question for pontoon experts.

[deltaguy]

i remodeled my pontoon and move a few things around but now the front rides high and the back sits low.. about 75-80% of the back of the boat is underwater..should i move the battery up front?? how far up does it need to go? and for my starting battery what size wire should i use 40hp outboard.

checked the weight of the two battery's and they weigh just over one hundred pounds. they are mounted all the way on the back of the deck and i have a 18 gal gas tank mounted on the back also on opposite side. i will take a pic of it all and post it later.

thanks in advance

 

[5150abf]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

that is a pretty common problem with toons, gas, batteries, motor and tons of furniture ect all in the back 5% of the boat so it rides low in the back.


If you can get a battery up front I would, the start battery needs to stay by the engine though and try to get people to sit towards the front under way but without moving a bunch of stuff around really nothing you can do.

 

[deltaguy]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

is the boat safe to drive like that?? also why cant i move my starting battery up front?cars have baterys in the trunk without a problem. what makes it different for a boat? not trying to be a smart *** just trying to learn here.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

You can leave the battery on the dock (I'm exagerating here of course) as long as the battery cable is long enough and large enough. The farther you get away from the engine the greater the voltage drop. Starters draw high current so the cables you use to reach the new battery location must be at least as large or one size larger than the existing cables. Are you sure the tubes do not have any water in them?

 

[deltaguy]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

k i checked if there was water in the toons.. i think there is a little water in the front cones both sides.. i see some repairs done up front a weld on one side and a patch on the other.. iam almost positive that its water only in the front but i want to confirm that the cones in front are separate from the rest of the toons.. ive heard that it might be three chambers but i want to make sure..

 

[5150abf]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

Yes, each section should be seperate.

 

[Jeep Man]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

On my old toon, there are separate chambers, but water ccould drain out through the rear. There seemed to be a small hole between the chambers. If yours is the same, the water could collect in the rear.

 

[deltaguy]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

ok now that i know theirs water in the front cones were can i buy some aluminum bungs with plugs or bolts? think iam gonna weld one on each corner or is there a better solution..the boat is a 1997 suntracker 18ft

 

[trooplewis]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

'drooping' pontoons are pretty common. See photo, there is a lot of these on the Colorado River

Not a whole lot you can do about some of them.

Redistributing weight is good, but if yoi do it with the batteries, use #2AWG cable, and if you store them under a seat make sure you use sealed batteries, like a gel battery.

 

[chrisg]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

From your pic, and looking at the water line on mine, it looks like that is not that much of an issue. Its not sitting that far down. A pair of big inlaws at the front should solve the issue.

 

[deltaguy]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

'drooping' pontoons are pretty common. See photo, there is a lot of these on the Colorado River

Not a whole lot you can do about some of them.

Redistributing weight is good, but if yoi do it with the batteries, use #2AWG cable, and if you store them under a seat make sure you use sealed batteries, like a gel battery.

are you serious can the boat operate properly like this?? does not look safe at all.. the waters were iam at are very choppy at times with 3-5ft swells..

 

[samm835]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

No you should NOT operate your toon if its drooping that much. If its drooping that much you have major issues. Anyone who sets out with a toon looking like that is asking for trouble quickly, not only the over pressure your putting on the motor, but the chances of it finally deciding to sink down and possibly hurting your passengers. Also who in the hell would want to climb to the front seat after going to the back...to much work for trying to have a relaxing day on the lake.

 

[AZAL]

Re: question for pontoon experts.

'drooping' pontoons are pretty common. See photo, there is a lot of these on the Colorado River

What you don't see in this picture is the 10 people sitting in the shade behind the towels and the 6 iced coolers of beer.