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Sea Legs Opinions

NCLakeGuy

NCLakeGuy

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I was looking into Sea Legs as a solution to lift my boat in since our neighborhood slips where I keep my boat does not have power and are not wide enough for drive on solutions. I noted some members have them. I would appreciate thoughts and feedback on the pros/cons and value of the purchase. I am more on the OCD side when taking care of my toys :)
 
We had a really nice lift and canopy system originally (2017). Switched to Sea Legs in 2019 for lake level reasons. I am a total convert on Sea Legs! I would never own a pontoon of any sort without them again.

Ours have worked great from 2019 to the present. I think its one of the best options you can add to a pontoon for protecting it in the water by lifting it up when not in use wherever you’re at, keeping pontoons out of water for ease of keeping them clean, and ease of use & flexibly for lifting your boat out of the water any where you are (5’ of water or less).

Value of purchase over time is absolutely there! There are a lot of practical and fun perks to having them too. I would think they would work perfect for your situation, and they certainly help with the OCD side of taking care of your Benninton.

Caveat: You need to have a somewhat firm lake or river bottom from them to work well. Could be solid dirt, sand or clay, or peeble rock type bottom. If one has that sort of seabed, then I think they are the only way to go. An irregular bottom of boulders or big rocks is no good for firm footing, and muck and mud they can sink down into isn’t good for ability to retract.
 
IMHO…off the top of my head:

Pros: Lift the boat up out of water ANYWHERE you are in 5-6’ or less of water. Great for docking, sand bars, beaches, visiting others, etc… Just pop it up on the Sea Legs and do what you want to do. For example, no managing tying up with bumpers and related concerns as your boat will stay solidly in place. No anchor line & boat management in shallow situations for same reasons. Just lower Sea Legs, and plant that boat precisely and firmly in place!

Doesn’t really cost more than a higher quality solar power lift and canopy system. From a cost perspective, its in the range depending on what one might get, but provides greater flexibility than a heavy and fixed lift.

Easy to use and operate. You have a couple switches on the unit as backup, and you also have a remote (my preference), and you a phone app. Just as simple as a power lift, but with more flexibility of use.

If you operate on water with fluctuating lake depth levels (our situation), the flexibility of Sea Legs is tremendous compared to a heavy in place lift. No more worrying about being stuck on a lift if water level drops too low. As long as your boat can float, you can drop the legs and go…even if so shallow you have to walk it.

If you are in a climate where you’d have to pull your lift out annually (winter - our situation too), then this eliminates doing so as well as not needing yard space for lift storage. In a nutshell, you always have your lift with you for whatever you might want to do and you don’t have to worry about another item seasonally or when your boat is not in the water. It’s simply always with your boat, and it’s tucked away inconspicuously beneath it.

If you would have otherwise had a lift system with a canopy, no more tight spaces to dock between with canopy supports. With the Sea Legs, you can be as precise or as sloppy dockside as you wish (although probably not a benefit in a slip situaiton).

Cons: (most of these are minor, but worth mentioning).

You are carrying the extra weight of about 2 male occupants on board because of them. So you should factor that against capacity plate. As a result of always having that extra weight and displacement beneath the boat, you will lose 3-5mph at WOT and across the performance range for whatever load you normally carry.

I was very hung up on potential performance loss (hence originally trying a traditional lift first when we boat our boat in 2017). Thus, I spent a lot of time researching the impact on it. It seems to be a loss of 3-5mph depending on boat (weight, toons, layout) and motor (HP).

For us specifically, we lost 3 mph at WOT on a light load (went from 45mph to 42 mph WOT) , and we edge closer to 5 mph less when loaded down with a full crew and gear (went from 40 mph to about 35-37 mph WOT). For reference, 24’ SSBXP SPS tritoon, 200HP Mercury Verado Pro. Consequently, you will use more throttle and be at higher RPM’s for whatever speed you want to go because you have that extra weight all the time + your passengers and gear.

A couple usage nuances. Not cons per see, but nuances. With a tritoon in particular, you have 4 indepdent legs coordinated off remote or app buttons. You have to tweak raising and lowering with buttons to keep it level or at your desired angle. Easy, but something you have to do.

Remote range is poor. You have to be somewhat close, and metal obstructions (side railings) interfere. No biggie, but wonky sometimes depending on dock situation.

If you don’t “trip” the in line sea legs circuit breaker switch, they are always a slow draw on the battery. Basically a parasitic draw. Tripping the toggle switch circuit breaker eliminates that draw. However, if unaware or you forget, and your boat sits for a few weeks, you can drain down your battery too low to operate.

Along with that, there is a minimum voltage (+/- 12 volts) necessary or the Sea Legs wont work. It’s supposed to be a safety feature to protect battery to insure cranking power for your motor. However, if up on your Sea Legs, and the battery is low, well then…you need to charge your battery to lower sea legs to then start the boat. It’s a kinda backwards safety feature IMO. So managing the item above, and having good battery health are important or you could be stuck up on the Sea Legs until the battery is charged or replaced.

If you would have had a canopy cover with your lift (we did), then you lose it when switching to Sea Legs and have to go back to covering your boat thoroughly with the mooring cover. Once we got used to covering it thoroughly with the mooring cover, we were fine. Only takes us 5, maybe 8 minutes. But it’s certainly not as easy as just parking it under a lift canopy and knowing you can be sloppy with laxadasicaly mooring cover use.
 
Jeff
Thank you for the really detailed and thoughtful response. That helps tremendously. I think depth and lake bottom we should be fine. Silty cover for an inch but sand or clay under. I saw they have an 8' option if needed. No canopy now. Sold our lake house with lift and covered slips and now live just off the water and use the neighborhood slips. Thus my need for options. Boat is a 2019 23 Q with Yamaha 250 so power we should be ok. We have two batteries, being in the auto repair business I have a real focus on batteries being good and charged, so that should be fine. Odd there are no dealers south of Nashville it seems. I will keep the group posted.
Peter
 
The more I look the more I like the idea. Definitely more common and better know in the Great Lakes and surrounding boating community from what I can discern. And I think I read Miller Marine up there is one of the largest Bennington dealers and they sell/install Ultra Legs. In researching Sea vs Ultra all the comparisons are about 4 years old and seems Ultra has an edge in cylinder and build quality. Any thoughts on the two? Maybe this should be a separate thread.
 
NCLakeGuy said:
The more I look the more I like the idea. Definitely more common and better know in the Great Lakes and surrounding boating community from what I can discern. And I think I read Miller Marine up there is one of the largest Bennington dealers and they sell/install Ultra Legs. In researching Sea vs Ultra all the comparisons are about 4 years old and seems Ultra has an edge in cylinder and build quality. Any thoughts on the two? Maybe this should be a separate thread.
Click to expand...
I think the Ultra Legs are heavier, and I think there was an edge for awhile with electronics (maybe the app option on Sea Legs). But, that was in 2019 after Sea Legs had reduced the weight of their system and added an app. I don’t know if Ultra Legs ever responded to those two improvements.

For me, weight of the system AND ease of installation dealer would be the main factors as in the end they both do the same thing. Okay, if there is a crazy cost savings between one or the other, that’d become a factor too. There is another member that has had Ultra legs for awhile, so hopefully they’ll chime in soon.

In the end, I want all the benefits with as little of a performance hit as possible. Both have been around plenty long enough without any major problems or concerns that I’ve come across in recent years.

The local Bennington dealer up here does Sea Legs in house, so a no-brainer for me when we added them in 2019. If the only option near us was Ultra Legs, I would have slapped them on instead.

As for reviews: I’ve never came across any worthwhile comparisons between the two myself because they either seem to be company/installer opinions (which are biased for their system), or customers opinions like me that have only experienced one or the other, not both.

I think it’s like Mercury v Yamaha. Those that have one of them have an opinion, but can you really go wrong? I don’t think so personally.
 
I have Ultra Legs since 2019 and several neighbors have either Sea Legs or Ultra Legs. All seem happy with performance and not having to mess with a lift. I have a 115hp and the weight seems to impact top end by 5mph to 10mph. Ultra legs have a way to use with a drill or allen key if something breaks, but I have not had to use that option. These systems are very nice to level the pontoon even with the dock for elderly visitors. I really like being able to move the boat closer or further from shore if water level changes in our shallow bay. Much better than moving a lift.
 
The only other consideration, and it's a big one (was a dealbreaker for me), is that sea/ultralegs are nowhere near as rollover-proof as a traditional lift. If you park where side-winds are possible (as I am) beware that your boat could tip over.

I've seen a couple sea-legged toons on their sides after big storms. It's just physics: with the legs inside the pontoons there's not nearly as much resistance to sideways tipping.
 
That makes sense. Fortunately I am sheltered in our little cove. Still considering but need to also figure out if I would need the 8 ft to get out of the water in my slip. Boat out of water daily is my main goal. Thanks!
 
CLDave said:
The only other consideration, and it's a big one (was a dealbreaker for me), is that sea/ultralegs are nowhere near as rollover-proof as a traditional lift. If you park where side-winds are possible (as I am) beware that your boat could tip over.

I've seen a couple sea-legged toons on their sides after big storms. It's just physics: with the legs inside the pontoons there's not nearly as much resistance to sideways tipping.
Click to expand...
I looked into this related topic somewhat back in 2022 in response to a thread with the Michigan rep for Sea Legs. We are on a huge lake - largest inland lake in Michigan. We get powerful winds coming across it at all angles with massive storms. A fair number at 60mph+ over the years with heavy damage to homes, power lines, trees, docks, etc… Our’s had never budged, but it’s always been in the back of my mind.

Anyway, when this came up in 2022 I reached out to Sea Legs with the concern and if I should take measure to be cautious. I shared the response in reply #8:

Post in thread 'Sea Legs (Ultra Legs) full extension vs. hydraulics'
https://club.benningtonmarine.com/t...ull-extension-vs-hydraulics.12827/post-164463

He said for my specific Bennington 24’ SSBXP SPS 200Hp Mercury, it would take straight line winds in excess of 100mph winds to flip something like that if its sitting even on its legs and not already angled. I’d normally be skeptical of his biased opinion, but with all the massive storms, 1-2 a year, since we added ours in 2019, I’ve never seen one tipped over on our lake. And pretty much everyone, myself included, is very exposed to strong winds on our lake.

I think this concern sounds like it would be a concern, but the reality is that it probably is not one based on the weight of the boats and downward force.
 
As we are looking for a boat for Walled Lake, I will look to add sea legs our lake is natural sandy bottom.
Vikingstaff said:
We had a really nice lift and canopy system originally (2017). Switched to Sea Legs in 2019 for lake level reasons. I am a total convert on Sea Legs! I would never own a pontoon of any sort without them again.

Ours have worked great from 2019 to the present. I think its one of the best options you can add to a pontoon for protecting it in the water by lifting it up when not in use wherever you’re at, keeping pontoons out of water for ease of keeping them clean, and ease of use & flexibly for lifting your boat out of the water any where you are (5’ of water or less).

Value of purchase over time is absolutely there! There are a lot of practical and fun perks to having them too. I would think they would work perfect for your situation, and they certainly help with the OCD side of taking care of your Benninton.

Caveat: You need to have a somewhat firm lake or river bottom from them to work well. Could be solid dirt, sand or clay, or peeble rock type bottom. If one has that sort of seabed, then I think they are the only way to go. An irregular bottom of boulders or big rocks is no good for firm footing, and muck and mud they can sink down into isn’t good for ability to retract.
Click to expand...
 
CLDave said:
The only other consideration, and it's a big one (was a dealbreaker for me), is that sea/ultralegs are nowhere near as rollover-proof as a traditional lift. If you park where side-winds are possible (as I am) beware that your boat could tip over.

I've seen a couple sea-legged toons on their sides after big storms. It's just physics: with the legs inside the pontoons there's not nearly as much resistance to sideways tipping.
Click to expand...
 
Strong winds last Summer lifted/moved my pontoon. Pontoon normally sits leveled and 12" or so away from the dock and on UltraLegs. Fortunately, the pontoon did not come in contact with the dock.
 

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That is amazing. Almost looks like the dock saved it. Surprised the dock didn’t move also or get lifted up.
 
Vikingstaff said:
I think the Ultra Legs are heavier, and I think there was an edge for awhile with electronics (maybe the app option on Sea Legs). But, that was in 2019 after Sea Legs had reduced the weight of their system and added an app. I don’t know if Ultra Legs ever responded to those two improvements.

For me, weight of the system AND ease of installation dealer would be the main factors as in the end they both do the same thing. Okay, if there is a crazy cost savings between one or the other, that’d become a factor too. There is another member that has had Ultra legs for awhile, so hopefully they’ll chime in soon.

In the end, I want all the benefits with as little of a performance hit as possible. Both have been around plenty long enough without any major problems or concerns that I’ve come across in recent years.

The local Bennington dealer up here does Sea Legs in house, so a no-brainer for me when we added them in 2019. If the only option near us was Ultra Legs, I would have slapped them on instead.

As for reviews: I’ve never came across any worthwhile comparisons between the two myself because they either seem to be company/installer opinions (which are biased for their system), or customers opinions like me that have only experienced one or the other, not both.

I think it’s like Mercury v Yamaha. Those that have one of them have an opinion, but can you really go wrong? I don’t think so personally.
Click to expand...
Hey there, Just wanted to share a few things. Ultra-legs hit the market in 2016. They are about 48" wide vs nearly 52" wide more so jist to fit on a pallet for shipping reasons. Ultra-legs have the extra support just behind/above the footpath which structurally make them stronger than Ultra-legs. The weight is virtually the same. The module manufacturer that made sea-legs is now making Ultra-legs as with the Pump manufacturer. Both companies have struggled a bit with cylinders since the pandemic. I know for a fact that the Ultra-legs cylinders as of 2024 will have an added seal as to try to avoid any issues from here on out. Sea-legs is running remote systems from 2 manufacturers, both being wifi with App feature. The downside to this is that the remote system is constantly looking to pair with something so you will need to install a master on/off switch or your battery will be completely drained. Ultra-legs remote system does not, but they do sell another Bluetooth toggle box that is a plug and play and will work with the standard remote system that is supplied in the kit. The Ultra-legs pump also has it's own mater switch built right onto the pump so that you can shut it off even if only having one battery and the pump being wired directly to the battery. Many dealers in MN have switched to Ultra-legs due to their customer support and warranty. Unfortunately, they are being made by a regional parts distributor that has had a hard time getting out of the MN area as they don't have any sales reps or installers out of state. I had worked for sea-legs back in 2012 and have been installing both products for the region essentially since then. I'm about the only guy who will travel to someone's lakehome/cabin/house/storage facility to fix these out of warranty as well. If installed correctly, generally either product should last from date of install til forever! But yes, outside MN most are only Sea-legs dealers. Definitely feel free to ask any questions and I'd be more than willing to share what knowledge I've got!
 
That’s some nice updated info for the Ultra Legs! Not as much info on them floating around the forum. Glad they have trimmed down the weight of them like Sea Legs a number of years ago. I think that weight of the system is a big difference maker in considering them. For me, the slightly wider stance on the Sea Legs would be the difference maker IF I had options. However, I don’t, so went with the option I could get in 2019: Sea Legs.

As for remotes, I used to have the old style Sea Legs remote. That really was garbage. I now have their newer remote box and the newer remote. The new remote is significantly more robust. That said, both have a power button, so they certainly were not looking to connect (or draining battery power) until the power button is held for 3 seconds to “turn on and link the remote.” My newer more robust remote seems to connect and respond quicker/better. I haven’t tested for range, but also hoping it has improved range. Again, that older style remote had almost no range. It was horrible. Time will tell.

As for shutting them off, I like that Ultra Legs has an actual power switch. Any direct connect to battery system like this should. Sea Legs does not. They do, however, have an in-line circuit breaker switch. I toggle it off when the boat is not in use, in effect shutting off all power to the system so it’s not a parasitic draw. So at least that is an option for Sea Legs owners. Otherwise those things will slowly drain a battery down if not used regularly.
 
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