Draft of 24' boats with keels/rudder

Julian · Sep 17, 2017

Yamaha's website says that the draft of the 242X is 1'8". Am I the only one who thinks this is not accurate?

I'm very careful about going shallow, and yesterday was backed into the beach where @bronze_10 was BBQing, and I was trying to see how shallow I could go. I was up to my waist when I felt I was going too shallow.....guessing that is 2.5-3' deep....

n1111z · Sep 17, 2017

Julian said:
Yamaha's website says that the draft of the 242X is 1'8". Am I the only one who thinks this is not accurate?

I'm very careful about going shallow, and yesterday was backed into the beach where @bronze_10 was BBQing, and I was trying to see how shallow I could go. I was up to my waist when I felt I was going too shallow.....guessing that is 2.5-3' deep....

n1111z · Sep 17, 2017

I agree, for me the limiting factor would be the depth of the stern ladder. Seems like it would be OK to pull the boat closer to a sandy beach using lines, without the ladder deployed, and the engines off.

AndyD · Sep 17, 2017

I've been beached in mid thigh deep water (2') and didn't have anything dragging the bottom. The ladder wouldn't go down all the way but the rudder was still not touching bottom either. I didn't start the engines that close, but pulled it in and took it out by hand until I got to about 4'

BBottoms · Sep 17, 2017

I don't have a tape measure with me but I've got a pretty good calibrated 9" hand measurement. I'm backed into a beach at the lake as I type this on my '15 AR240 and I'd say 18" is pretty accurate. Back of the boat is sitting in roughly 27" of water and the articulating keel is roughly 9" from the bottom, so that's right at 18" +/- a couple inches. I don't back in much shallower unless I'm in a very protected cove with no waves at all since a passing cabin cruiser can throw enough wake to make the keel hit. If you want to put the ladder down you do need another foot or so of water but it's really not an issue when your that shallow anyway except for small children. I've been in areas knee deep before if the water is calm with no issue, just have to keep it going slow so you don't suck anything up. The listed draft depth is a best case , not a recommendation for how shallow you should be going regularly.

swatski · Sep 17, 2017

I don't beach, ever.
But I think @BBottoms is right on except the stern/articulating keel sits higher than the midship/bow part of the hull when in the water and off plane.
The X maybe a little heavier, but I doubt this would make a huge difference. Still - floating stern-towards the beach is what I do. And then pull out into deeper water before starting the engines.
My 0.02

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captras · Sep 17, 2017

I have actually measured the draft by using a lift. I marked when the hull first touched the water, then lowered until the boat was floating free. It was 16 inches, just as the manual says for mine

McMark · Sep 17, 2017

What's the measurement from the bottom of the scupper to the bottom of the keel? The scupper doesn't ride too much above water while at rest.

Julian · Sep 17, 2017

Interesting..... There must have been something on the bottom yesterday....

swatski · Sep 17, 2017

When floating off-plane the low point is NOT at the articulating keel/stern. The bottom (keel) at midship/bow will draft few inches deeper than the keel at the stern.

Just look at any pic of a new 24' sitting in the water. Or @captras sig pic - above.

And that is also why water doesn't drain into the bilge until the boat is on plane (or on a trailer) - with the bow way up.

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zipper · Sep 22, 2017

swatski said:
When floating off-plane the low point is NOT at the articulating keel/stern. The bottom (keel) at midship/bow will draft few inches deeper than the keel at the stern...And that is also why water doesn't drain into the bilge until the boat is on plane (or on a trailer) - with the bow way up. --

Being an older model owner, yes both me and the boat, I have been looking for info to see if Yamaha has fixed this issue before I invest in a new(er) boat. It would be nice to be able to leave off the mooring/towing/bow/cockpit covers at the marina occasionally. But those pop up thunderstorms which happen now and then will put water in the boat that will drain to the bow, not the scupper, and rise until it reaches the ski locker door seal. Water will fill the front edge of the gutter and leak past the seal and into the locker/bilge, yes even a new one with the latch adjusted properly. The mooring covers keep the water out, but hides the issue of water draining the wrong way. Pour some water in the bow while afloat and watch where it goes, do not let your weight effect its movement. I always see water in the ski locker drain and none at the bilge pump until the keel angle changes at lower speed before plane. And even then, the pump is so high off the keel thru the engine floor I rarely see it pump. So there will always be water down there until I pull the boat out of water. My fix for the deck drainage issue was tying about 325#s of ballast bag on the upper swim platform. It is a PITA, but it works to drain water aft to the scupper. I know I ranted off topic for a minute, but I consider this a deal breaker for me on a new purchase. Does the deck on your newer boats drain this same way?

Julian · Sep 22, 2017

zipper said:
Does the deck on your newer boats drain this same way?

Never tested this......have to see if my old brain will remember next time I'm out! I keep mine on an air dock....as I hated having to constantly clean the boat to keep the speed up and gas costs down due to the drag from the fur she'd grow in the summer here in NC 90 degree + water!

seadude · Sep 22, 2017

I've left my 2016 boat docked in heavy rain - and yes, some water pools to the front and the whole bilge eventually fills up enough to trigger the bilge pump.
Dead battery + enough rain might eventually equal a swamped boat, but it would take a long time (or maybe one hurricane)!

zipper · Sep 22, 2017

@Julian @seadude Thank you both for your responses. If the boat sets pitched correctly, the water will not pool forward and enter the bilge thru a leaking ski locker seal. With a few hundred pounds on the swim platform, the boat's deck pitches down to the scupper aft. The water is collected in the "gutter" system around ski and fuel hatches and runs aft to the scupper. without the added weight it pools forward. To me, its a big design flaw, hidden by the mooring/towing cover. I do not like a wet bow/cockpit sole. I do keep all the heavy stuff aft, 2 batteries, grill, tools, stern anchor etc. but it is not enough weight. Ballast was the only thing to work.

Julian · Sep 22, 2017

zipper said:
@Julian @seadude Thank you both for your responses. If the boat sets pitched correctly, the water will not pool forward and enter the bilge thru a leaking ski locker seal. With a few hundred pounds on the swim platform, the boat's deck pitches down to the scupper aft. The water is collected in the "gutter" system around ski and fuel hatches and runs aft to the scupper. without the added weight it pools forward. To me, its a big design flaw, hidden by the mooring/towing cover. I do not like a wet bow/cockpit sole. I do keep all the heavy stuff aft, 2 batteries, grill, tools, stern anchor etc. but it is not enough weight. Ballast was the only thing to work.

Did you add ballast?

zipper · Sep 22, 2017

Julian said:
Did you add ballast?

Yes, when I know there is wet weather coming I tie a partially filled Sumo 475# bag on the upper swim platform. It pitches the boat nicely and the water goes out the scupper via the gutters and not in the ski locker to bilge. I consider it a band aid, kind of a PITA filling and draining whenever I use it. I wonder what all the SeaRay owners around me think when they see me doing this, most of their boats are wide open. My marina is owned by a SeaRay dealership. Only 1 other Yamaha there, an sx 210, and it is always covered.

Julian · Sep 22, 2017

zipper said:
Yes, when I know there is wet weather coming I tie a partially filled Sumo 475# bag on the upper swim platform. It pitches the boat nicely and the water goes out the scupper via the gutters and not in the ski locker to bilge. I consider it a band aid, kind of a PITA filling and draining whenever I use it. I wonder what all the SeaRay owners around me think when they see me doing this, most of their boats are wide open. My marina is owned by a SeaRay dealership. Only 1 other Yamaha there, an sx 210, and it is always covered.

You put this on top of the cover?

zipper · Sep 22, 2017

Julian said:
You put this on top of the cover?

No, under my cockpit cover. So it does not get stolen. The lower swim platform is not covered, I don't like stepping on the cover.

This picture shows it full, I do not fill it this full for normal use, the cover will not snap over it and I do not need that much weight to get the desired result. Sorry folks...I've highjacked the thread.

Draft of 24' boats with keels/rudder

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