Overall boat length

Paradise pontoon

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Newbie to pontoons but not new to boating.

We are pursuing a new Bennington and out of the gate, we want to be able to store the unit in our garage. The marina/service center has a program where they will bring the boat to my garage on a scissor lift and drop it in the fall and pick it up in the spring. I have the storage and like the idea of keeping it at my house so I can have access to it over the winter.

I've studied the website and the challenge I have to figure out is that I have 26.5 feet to play with in my garage so I need to ensure I stay inside that format.

After reviewing multiple models, it looks like a 22 footer is about as much as we can take. As a side note, we will be looking for a 150HP at least and would lean toward a 200 if possible.

A couple observations;

1) Overall length posted in the marketing literature does not include the motor and appears to be the measurement to include the ladder which seems reasonable.

2) Across the Bennington product line, a model 22xxxx might be anywhere from 21 feet long to 23 feet long for the overall length(again, not including the motor)

3) The measurement of overall length including the motor will be less by a few inches if the motor is in the down position. However, to get the motor completely down, the boat will have to be "dropped" on dollies at a certain height that will provide enough clearance to not hit the floor when the motor is in the down position. I am working with an 8 foot clearance on a garage door so I have some additional height study to do here as well.

4) Looking at different manufacturers of pontoon boats, I am seeing an approx. 15 inch length difference when comparing the pivot point of the motor to the vertical plane of the back of the platform. IE, the architecture of the platform can have a significant impact on the overall length of the boat including the motor.

5) We will have the option of picking the power plant. I am wondering if for instance Mercury motors are all much longer in profile that for instance Honda motors or Yamaha.

6) I would assume that for instance a 200HP motor will also be a few inches longer than a 150HP motor. With Mercury for instance, they appear to offer several motors and I assume each motor will add varying length to the overall length of the boat.

7) if the showrooms were full of boats, many of these questions could be answered with a tape measure but with only 2-3 boats in stock at my favorite dealer, this is not an option.

Sorry for the mind dump and I appreciate any thoughts on my direction...
 
It sounds like it could be tight with a 22' given slight bend in front end, extended deck in the back, plus a large motor. Also, would the motor have to stick out on an angle to avoid hitting the floor? Might depend on your garage door height? My neighbor has to put his on 4x4 dollies to get under the garage door and that causes him to trim out the motor.
 
I haven't figured out the stated overall length vs the actual measured length of the boat either.
My boat is a 2574GL, its licensed as a 25' boat.
If I measure from the front deck to the back deck its 27' long. I have an extended fore and aft deck outside of the playpen area that I'm assuming is where the additional 2' are from.
The transom sits about a foot past the rear deck and from the front of the boat to the back of the engine (trimmed down/straight up and down engine) its about 31'.
My shop is 56' long. I have enough room to back the boat in, leave the suburban hooked up and close the door, with about 18 inches to spare.

For rough estimates when looking at various models I add 2' to the model number (25's are 27', 22's are 24' etc..) then add 3 for the engine. I'm basing this off of the one boat I've actually ran a tape down so it most likely doesn't apply to all models/options.

For the drop off trailers and having to leave the engine tilted up and back like your scenario might have to add another foot or two.
26.5-2(front and rear deck)-3(engine straight up and down)-2(trimming up engine for clearance) = 19.5.

I'd definitely get better measurements from a dealer then my crude assumptions before ordering or falling in love with a particular used boat and finding out later it won't fit in your garage.
 
I have a 2012 RL with a Yamaha 115. I believe the 115 is the same dimensions as the 150. Our docks have length limits that are determined by the very furthest point front to the back including the motor in the down position. My boat was measured at 26’ 10”.
 
I am new to the pontoon world and we went though the same issues pricing out models. We needed to stay under 25' in length to fit into a boathouse and quickly realized that most models were ruled-out. We ended up with a 21SSBXP with an Evinrude 150 and it just fits.

The LOA is the most important number and adding for the engine. I agree with RunningYld that about 3' for the engine is good but will vary.

A 22 foot R series runs at 24'-6.5" LOA and a 22 foot S Series runs at 23'-9"
 
Use the Build & Price tool and it will provide the LOA at the end under Show Standards and Specs.
 
Could you build a small bump out on the back wall for the motor to stick into? Wouldn’t take much. If your lucky the stud cavity might fall on the motor centerline.
 
Newbie to pontoons but not new to boating.

We are pursuing a new Bennington and out of the gate, we want to be able to store the unit in our garage. The marina/service center has a program where they will bring the boat to my garage on a scissor lift and drop it in the fall and pick it up in the spring. I have the storage and like the idea of keeping it at my house so I can have access to it over the winter.

I've studied the website and the challenge I have to figure out is that I have 26.5 feet to play with in my garage so I need to ensure I stay inside that format.

After reviewing multiple models, it looks like a 22 footer is about as much as we can take. As a side note, we will be looking for a 150HP at least and would lean toward a 200 if possible.

A couple observations;

1) Overall length posted in the marketing literature does not include the motor and appears to be the measurement to include the ladder which seems reasonable.

2) Across the Bennington product line, a model 22xxxx might be anywhere from 21 feet long to 23 feet long for the overall length(again, not including the motor)

3) The measurement of overall length including the motor will be less by a few inches if the motor is in the down position. However, to get the motor completely down, the boat will have to be "dropped" on dollies at a certain height that will provide enough clearance to not hit the floor when the motor is in the down position. I am working with an 8 foot clearance on a garage door so I have some additional height study to do here as well.

4) Looking at different manufacturers of pontoon boats, I am seeing an approx. 15 inch length difference when comparing the pivot point of the motor to the vertical plane of the back of the platform. IE, the architecture of the platform can have a significant impact on the overall length of the boat including the motor.

5) We will have the option of picking the power plant. I am wondering if for instance Mercury motors are all much longer in profile that for instance Honda motors or Yamaha.

6) I would assume that for instance a 200HP motor will also be a few inches longer than a 150HP motor. With Mercury for instance, they appear to offer several motors and I assume each motor will add varying length to the overall length of the boat.

7) if the showrooms were full of boats, many of these questions could be answered with a tape measure but with only 2-3 boats in stock at my favorite dealer, this is not an option.

Sorry for the mind dump and I appreciate any thoughts on my direction...
I hope you have over 9' wide door. Really sounds tight..... I built a 40' L x 14' W x 12' tall leg Versa Tube RV shelter and my 22 SSRCX F150 SPS on an EZ Loader trailer and I can't even put the bimini up underneath it and roof is probably 12'6" to 15' at peak. "Measure twice, buy once." Hope it works out for you. My trailer really sits high. Maybe your bimini in travel mode height even with boat on dollies could give you a problem but easy to remove. Best of luck to you. Here is an idea.........What if you build a husky metal stand for engine and remove it in winter with chain hoist for reducing length of boat and store separate? Like 500 lbs. Could have fabricating shop build it with husky casters.IMG_4200.jpg
 
It's so interesting to learn more and more about this topic. I always had an unnecessary yacht in the backyard of my parents' house, and because it constantly irritated everyone's eyes, no one needed it. And only recently, I was on a yacht vacation with friends, and I liked it so much that I wanted to make it my hobby. It turned out to be very interesting to understand the management and the yacht system in general. I'm even now thinking about booking a summer vacation for my whole family on a yacht. So far, I'm thinking about the vistayachts service, but I'd like to discuss it with you if you know any other options. I will wait for answers
 
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Paradise, as you can see by now the the real user dimensions of pontoons are not easy to determine AND design matters. On some, the extra length added by the motor is little, on others the entire length of the motor must be added to that of the pontoon. I almost bought a pontoon that appeared to be a 22 footer, but discovered that the actual overall length was 26+ feet....not a player for us. Tri-toons seem to be the worst offenders, but twin-toons are not immune to length shock. As you've discovered, length that may be implied by a model number means nothing.
 
Newbie to pontoons but not new to boating.

We are pursuing a new Bennington and out of the gate, we want to be able to store the unit in our garage. The marina/service center has a program where they will bring the boat to my garage on a scissor lift and drop it in the fall and pick it up in the spring. I have the storage and like the idea of keeping it at my house so I can have access to it over the winter.

I've studied the website and the challenge I have to figure out is that I have 26.5 feet to play with in my garage so I need to ensure I stay inside that format.

After reviewing multiple models, it looks like a 22 footer is about as much as we can take. As a side note, we will be looking for a 150HP at least and would lean toward a 200 if possible.

A couple observations;

1) Overall length posted in the marketing literature does not include the motor and appears to be the measurement to include the ladder which seems reasonable.

2) Across the Bennington product line, a model 22xxxx might be anywhere from 21 feet long to 23 feet long for the overall length(again, not including the motor)

3) The measurement of overall length including the motor will be less by a few inches if the motor is in the down position. However, to get the motor completely down, the boat will have to be "dropped" on dollies at a certain height that will provide enough clearance to not hit the floor when the motor is in the down position. I am working with an 8 foot clearance on a garage door so I have some additional height study to do here as well.

4) Looking at different manufacturers of pontoon boats, I am seeing an approx. 15 inch length difference when comparing the pivot point of the motor to the vertical plane of the back of the platform. IE, the architecture of the platform can have a significant impact on the overall length of the boat including the motor.

5) We will have the option of picking the power plant. I am wondering if for instance Mercury motors are all much longer in profile that for instance Honda motors or Yamaha.

6) I would assume that for instance a 200HP motor will also be a few inches longer than a 150HP motor. With Mercury for instance, they appear to offer several motors and I assume each motor will add varying length to the overall length of the boat.

7) if the showrooms were full of boats, many of these questions could be answered with a tape measure but with only 2-3 boats in stock at my favorite dealer, this is not an option.

Sorry for the mind dump and I appreciate any thoughts on my direction...
I haven't been following this post but just saw the new info put today. I had a similar issue in that I wanted a boat that would fit under my dock roof and was looking for a smaller boat. I found that I was giving up things on the boat so that it would fit but what I really wanted was that bigger boat and motor. So my decision was to get the boat and motor I wanted and make the boat house roof longer. I realize that you may not be able to make your garage bigger, but consider other solutions.
 
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