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Tri-toon Storage...What do you store?

8 boat fenders all the time and I put a 4 pack of universal life jackets and a couple of water saddles down there when needed. There is still room for more just haven't needed to put anything else down there.
 
fenders while underway. water skis and/or tubes. Note that that compartment will collect a bit of water (there is a bilge pump in there). So don't put anything in there that can't get wet.
 
The only items we put down there are our skis and our mooring cover. Many of the things we thought we‘d put in it we keep in other spots for accessibility reasons. Those include the spare life jackets, swimming noodles, and our dock fenders. What we have found is we end up putting these three sets of items under our very large swingback seat storage space, and the fenders end up going in the two pop-up seat backs. Just more convenient and eliminates bending and reaching deep into the in-floor storage to retrieve them.

Frankly, I thought I would use it more. Still nice to have but between our layout and being docked lakeside at our cottage, I could have also gotten away without it. Now if we had a changing room and portable-pottie in our swingback area, we’d also then be adding all our swim noodles, and 2 four packs of extra emergency life jackets into that space.
 
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Agree with Jeff above - thought we would use it more than we do. Currently holds emergency life vests and our "PVC makeshift 2nd bimini". We looked at putting in a slightly raised floor to keep things 3-4 inch off the bottom of the tube to help avoid the risk of water - but haven't got around to that just yet
 
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My dealer talked me out of getting the locker, I’m glad he did. I find there is more than enough room under seats and helm for storage. If I always wanted skis or wakeboards on board then I would have bought it for that reason. We also have a cabin on the lake so we do not need to keep as much gear on board as people that just use their pontoons on the weekend without a cabin. All depends on how you use your boat. Dealer also said there has been mold problems on some that do not keep the area dried most of the time, so it does involve a little more cleaning/maintaining even though it has a pump it still stays damp.
 
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The only thing I store long term is anchors, chain and anchor line. If we have a lot of people and/or stuff, I may temporarily put items that can get wet - fishing gear, deflated tubes, skis, etc.

Keeping the compartment and everything in it dry is a problem. Ours gets water in heavy rains even when covered, and when operating in chop (not just moisture but inches of water).

So I don't leave anything in there that can mold. I use two of these storage bins to keep anchors from wandering around the tube. Obviously there's a lot of unused space in the bins for other temporary storage.

Our Bennington came with a 'floor' of custom-cut thick plastic, so I put the yellow top of the bin on the floor and the black bin on top of it. That gives it bottom-strength to withstand the heavy anchors. Then I bungee the two bins together to resist sliding forward or aft.

If you measure your storage opening, you can find one that fits just right at Lowes. About $10.

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Does water need to be pumped out if you get water in? Guessing yes.
 
I store fenders and paddles in the center toon. After a several weeks the fenders had mildew on them. The bilge pump is not located in the aft section of the toon and leaves .5" - 1" water in aft section.

I keep my boat covered during the week and on the weekends I just use the seat covers.

Here's what I did to keep the compartment dry.
1. Replaced the factory matt in the compartment with Vented Grip-Loc Tiles that don't hold water.
2. During the week I put an absorption sock across the front of the compartment opening.
3. Installed a suction pump in parallel with the bilge pump and located the pick up in the far aft of the compartment. This pump works like a vacuum and sucks out all the water that the bilge pump doesn't.
4. Sealed around the bilge pump wires where they go through the toon. When the bilge pump ran, water was leaking back into the compartment around the wires.
 
Noodles and ski equipment. Would never have a tritoon without it.
 
I just purchased a boarding ramp so that will be going down into the “bilge”, along with mooring cover, boat hook and fishing net. Basically anything bulky and can get wet and stay wet for extended periods of time. Expensive option for what it is, but I’m thankful to have all the storage I can get.

I also have spent some time thinking about how to deal with water/moisture since we do use it for storage - how to prevent water getting in (I like the absorbent mat idea) and better getting it out. Damp Rid seems to be the easy option, but yet another maintenance item to deal with. There are heated circulator fans on the market but requires 120v. Fighting the elements is usually a losing battle so I think mold and mildew are just going to be part of the deal - that’s where my kids can earn their keep with a brush and some bleach.
 
I’ve never had much water, but occasionally there is some. Mine has a bilge pump with an automatic and manual mode. We store the mooring cover in there while underway. I made three PVC storage tubes for the mooring cover poles, American flag, and two other flags. I also store the boat hook down there and the young ones if they act up.
 
We use it to store the fenders and mooring cover when underway and occasionally grand kids when they are misbehaving. :p
 
Potomacbassin’ said:
I just purchased a boarding ramp so that will be going down into the “bilge”, along with mooring cover, boat hook and fishing net. Basically anything bulky and can get wet and stay wet for extended periods of time. Expensive option for what it is, but I’m thankful to have all the storage I can get.

I also have spent some time thinking about how to deal with water/moisture since we do use it for storage - how to prevent water getting in (I like the absorbent mat idea) and better getting it out. Damp Rid seems to be the easy option, but yet another maintenance item to deal with. There are heated circulator fans on the market but requires 120v. Fighting the elements is usually a losing battle so I think mold and mildew are just going to be part of the deal - that’s where my kids can earn their keep with a brush and some bleach.
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I was curious about what type of boarding ramp did you find that fits in there? Most of the ones I have seen go underneath the boat but with a tritoon I don’t think that would work. I am also looking for one I can use and stow. A ramp that would fit in the center locker would be perfect. Thanks for any advice.
 
I saw the same thing lakelife - not going to work underneath and I didnt want something permanent topside that would get in the way 99% of the time.

Here is what I bought:


Lightweight (20lbs) yet sturdy enough to hold 300 lbs. I'm 190 and yes I tested in my kitchen. Panels flexed a little but didnt cave in.

Dimensionally we will see - I'll run it to the boat this weekend but at 15 inches wide by 48 long, it should be no problem. Fully opened at 8' it should be enough to span most of the water I'll be beached on unless the slope is essentially flat.

The cats approve so far, but real world testing comes later...

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Okay we have discussed in floor storage many times on this forum over the years. Still trying to understand where the water is coming from if members say that their boats are covered with the mooring cover and it still gets wet!
 
My playpen cover does not cover the bow in front of the front gate. Water runs under the door towards the back.
If you get caught in the rain, water will run towards the back over the hatch.
If you have dripping wet swimmers climbing on the boat and they stand on or walk over the hatch.
 
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