Front Hitch for Tricky Trailer Placement

Front mounted trailer hitch to aid in trailer placement.

Garboard Plug Holder/Rack

Here's a nifty gadget for trailer boaters. The holder is starboard, the wrench is stainless.

"ST" Tires On Your Trailer -or- Passenger Car/Truck Tires?

I use car tires on my trailers. Everywhere you look, ‘they’ say using car tires on your trailer is not recommended – it is even dangerous…special trailer “ST” tires are required for trailer use.

I tow quite a bit, over 60,000 miles in the last 10 years or so. In the beginning I was a believer in ST tires because tire and trailer manufacturers recommend ST tires and just about every trailer sold today has ST tires on it.

I had tire troubles with my first trailer. The boat/trailer was only about 3 months old and the tires developed cracks between the tread ribs and wouldn’t hold air. I originally blamed this on the tire manufacturer, but came to find out that while my trailer tires were ‘new’, they had been manufactured 6 years before they were put on my trailer. Outdated ‘new’ ST tires are a common peril, especially if you buy them from a roadside tire store in an emergency.

Here’s something from

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoTrailerTireFacts.dos

• Time and the elements weaken a trailer tire.
• In approximately three years, roughly one-third of the tire's strength is gone.
• Three to five years is the projected life of a normal trailer tire.
• It is suggested that trailer tires be replaced after three to four years of service regardless of tread depth or tire appearance.

And more from the same site:

Mileage

• Trailer tires are not designed to wear out.
• The life of a trailer tire is limited by time and duty cycles.
• The mileage expectation of a trailer tire is 5,000 to 12,000 miles.

Why Use An "ST" Tire

• "ST" tires feature materials and construction to meet the higher load requirements and demands of trailering.
• The polyester cords are bigger than they would be for a comparable "P" or "LT" tire.
• The steel cords have a larger diameter and greater tensile strength to meet the additional load requirements.
• "ST" tire rubber compounds contain more chemicals to resist weather and ozone cracking.

Storage

• The ideal storage for trailer tires is in a cool, dark garage at maximum inflation.
• Use tire covers to protect the tires from direct sunlight.
• Use thin plywood sections between the tire and the pavement.
• For long term storage, put the trailer on blocks to take the weight off the tires. Then lower the air pressure and cover the tires to protect them from direct sunlight.

Maintenance

• Clean the tires using mild soap and water.
• Do not use tire-care products containing alcohol or petroleum distillates.
• Inspect the tires for any cuts, snags, bulges or punctures.
• Check the inflation before towing and again before the return trip.

Its no wonder I continued to have trailer tire problems - blowouts, irregular wear, weather checking. I wasn’t following the rules:

New tires every 3 years or 5,000 miles.

Store in dark cool place with plywood between the tire and ground.

Wash tires with soap and water.

Get the tires off the ground for ‘winter’ storage and lower the air pressure.

Check inflation before and during towing.

I was encouraged to look at car tires for my trailer because ST tires were such an expensive, unreliable hassle. On the 14,000-mile trip to Alaska with my boat I might have gone through 3 sets of ST tires. There had to be a better way, and there was – get rid of the ST tires, and I did, out of desperation. And lo and behold, the Alaska Highway didn’t destroy the passenger radials on my trailer. In fact those passenger radials went almost 40,000 miles on my boat trailer. And they never got any of the special treatment recommended for ST tires.

No, I don’t recommend you use passenger car/truck tires on your trailer. ‘Just letting you know why I did and still do, complying with this consideration from the Department of Transportation:
How to pick the right car tire for your trailer 

S5.1.2 Except in the case of a vehicle which has a speed attainable in 3.2 kilometers of 80 kilometers per hour or less, the sum of the maximum load ratings of the tires fitted to an axle shall be not less than the gross axle weight rating (GAWR) of the axle system as specified on the vehicle's certification label required by 49 CFR part 567. Except in the case of a vehicle which has a speed attainable in 2 miles of 50 mph or less, the sum of the maximum load ratings of the tires fitted to an axle shall be not less than the gross axle weight rating (GAWR) of the axle system as specified on the vehicle's certification label required by 49 CFR part 567. If the certification label shows more than one GAWR for the axle system, the sum shall be not less than the GAWR corresponding to the size designation of the tires fitted to the axle. If the size designation of the tires fitted to the axle does not appear on the certification label, the sum shall be not less than the lowest GAWR appearing on the label. When a passenger car tire is installed on a multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck, bus, or trailer, the tire's load rating shall be reduced by dividing by 1.10 before calculating the sum (i.e., the sum of the load ratings of the tires on each axle, when the tires' load carrying capacity at the recommended tire cold inflation pressure is reduced by dividing by 1.10, must be appropriate for the GAWR). 

Ants Invaded My Boat

I discovered a highway of ants navigating in both direction across Big Duck's galley counter. I traced them back to a hose that I had used earlier, which now rested against the sheer. The ants were coming up the hose to get on the boat and into the galley.

I have several different kinds of ant traps in various places already, but the ants didn't seem interested in any of them.

The first inclination is to kill all ants in sight. I had been doing just this in the shop by dousing an occasional visitor with denatured alcohol from a spray bottle. It's very satisfying to see the mist stop them dead in their tracks. I was tempted to do this with the ants on the boat, but I got to thinking...killing a few ants, or even a couple hundred, isn't going to solve the problem. I needed to take out the nest.

I had recently used some of those yard granules to get rid of bugs and had liberally applied them around the boat. The granules had been effective at eliminating all the other bugs so I ruled out a retreat of the same stuff. I needed to try something different. I looked for some 'dual bait' traps that had worked in the past, but they weren't available in any of the stores. I'd have to try something else.

I brought home a small bottle of Terro Ant Killer with Borax. It's liquid in a bottle - you apply drops where-ever you want. I put a couple drops on the galley ant highway and was surprised to see the ants collecting/feeding at the drops.

There's bait in that black container in the upper left corner that had been there all along, but was not at all popular with the ants.

But they loved the Terro!

Twenty four hours later, the ants had completely consumed all the Terro that I had put in several different locations, but they continued to parade across the counter, interested in food from other places. One of these places was a plastic trash bag with something they liked in it. I could see them carrying away tiny scraps in their mouths.

Fighting the impulse to wipe them out with the alcohol spray, I decided to wait/watch another couple days, leaving everything in place. I'd see if the greedy feeders had taken the bait back to the nest.

And sure enough, on day four, the ants were all gone. There was a straggler or two roaming about (maybe left over scouts), but the highway on the counter was gone, the hose was no longer being used for access and there was no sign of activity at the plastic trash bag.

So it would seem the yard granules won't rid you of these tiny black ants, but Terro will, if you have the patience.

Paper Towels Below Table/Bunk

I got the idea when we pulled our camper from SC to Alaska. We were always getting up from the table for napkins because there was no convenient place nearby to keep them. I thought about hanging a roll of paper towels under an overhead cabinet but decided otherwise when I held the holder in position. So I began moving the paper towel holder at various places to see if there was an acceptable place for it. In the process, the holder slipped out of my hand and ended up under the table...and that's where I mounted it. Out of the way, yet handy, and no problem when the table was in the 'bed' position.

Walmart carries a stainless paper towel holder that pinches the roll hard enough to keep it from unrolling while underway or on the road.

Charging Batteries With A Combiner

Big Duck has two separate battery systems.

1) Typical start and house batteries with a 1-2-both-off switch. This includes a dual battery on board charger

2) A Freedom 30 inverter charger with dedicated group 31 battery. The Freedom battery charger is rated at 130 amps. We didn't buy the Freedom 30 for the boat, we removed it when we sold the camper.

I use a Yandina battery combiner to allow both start and house batteries to be charged by the engine alternator without having to mess with the main battery switch.
Yandina Battery Combiner

The group 31 battery is used with the inverter to power the fridge, that's it's only job. The fridge is 120vac only, a dorm model - significantly cheaper than a marine 120vac/12vdc refrigerators and we already had the inverter. The inverter/charger charges the group 31 battery when on shore power or when the Honda generator is running. Up until now, this hasn't been an issue because we run the Honda almost the whole time we're on the boat to power the air conditioner. The group 31 battery holds up fine for the little charging it needs in the summer.

In Spring weather however, we're finding the temperatures quite pleasant without running the air conditioner. This means that the group 31 battery will only keep the fridge going for a few days without running the generator, even though the boat is typically on the move for most of the day.

The solution is another combiner between the starting battery and the group 31 battery. Now the alternator on the engine will charge all 3 batteries when we're on the move, yet they'll all be isolated when charging voltage is not present. And what's more, the Freedom charger will also charge all 3 batteries on shore power or when the Honda is running. We will discontinue using the on board charger altogether.

Let's hope the engine alternator can keep up.

First 2013 Big Duck Outing

Well, it really wasn't the first Big Duck outing for 2013. Several weeks back, when my wife's sister Barbie came for a visit with her daughter Emily, we took Big Duck to Charleston. We like to take them to the coast for a couple days when they visit from Chicago but found that an ocean front motel was $600 for two nights and the others weren't that much cheaper. So we had booked a spot at the James Island Campground for a couple nights at $41/night.
James Island
It's the nicest campground we've ever stayed at; it even has a Dog Park complete with doggie swim area. Big Duck didn't get her feet wet that trip, but it was her first outing.

Suzy, Barbie, Emily and Merlin on the way to James Island

Our campsite at James Island

Barbie, Emily and Merlin at the Dog Park @ James Island

The first water outing started Wednesday 4/17 when Suzy, Merlin and I drove up to Lake Keowee for a couple nights aboard. This was our second visit to Keowee, so we were familiar with the drive up and knew of a great ramp.
First Keowee Cruise
I had been to the dentist the day before and had been drilled and fitted for a crown, so the trip was contingent on how I felt the next morning. The crown work was done by a lady dentist and turned out way better than anticipated, so we hooked up Big Duck and were off to the lake by noon even tho there were showers forecast for Wednesday and Friday.

When we arrived at the Crow Creek ramp there were 3 trailers in the large lot. Crow Creek is only one of the many great ramps on the Duke Energy lake so it's not unusual to 'put in' without any wait, and we did.

The slight rain that we had experienced on the drive up had stopped - we had a nice evening cruise, picking out a spot to come back to for our night on the hook. A protected place where Merlin could go ashore on a beach.

After we were anchored and Merlin had shore duty, the rain returned as a gently sprinkle.

We quickly put up the aft bimini. The rain was light with no wind so it came straight down. We stayed in our chairs on the aft deck to enjoy the symphony of drops on the canvas.

All day Thursday we plied the upper lake, taking in the sun, lavish homes and a waterfall...we had the glassy lake all to ourselves.

Merlin liked the falls.

All alone on the lake

Calm waters

Best first mate ever!

We found some of the other Duke ramps and a very nice campground complete with boat slips. Merlin got to go ashore on several occasions where we beached The Duck. The Friday forecast was for more rain so we anchored near the ramp that night, figuring we would get Big Duck on her trailer in the early morning before the weather set in. In the meantime, Merlin decided he needed to go ashore, so we tied up to the ramp and turned him loose. As we were getting ready to go back out and drop the hook, we learned that winds could be 30 mph on Friday, so at about 9pm, I decided to see about getting Big Duck back on the trailer in the dark.

This was one of the reasons we like the Crow Creek ramp; it's very friendly with a floating dock, however, as Merlin and I were ready to bring the trailer down to the dock, a boat pulled up on the other side. We'd wait for him. Then another boat came in. We'd wait for him too. Then another boat came in and we continued to wait, knowing it would take me quite a while to get the trailer down the ramp from the keyhole turnaroud.

Then this last guy decides after he gets loaded, he wants to spend 20 minutes in the keyhole adjusting things. By now it's raining again. Finally, about an hour later it's my turn and I have a helluva time getting the trailer lined up in the dark, but after directing Big Duck's spotlight on the ramp, finally got her loaded...well mostly loaded.

As the boat/trailer is being brought up the ramp, the stern settles down and the bow pulls away from the bow stop. I've had this problem since day one and have dealt with it is different ways:
Make a double purchase pulley for the strap
Lock 'em up at 5 mph to have her slide into the stop
Put 'slippery' on the bunks so she'll crank up easier
Turn around and head DOWN the ramp, then crank the winch
Back her back down the ramp into the water and recrank at intervals bringing her back out

I tried heading down the ramp and locking them up, then cranking the winch - but no joy, so I decided to deal with it after we'd spent the night aboard at in the lot...maybe back her into the lake again and do the interval thing.

We kinda slept in, in the lot until about 9am. I then tended to the things that needed to be done before hitting the road - locking up the sterndrive with the cable, stowing all the lines, remove the garboard plug, put the TPMS modules back on the trailer tires, move essentials into the van, make coffee... We got Suzy off the boat and into the van during a lull of the rain. I then decided if the boat wouldn't be encouraged to go forward, downhill, with full braking last night, then she wouldn't be inclined to move during the road trip home - so home bound we were.


There were some downpours on the way home, but for the most part the trip was uneventful. And who is to say where the boat should end up being on the trailer if it's happy?

So far away the turnbuckle won't reach.

However, once home, the wet grass prevented me from getting Big Duck fully home. No problems - close enough for now - gimmie a beer, even if it's 11am.

Wet grass = no traction getting her back under the boatport