Trailer carpet vs wood

Lotta Bull

My carpet on my trailer is badly warn and needing replaced. I was going to replace it, but after talking to my mechanic, he told me he would rather have bare wood due to sand, dust, ect. blowing ( gettng caught in the carpet)at the ramp while the boat is in the water. Now I am concerned whether to recarpet or not. What would bare wood do to my gelcoat vs a bit of sand and dust? By the way, it is the front bunks that keep the boat straight going on the trailer. Thanks in advance for any opinions and help.

flys down

Forget the Carpet. The carpet retains water from after loading or washdown. This could cause "Blistering" of the gelcoat where the hull rests on the bunks.

Get some
Bunk Slicks.

Plane Fish n

flys down wrote: »

Forget the Carpet. The carpet retains water from after loading or washdown. This could cause "Blistering" of the gelcoat where the hull rests on the bunks.

Get some
Bunk Slicks.

Danny,

I have heard about this however with all the boats I have bought over the years 4 in the last 8 years alone, I have not seen this issue. I think you have underlying issues if your boat sits on wet carpeted bunks and you get blisters.

I'm going to ask Catmandew to comment on this. He is our resident boat builder and designer.

I personally would NOT recommend bare wood as it isn't slick enough and to me, that would cause an issue with your gelcoat.

joemeadows

I agree carpet is the way to go, boat will load and unload easier with carpet

FS Dan

I like the bunk slicks but the holds water and can cause blistering claim is way overblown. the main thing with the bunk slicks is that they can be too slick. My last boat had from the bow stop to about 1/2 way back with slicks and carpet on the rest. this allowed for easy launching and loading. Put carpet or slicks on your bunks, raw wood can cause more damage than a little dirt on the carpet.

CMD

flys down

I have not seen this issue. I think you have underlying issues if your boat sits on wet carpeted bunks and you get blisters.

You might be right but let me give you the scenario:

Most people don't see the bottom of their hull where it rests on the bunks. Case in point, my boat sits on a lift. After approx 8 years, the carpet needed replacement on the lift bunks. So to complete the replacement I put the boat on it's trailer. Climbing under the trailer in the driveway to inspect & fix any issues, I noticed the very small blisters where the lift bunks touched the hull (slightly a bit forward of where the boat sat on the trailer) This area is not seen when the boat is on the lift. Jacking the hull off the bunks, I could see the blisters where along the chine exactly where the hull touches the lift bunks. I installed the Trailer Slicks over the new carpet. The slicks have water channels which has prevented further damage over the last 4 years.

Conclution:

1.) The original carpet on the lift caused it
2.) My hull is painted with 2 part urethane enamal NOT bottom paint therefore it's the paints fault
3.) I live on the River and the bottom gets stained with the Tanins from the water. I mix "Rust Off" in a commercial sprayer to remove these stains and then rinse.
Maybe some residue of this chemical had settled into the carpet and caused the blisters

BTW: I'm not defending my solution as the only way to turn, just my 2 cents. I have heard some people get Old Fire Hose from their local Fire Dept and mount it to their bunks vs carpet has it seems to last forever.
On the flip side, Bunk Slicks also came standard on my Flats Boat Trailer which makes loading / launching easier for me.

Martin Local

i think it is all in your use of the bunks. i think slicks would be great on a lift. and carpet better on a trailer. i would hate to back down a steep ramp with slicks on my trailer and have it slide off. i always unhook my boat before backing down for a quick efficient launching. also would never use a roller trailer, but then again everything has its place.

Lotta Bull

Martin Local wrote: »

i think it is all in your use of the bunks. i think slicks would be great on a lift. and carpet better on a trailer. i would hate to back down a steep ramp with slicks on my trailer and have it slide off. i always unhook my boat before backing down for a quick efficient launching. also would never use a roller trailer, but then again everything has its place.

I was told not to use the slicks for this reason, I launch by my self alot and don't need any mishaps like that. Thanks for the help.

isla21

Had a buddy do this with his new Sailfish at low tide. Messed up the hull and the ramp until the tide came in. Carpet!

Capt.AW

Lotta Bull wrote: »

I launch by my self alot and don't need any mishaps like that. Thanks for the help.

Well start fishing on Tuesday or Wednesday and I can help remedy that problem:grin

Lotta Bull

Adam I would if I could but, you know a smaller guy that would not like that Idea during school time.

Capt.AW

I completely understand. This morning my buddy said his son was almost in tears since Dad was going fishing without him.

Martin Local

thats cute mine is the same way.

Plane Fish n

Lotta Bull wrote: »

Adam I would if I could but, you know a smaller guy that would not like that Idea during school time.

Besides.. DJ is a better fisherman than you! grin:grin :wink

rowerybo

We have always used carpeted bunks on our trailers and NEVER had any blistering issues. If you do decide to go the route of the slicks, DO NOT remove the hook from the bow-eye until the boat is in the water. I have watched several boats slide off the slicks and land on the concrete of the ramps.

Plane Fish n

rowerybo wrote: »

We have always used carpeted bunks on our trailers and NEVER had any blistering issues. If you do decide to go the route of the slicks, DO NOT remove the hook from the bow-eye until the boat is in the water. I have watched several boats slide off the slicks and land on the concrete of the ramps.

Ryan,

GREAT ADVICE.... If you don't listen.. you will be ..... :Popcorn:Popcorn:Popcorn

Trollaltdelete

I have always had the slicks at the front of the trailer and carpet at the back. The first time I put slicks on the trailer, back in 98, I did the thing everyone does at least once.

I forgot the plugs. As I walked back to the dock, I saw both bilges going crazy. I got the truck, backed in and then drove the boat onto the trailer. Thinking it would be real quick to just pull the boat out, let it drain and then put the plugs in, I did not put the strap back on.

BAD MOVE. In a split second, my 26' boat was sitting at a 60 degree angle, and the trailer was torqued out of shape. The back of the boat was sitting on the concrete and I had no idea how I was going to recover.

After a pause, I put the bow strap on and pulled it as tight as I could. Then I pulled the truck forward a couple of inches and pulled it tight again. I was able to recover the boat onto the trailer, put the plugs in and go fishing, but that was the last time I ever left the strap off when I am pulling the boat out of the water.

Miraculously, the trailer popped right back into shape. The big IBeams that were torqued out of shape, recovered and I never had any issues with them again.

Moral to the story, use the strap.

I wish I would have had a picture of the boat standing almost straight up. Luckily for me, it was in '98 before the "Youtube" craze, or I may have been famous.

Vindawg

Dropped my Jet Ski of a trailer when I had those slicks on!

After that, I decided to go back to carpet and keep it that way.