PONTOON boat for inland waters > exp or sug please
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We used 25' pontoon boats for commercial diving in Kaneohe Bay on O'ahu, but that was pretty protected waters. What size are you looking at? In Fort Lauderdale and Key Largo, there are ops using large pontoon boats for ocean diving. Lots and lots of room - just not the greatest boats for seakeeping.
The Kraken
He Who Glows in the Dark Waters (ADVISOR)
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Skeet,
I have a pontoon boat that I keep on Lake Hartwell, between Georgia and South Carolina.
There's not a great deal to dive on in that lake, but it makes an excellent dive platform. It's one of the 30' Party Huts.
I have a pontoon boat that I keep on Lake Hartwell, between Georgia and South Carolina.
There's not a great deal to dive on in that lake, but it makes an excellent dive platform. It's one of the 30' Party Huts.
Tom has it right: as long as the water's flat, they are great dive platforms. There
used to be someone who used one in Monterey on really flat days. And I think the
original Beach Hopper was a pontoon boat. Bright green indoor-outdoor carpet on the
deck IIRC.
But when it gets snotty, they suck.
used to be someone who used one in Monterey on really flat days. And I think the
original Beach Hopper was a pontoon boat. Bright green indoor-outdoor carpet on the
deck IIRC.
But when it gets snotty, they suck.
Skeet - it all depends on the size of the pontoon boat and what you're driving on. South Florida Diving HQ's runs a pontoon boat, but it's 45' long. That's kinda like what they run in Key Largo too. Tons and tons of room, and certainly seaworthy enough for any seas they might go out in - if it's too rough - you just flat don't go out. I guess in Texas they call that a dinghy...
The smaller pontoon boats are nice and flat and perfect for protected waters. We never ran any of the fancy pontoon jobs with things like heads and padded seats - we just ran big flat gear and passenger platforms.
They maneuver like bloated pigs in the wind, but I always kinda liked it like that - it made things interesting and also meant that no one else could drive the things in bad winds.
On one of the pax pontooners I drove with twin outboards, we had one go out for a week, and driving that thing into the wind with one engine was a real exercise in seamanship.
I guess we sorta forgot to tell the Coast Guard that we were short an engine for week, so we also got a $250 fine from them. Not sure why they bothered, but I think they didn't like the company owner that much. Politics.
For afforability, you can't beat a pontoon boat - it's just two aluminum hulls bolted to a platform. If your waters are calm enough, go for it.
If the weather stinks, stay home and have a few drinks; if the weather is fine, then go have a great time.
Now I need to make a plug here for an interesting company called Wilson Distribution:
http://www.plasticpontoon.com/index.html
These guys make plastic pontoons, and they're damn nice too. I looked them over at length at one of the trade shows and really liked them. They're tough, pretty cheap, and a great way to make an AWESOME dive platform without a whole lot of work. The people at Wilson were nice too, and I'm sorry that I just could not do business with them. Maybe one day.
You could probably make one truely righteous floating condo out of three or four of these things bolted in a train on a quadmaran? hull. The zoning people in Boca Raton would have a universal coronary at the sight of that though.
Sun Tracker would be ok and trailerable too.
The smaller pontoon boats are nice and flat and perfect for protected waters. We never ran any of the fancy pontoon jobs with things like heads and padded seats - we just ran big flat gear and passenger platforms.
They maneuver like bloated pigs in the wind, but I always kinda liked it like that - it made things interesting and also meant that no one else could drive the things in bad winds.
On one of the pax pontooners I drove with twin outboards, we had one go out for a week, and driving that thing into the wind with one engine was a real exercise in seamanship.
I guess we sorta forgot to tell the Coast Guard that we were short an engine for week, so we also got a $250 fine from them. Not sure why they bothered, but I think they didn't like the company owner that much. Politics.
For afforability, you can't beat a pontoon boat - it's just two aluminum hulls bolted to a platform. If your waters are calm enough, go for it.
If the weather stinks, stay home and have a few drinks; if the weather is fine, then go have a great time.
Now I need to make a plug here for an interesting company called Wilson Distribution:
http://www.plasticpontoon.com/index.html
These guys make plastic pontoons, and they're damn nice too. I looked them over at length at one of the trade shows and really liked them. They're tough, pretty cheap, and a great way to make an AWESOME dive platform without a whole lot of work. The people at Wilson were nice too, and I'm sorry that I just could not do business with them. Maybe one day.
You could probably make one truely righteous floating condo out of three or four of these things bolted in a train on a quadmaran? hull. The zoning people in Boca Raton would have a universal coronary at the sight of that though.
Sun Tracker would be ok and trailerable too.
For a given lenght get the largest diameter pontoons you can find. There is no substitute for bouyancy and when loading aboard several divers, tanks and gear, you can never have too much.
Adequate bouyancy and proper loading will go a long way toward preventing submarining into large on-coming waves, although pontoons still tend to roll badly if the waves are abeam. Although it usually feels worse than it is, you still need to remember that a pontoon is like a catamaran and is at its peak stability it is level in the water and it becomes less stable the farther over it heels. Most other conventional hull types tend to become more stable as they approach their rails and the forces that want to right the boat become greater as it heels farther over.
You also want a fair amount of power to help force it around in the wind but you will still need to develop a good eye to put one along side the dock or into a slip when the wind is blowing strong.
If you are likely to encounter rough water frequently or want more speed for longer transits, a deck boat with a fairly deep V hull is a better choice and will offer nearly as much deck space for a given lenght with better manners in the wind and in rough water.
Adequate bouyancy and proper loading will go a long way toward preventing submarining into large on-coming waves, although pontoons still tend to roll badly if the waves are abeam. Although it usually feels worse than it is, you still need to remember that a pontoon is like a catamaran and is at its peak stability it is level in the water and it becomes less stable the farther over it heels. Most other conventional hull types tend to become more stable as they approach their rails and the forces that want to right the boat become greater as it heels farther over.
You also want a fair amount of power to help force it around in the wind but you will still need to develop a good eye to put one along side the dock or into a slip when the wind is blowing strong.
If you are likely to encounter rough water frequently or want more speed for longer transits, a deck boat with a fairly deep V hull is a better choice and will offer nearly as much deck space for a given lenght with better manners in the wind and in rough water.
mech
Contributor
I was riding on the bow of one when I was a kid on a lake trip.
The driver stuck a wave.
I may have jumped over 10' with my adrenalin rush.
The driver stuck a wave.
I may have jumped over 10' with my adrenalin rush.
mike_s
Contributor
DA Aquamaster:
Heh. You can say that again, two or three times.
One of the "other" local dive shops around here does dives off their plain factory 20 something foot pontoon boat. I don't think they would pass a Coast Guard inspection, which is probalby why they do them for "free" to their customers because in order to charge they would have to be coast guard licenses.
Anyway, while I've never been out with them, I've hear funny stories about then getting 8 or more divers and all their tanks, weights, etc on the boat and it porpoising into the waves only to rip away the sheet metal that surounds the front of the boat and wash away gear.
Simply put, your average "redneck" pontoon boat is just not meant to carry that many people and gear and also to handle waves and wind.
From the "personal use" pontoon boats that I've driven, they are a real bear to handle in windy situations with one engine. Even more fun to align onto the trailer in the wind.
But for just a few people, on flat water, I think it'd make a nice platform to have plenty of room to dive off of. You could easily make a nice dive latter that would could easily be attached to the front of it also.
BTW... the folks at Dale Hollow lakes dive shop rent pontoon boats so divers can go dive the "sunken town". You should drop them an email about suggestions or give them a call.
mike
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