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TejasNewbie

TejasNewbie

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Getting a new R series soon...can't wait.  I'm trailering the boat all summer; I've got the factory Sharkhide on the 'toons and obviously have the new seat vinyl.  My question: w/a brand new boat should I do anything w/it immediately to protect the seats, flooring, etc?  Should i have any boat rules i.e. no wine, no smoking, etc?


Thanks everyone for all the wonderful discussions out here the past few years...this site really helped me w/my purchase once i finally pulled the trigger.
 
303 protectant -- I wipe down the seats  a couple times a year after cleaning. Great stuff!!   I also put it on my trailer tires to help with uv protection a couple times a year.    I bought a gallon but didn't really need that much. I should have bought maybe 2 quarts at a time to keep it fresh.  You do need the gallon size (or more) of the 303 waterproof fabric guard if you're going to do the bimini boot, mooring cover etc...
 
303 vinyl protectant all the way! 
 
We have the rule no colored drinks ..... except MY flavored water. No Doritos, cheetos or any itos with powdered cheese on our seats. No greasy finger foods unless you are sitting on a towel.  I know it's just a boat ... blah, blah, blah, but it's our hard earned money boat and if I wanted a cheeto pontoon, I'd of bought a $2000 beater. We used to smoke, but only at the stern. We would never allow it on the seats. We think of this boat as a high end Cadillac or BMW and treat it as such. 
 
Oh, as for seat care, see here..... 
 
Juice pouches and water only.  The juice in pouches is clear because you can't see thru the foil.  Manufacturer won't waste money on dye when it can't be seen anyway. Won't stain seats, keeps kids happy.
 
No drunks with cigarettes or cigars.  Occasional smoking at the rear of the boat in one of the loungers is ok, but be sure you trust the person to respect the boat.  A burn hole in a new boat would only upset you.  As for the booze, spills can be cleaned especially if you use 303.  Don't leave home without it!   :D   Chips are ok too, just know going in there will be crumbs.


Enjoy your boat and enjoy the folks who are with you.  Respect and courtesy is key.  Anyone not respecting can get off the boat.  


Sounds like  a nice boat.  I hope you gets tons of enjoyment out of it!
 
I wipe my seats down most weekends with 303 and do the bimini and mooring cover twice a year in the spring & the fall
 
Care instructions are different from the previous seat material .Care card from Bennington in  Dave's post 


View attachment 1559
 
We don't even allow shoes on ours! 
 
Obviously, the more stuff you ban from the boat the less likely you are to have problems. I would consider myself to be pretty particular about my stuff and my boat, but we do allow "colored" beverages and food on board. That said, like many others on this board, we treat our seats with 303 which does offer protection. We also ask our guests to be careful, but because accidents happen, we have cleaning supplies aboard for such emergencies (haven't had to use them yet). Heck, we even grill on-board. 


One lurking problem that might not seem so obvious is brightly colored "new" clothing. On my old boat, I had a passenger who wore a new t-shirt that left the color on my 303 treated upholstery. Suffice to say, it wasn't intentional, but I was not a happy camper. It took nearly two years of cleaning and sun bleaching to get rid of it! Beware... 


Welcome TejasNewbie! Of course, pics and specs when available so we can drool over your new purchase!
 
Funny how most people above have these do's and donts for guest's, & I agree with you all but I have never had a Guest cause anything but minor clean up stuff. I would say most of the Dammage your gonna get on your boat Over the Years is "Owner Caused" to me your pontoons are a indicator of how you operate your boat. Example you can see a knuckle head from 1/2 mile away. Just look at how hammerd his toons are. With that in mind. 


#1 learn how to anchor. So you don't need to side tie to anyone. I like to throw 2 anchors 1 at the front and 1 at the back and then Transome into a party or tie up. In my opinion most dammage comes from side tieing to another boat from the boats rocking back and forth when some dumb ass decides to wake surf threw the now wake zone!!!!!


#2 be super careful when docking and or pulling away from a dock. This is where I would say 90% of pontoon boat dings and Dammage comes from.( I'm a awesome boat driver)  but even I have had minor dock rash. And the more your on the water the greater the risk.   At times the wind can put you in some tricky spots in and around docks. So if your new or even if your not. It's a good Idea to have a stick of sorts to help fend yourself away from damage if you find your self drifting into somthing it's almost impossible to fend your self away in a pontoon boat unless it's at the front and or rear of the boat. Having that stick or pole to fend or push you away from mid ship  Dammage is a great back up plan. 
 
G has a good point. Last weekend was first time I ever power docked into a strong headwind. Pointed my port bow corner into dock , she hooked it up, put into reverse, turned wheel all the way, and let motor pull the stern in. Crazy. Don't ever remember doing it before. Was very easy vs. fighting wind. 
 
In baseball if you want to hit someone you aim for the Armpit, because it's very hard for the batter to move that section of the body out of the way. The dead center of your pontoons (mid ship) is the "Arm pit" of your boat. This section of the boat is very slow to get out of the way and in my experience is the section that's at risk most of the time in a cross wind. My best advice is don't become complacent no matter how good of a Captin you are and when you get near items like a Dock or other boats  give it your full attention and you will be good to go. 
 
Congrats Tex,


If this is your first boat, I would do the following:


1) Get super comfortable trailering the boat in all circumstances and take care of your tires.  Flats suck on the road AND boat trailer tires are ok at best.  Most will rot before you put enough miles on them to wear them down.  Practice backing your Benny into all kids of different situations as ramps are all different.  Learn how deep to put in for loading and unloading, to diminish the use of power loading when possible.  If you are already an experienced tow person, this should be very easy.  If not, don't do your first time at a crowded ramp or you risk having your episode show up on You Tube under the "ramp follies" category.  A checklist for loading and unloading may help until it becomes natural to cover all the steps.  


If you remember only one thing from this post, it is this....The most important rule of trailering is very easy:


DON'T FORGET TO PUT IN THE DRAIN PLUG BEFORE YOU LAUNCH YOUR BOAT!
​




2) Once #1 is rock solid, practice getting to know your boat and how it handles in various conditions.  When I got my first bowrider, I was a nervous wreck until I spent time practicing docking, anchoring, stopping, etc.  You will eventually get a great feel for how she handles and it becomes instinctual after awhile.  I would drop a fender in the water and practice approaching it under different wind and current conditions.  The only thing that helps this is time in the cockpit.  It's great fun and builds you into a more confident captain.


After 1 & 2, are rock solid, make up all the rules that you want.


Congrats again and  safe boating.  As always, post some pics when you can.
 
SEMPERFI8387 said:
G has a good point. Last weekend was first time I ever power docked into a strong headwind. Pointed my port bow corner into dock , she hooked it up, put into reverse, turned wheel all the way, and let motor pull the stern in. Crazy. Don't ever remember doing it before. Was very easy vs. fighting wind. 
Click to expand...

Semp, the procedure you described is the best way to dock at most parallel docking situations. And the same procedure works well when your pulling out from the dock. Just untie the line and wrap the mooring post two times at the bow of the boat and hold tight. Turn the motor away from the dock and put in reverse and throttle slowly until stern has moved away from dock. Then instruct the person holding the line to release. Once the line has released from the post,have the line pulled onto the boat before putting the boat in forward motion. I seldom ever bring out a hook. Most of our docking is at crowded bars and in tidal wash situations. With a little practice, you'll use the procedure all the time! 
 
SEMPERFI8387 said:
We have the rule no colored drinks ..... except MY flavored water. No Doritos, cheetos or any itos with powdered cheese on our seats. No greasy finger foods unless you are sitting on a towel.  I know it's just a boat ... blah, blah, blah, but it's our hard earned money boat and if I wanted a cheeto pontoon, I'd of bought a $2000 beater. We used to smoke, but only at the stern. We would never allow it on the seats. We think of this boat as a high end Cadillac or BMW and treat it as such. 
Click to expand...

We also had an incident with my little niece and watermelon on our previous boat! Had a nice little pinkish red handprint on the back lounger!  Some good scrubbing and a couple days of sun cleared it up, whew!!
 
SEMPERFI8387 said:
G has a good point. Last weekend was first time I ever power docked into a strong headwind. Pointed my port bow corner into dock , she hooked it up, put into reverse, turned wheel all the way, and let motor pull the stern in. Crazy. Don't ever remember doing it before. Was very easy vs. fighting wind. 
Click to expand...

You power docked???  Into a headwind???


I get it now. You were using someone else's boat.
 
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