and all the patio furniture and anything else I didn't want in the garage. its a PITA to put up and down all the time but solve my problems.

 

[half_full]

get it shrink wrapped and store it outside. The vents were mentioned. Not all "professional" wrappers believe they need to be added. The wrap can be removed and re-used. I used mine for three years.

 

[Nor*Cal]

I have a one car detached garage and currently all the vehicles and boat are outside. Need to get some of the home remodel stuff finished so I can make room for my boat rebuild. Thought about getting a retractable awning on the side of the house as a permanent structure would not be up to code (setbacks). Have a code nazi in the neighborhood who keeps flagging my neighbors and even had the city hit me for sidewalk cracks.

 

[twincam00]

Last couple years this was our setup. Snowmobile trailer on one side, boat in middle, camper on other side. Pulled 2 of the cars in the garage in front of them then, that way the tongue of the boat trailer is in the middle of the two cars

 

[jmauld]

Is there some reason you don't want to, or can't, keep the boat outside?

Dave

It just seems like it's a whole lot easier to take care of if it's kept inside.

-I don't have to deal with mildew
-Don't have to clean off winter grime, just garage dust.
-If I want to do a quick project on the boat it's readily available.
-The wife has requested that we don't leave it outside. But this is primarily because the only place I have to park it outside would be one of the areas where my son plays.
-It doesn't get really cold here and I have never seen the garage get below freezing so "winterizing" my boat becomes much easier if it stays inside.


But, I still want more room to do other projects in the garage.

 

[SweetD]

It just seems like it's a whole lot easy to take care of if it's kept inside.

-I don't have to deal with mildew
-Don't have to clean off winter grime, just garage dust.
-If I want to do a quick project on the boat it's readily available.
-The wife has requested that we don't leave it outside. But this is primarily because the only place I have to park it outside would be one of the areas where my son plays.
-It doesn't get really cold here and I have never seen the garage get below freezing so "winterizing" my boat becomes much easier if it stays inside.


But, I still want more room to do other projects in the garage.

With the tarp setup that I posted above, mildew issues are unlikely as long as the front and rear are vented, which they "naturally" are with the tarp vs. a shrinkwrap. What I mean is, there is airspace left at the bow and stern of the boat when you wrap it with a tarp. I have had zero mold or mildew issues coming out of storage in ten years, and my boat is white fiberglass gelcoat throughout.

Not sure what "winter grime" you're thinking about...but I understand if you are keeping the boat showroom-clean in the garage. I don't do that, but a lot of guys do...the tarp goes a long way to keeping any sort of **** off of the boat.

Project-wise, the tarp is easy enough to remove if you want to get into the boat. On my boat, literally 10 minutes to put it on, less than that to remove it...

If it's going to interfere with playspace for your son, that's not cool of course...but...it sure would free up the room in your garage!

Good luck and let us know how it works out -

Dave

 

[hockey88fan]

I've wrapped up my boat in this manner for nine years and never had an issue, and we get some decent snowfall. Heavy duty tarp, wrapped around the boat through the grommets with a rope, and then tented down tight with bungee cords to the trailer. Tented with two 2 x 4s running from top of outboard to console, and console to bow rail:

Those three pics are from three years ago. This one is from this past Sunday - same tarp, etc. Look how the hedgerow has grown behind the boat:

Is there some reason you don't want to, or can't, keep the boat outside?

Dave

This how I stored our boat for a few years but it got old after awhile. That was the motivation for our garage.