Boathouse Upgrade

[Jimmypooh]

Cool project, but seems like a lot of work/money just to get your boat out of the water. Could you have built a boat shed over the water for less?

We're not allowed to change the shore line so we can't just make the seawall go in to allow water under the boathouse and the ice will tear anything up if we leave posts in over the winter. We plan on keeping the boat and house for future generations. Over the next 30 years this will be worth the effort and money. I'm fourth generation on the island and 5th generation on the Chain. I'm sure we will get our use out of it. I look at it this way...we get to keep the boat in a garage like those of you that tow, but we don't have to own a tow vehicle. Money and effort well spent. Not to mention the minimal effort to put the pier in and out each year.

I had someone stop by just last weekend asking about the pier. He liked the idea and may look into it.

[Bill_AirJunky]

Could you have built a boat shed over the water for less?

Just a guess, but I assume your talking about a boat lift & canopy? They have some drawbacks too. Gotta have the right kind of lake bottom to support the lift. Replace the canopy every 5 - 10 yrs. And remove the lift from the lake every year (which requires a truck or ATV). Plus have a place on the shore to keep the lift, and general maintenance.

Or maybe referring to a wood or metal structure built out over the water like a boathouse? No idea about Jimmy's place, but their not allowed here at all. Bigger lakes in our area do though. I'm not sure if it's a county or state issue. But the ice would probably wipe it out in the first year anyway.

Guess you gotta work with the cards your dealt. This is definitely a long term project that seems to me it would outlive most others.

Edited June 3, 2011 by Bill_AirJunky

[Jimmypooh]

Just a guess, but I assume your talking about a boat lift & canopy? They have some drawbacks too. Gotta have the right kind of lake bottom to support the lift. Replace the canopy every 5 - 10 yrs. And remove the lift from the lake every year (which requires a truck or ATV). Plus have a place on the shore to keep the lift, and general maintenance.

Or maybe referring to a wood or metal structure built out over the water like a boathouse? No idea about Jimmy's place, but their not allowed here at all. Bigger lakes in our area do though. I'm not sure if it's a county or state issue. But the ice would probably wipe it out in the first year anyway.

Guess you gotta work with the cards your dealt. This is definitely a long term project that seems to me it would outlive most others.

You're right. We are limited in the types of things we can do. The way we have built this I hope it will outlast my lifetime.

We did think of other ways to go about storing the boat. We eventually figured this out. We currently have a shore lif, but don't want to continue putting it in and out every year. All those little opening and closing chores add up when you have a lake house. Another benefit is that the boat will stay cleaner in the boathouse rather than on the lift.

[Jimmypooh]

I added a new day's worth of pictures in the second post. Almost done!!! So far I think they've been out there about 2 half days and 3 full days.

[Jimmypooh]

We did a ton of our own work on the boat house this weekend. We had a bunch of digging to do to prep for some weld work close to the ground. We also brought over 32 50lb bags of cement to weight down the land side of the pier beams. This will also help counter the lift system when the boat is lifted out at the end. Then we brought over 24 sheets of 3/4 inch ply for the floor boards. The old boards wouldn't work again since they were starting to rot and were originally nailed in. Tearing them up messed up the boards pretty bad. We're just going to use the old flooring for shelving.

We screwed down about half of the floor but had to wait on a lot of it since there is still some work to do under there. We put up the trolleys for the hoists and went to a dealer to measure a trailer. We bought the wood that will be used to make the cradle and will build that next week.

[Jimmypooh]

Put up a few more pictures. They are done with the welding after today. All that's left is to finish is pouring a little more cement, putting in the floor, build the cradle and rewire the boathouse with power.

After that we will have to build shelving and put all the stuff back in there but that can be done over the summer. I'm ready to stop working and start having some fun.

[Jimmypooh]

I still like the foam block idea for storage. Lightweight, easy transport, easy to move out of the way when not in use, etc. I'd stay on that for a while.

Although, I haven't found any yet, either. I need to get the boat off the trailer for some trailer rehab and to polish and wax the bottom of the hull. If I do find some, I'll let you know and I'd appreciate if you do the same. My brother is in Bartlett and travels up here every other weekend to his lake house, so transport to/from me to you would be fairly simple.

I talked to a dealer this weekend about the foam blocks. They said that the foam blocks are about 100 each and they don't last all that long.

It seemed like a rip and I don't want to have to keep replacing them for the amount we will use this (every weekend). We decided to just build the cradle out of wood based on a trailer at the dealer. We will be able to move the cradle with a fair amount of effort, but I don't expect to need the floor space very often. We will screw the cradle down to the floor so it doesn't get bumped with just a few screws.

If you're still keen on the foam idea, I might have a place for you to check out. Skipper Bud's in Volo IL might be able to sell you used ones or you can contact Munson Ski and Marine (also in Volo) and they can point you in the direction of their supplier.

[jtrovato]

Where's the updates? I'm waiting for the finished product!

[Jimmypooh]

Where's the updates? I'm waiting for the finished product!

I was on vacation for a week. I was told most of the floor boards are in and the holes in the roof are being patched by a pro. More concrete went in this past weekend for a counter balance on the non-pier side.

We're hoping to get the wiring in, hoists up, finish the floor boards and build the cradle by Sunday so we can get our boat in. I will post more pictures when I get them.

[Michigan boarder]

I will post more pictures when I get them.

With the boat in the air too!

[Slayer]

I was on vacation for a week. I was told most of the floor boards are in and the holes in the roof are being patched by a pro. More concrete went in this past weekend for a counter balance on the non-pier side.

We're hoping to get the wiring in, hoists up, finish the floor boards and build the cradle by Sunday so we can get our boat in. I will post more pictures when I get them.

Very cool. Looking forward to seeing this complete.

[Levi900RR]

Very cool. Looking forward to seeing this complete.

This whole deal is totally insane, I can't wait to see it either. Coolest idea I have seen in a while!

[Jimmypooh]

With the boat in the air too!

Will do. I will also try to find some old pictures with the old boat being lifted. We may not have any since it was routine back then and we didn't think anything of it.

[Jimmypooh]

Just thought I would drag up this old thread and give you a little more info of my data collection process.

[ryansgt]

lookin good jimmy. let me know if you need another pull in the meantime.

[Jimmypooh]

No pictures today sorry. But I have an update.

This past weekend we finished painting the pier beams, built pier sections, put vertical posts in, and finished the floor in the boathouse. We also moved the extra schedule 40s by hand off the grass (they weigh 300 lbs each). The floor was primed this morning and I'm headed out there tonight to paint the top coat (we decided to add the paint flakes to give it the finished look). I also payed for the job (roofer to patch holes, steel work, and barge work).

Next weekend I hope to finalize the pier (side wood and lay the sections down), build the cradle and get the boat in. After that, we will be re-populating the boathouse with all the stuff we have shoved in our basement, and neighbor's place. We will need to build a workbench and shelving. There's a lot left to do, but we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel

And in the midst of all this work, my sister is planning a wedding. I might recruit anyone in the areas that can to give us an escort from the wedding to our place. I thought that might be a nice surprise for her if I can get enough boats.

lookin good jimmy. let me know if you need another pull in the meantime.

Thanks. Coach Mike offered to give me a pull this week so I might take him up on it if I'm not too tired after work some time this week. Hopefully we will get our boat this weekend.

Right now it's a lack of time not a lack of boat

[Jimmypooh]

New pictures posted in this post. We finished putting in the floor, then painted most of the floor with speckled paint. We couldn't finish painting the floor because there is some of the old plywood leaning against the wall. We will be using it to build shelves later.

We finished most of the pier. We still need to put the bottom section of boards on the side and build the last (non standard) short section.

When putting the poles in at the end of the pier we used a come-along to lift up the end of the pier. It only came up about 0.5-1 inch of spring tension. This way there should be as little stress on the beams fulcrum as possible during the summer. In the winter we will remove the top sections and the posts, but will leave the sides there.

This weekend we will be building the cradle, temporarily wiring up the hoists to our generator and getting the boat in there. I will try to video the initial lift.

Then we will hopefully be putting in a new door and finishing the pier.

More to come later.

[Slayer]

Nice work, Jimmy! You know...you have to get a picture of this thing in action once complete.

[Jimmypooh]

Nice work, Jimmy! You know...you have to get a picture of this thing in action once complete.

That's the most anticipated shot I can think of. Don't worry, it will be well documented!

[Slayer]

That's the most anticipated shot I can think of. Don't worry, it will be well documented!

I assumed so with all the reserved posts. I'm looking forward to the finished project. It's a hell of an idea and so far, pretty damn good execution I would say.

[Bill_AirJunky]

Very cool. So only 1" of deflection at the end of the pier? Guess it's not very bouncy at all... even with people standing on it?

So hows the budget?

[Jimmypooh]

Very cool. So only 1" of deflection at the end of the pier? Guess it's not very bouncy at all... even with people standing on it?

So hows the budget?

It did bounce a little with no posts, but we knew we were going to put posts on it. Including the beams there's probably 1 ton of weight over a 28 foot stretch past the sea wall.

The budget is pretty high but we have 3 families splitting it; my sister, parents, and me.

I think the running total is up to about 26K. That may seem like a lot but consider the following:

Didn't buy trailer 2-4K

No more storage 700+ per year

Can sell shore lift 3k

Needed a new pier 2-3K

Boat stays cleaner

Less work opening and closing for the year (Can't put a price on time)

We plan to keep the place for my lifetime

It is built for the weight and size of a 247 if we ever want to upgrade

Boat will never be moored for more than 15 minutes

Easier maintenance inside

Lift may be used for jet skiis too

Lift can be used for heavy equipment if needed (refrigerators, ditch diggers etc)

Options and expenses change because there is no access to our place by car.

The Bu is worth it

[Jimmypooh]

Pictures added to post 4 of this thread.

This weekend it was just Dad and I because Everyone else was at the wedding shower for my sister. Check out this thread if you'd like to help with a wedding surprise.

We finished up with the pier. We made the last section of the decking and added the bottom sets of boards on the sides. Technically we still need to cut the poles and add caps but that might wait until next year. I left a small gap in the side boards of the pier with the thought that I might mount an LED light strip inside there and that would allow ambient light to come through the gap.

We finally picked up the Bu , but still didn't ride this weekend. Thanks to all the crew that have offered and taken me for pulls when I haven't had my boat. I will return the favor soon. It was nice to see that I winterized the boat correctly and there were no issues. That's the first I've done it myself. We had to move the lift out with just the two of us but it wasn't that bad. We tied an old 10-20 gallon plastic barrel to the lift and floated it most of the way out, then just cut the ropes.

We also picked up all of the supplies for running electric to the boat house. We have to run 6 gauge wire in order to get 60 amps. That's big stuff. I'm hopeful we can get the electric to the hoists done in the next full day of work out there, but that will be a few weeks. We have some company coming in town for a while.

Enjoy the pictures.

[Slayer]

Looking good, Jimmy.

[Jimmypooh]

Looking good, Jimmy.

Thanks. I was bummed that the back spreader bar wasn't built this weekend. We were planning on getting it up using the power from our generator. Now we have to wait almost a month before we will be able to get it up. The anticipation is killing me.