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Dock vs. mooring

22K views 57 replies 32 participants last post by  SVAuspicious 
#1 ·
Never had a bigger boat and still don't. I just trying to get info right now.

So to the question. Pros and cons to getting a slip or moorings? Tell me any hard ships that you may of had. Not having a ton of money to spend. But still want to get out there and have fun befor I'm 50 with money to burn. Lol
 
#2 ·
A slip is more expensive but more convenient for loading/unloading, getting back to the boat after a few hours at the local pub.

A mooring is less expensive but you'll need a dinghy to get you, guests, provisions, etc. to the boat. PITA when the weather is bad. Also, you'll want to periodically check that what is holding it down on the bottom is secure and maintained. You don't want it failing.

Easier to pick up a mooring line than it is to get a boat into a slip.

When we were in the BVI I found moorings very convenient but we were on vacation. Now, if the marinas in the U.S. had people to come out and collect my garbage and sell me ice...
 
#3 ·
it all depends on what style of boat and cruising you like to do, personally, I don't want to be stuck on the same body of water (trailer sailor) so for me a mooring is more than enough, but if you want more stability (the boat rocks less than at anchor), security and you like the social life, then a slip might be better for you
 
#4 ·
Thought we HAD to have a slip when we bought the boat last August, but none to be found. Got a mooring and within two weeks put down the deposit for this summer. No way would I want to be crammed onto a dockful of boats like sardines, not to mention the people walking by all the time. The privacy afforded by a mooring is much more than the space between boats.
 
#6 ·
My $.02.

I have slept on my boat both tied up to a dock and on the mooring.
Hands down sleeping on the boat at the mooring the motion is more comfortable and it is quieter. Floating docks tend to make a fair amount of noise if there are any waves or tides.

A mooring also usually costs 1/3 or less of what a slip at a marina does.
 
#7 ·
If you actually want to go sailing, get a slip. Easier to load, easier to unload, easier to work on, easier to get to, easier to get from, access to water, access to power and usually somewhere to store your dinghy.
More expensive, but of course generally speaking you are less likely to come back to find your boat has untied itself and is now on the beach with a slip.
 
#9 ·
The biggest advantage to starting out on a dock with a new boat is the security of being "plugged in" to shore power, until you are absolutely certain the boat will not drain her batteries, leaving you with no bilge pumps.
If you are new to boating a slip gives you a lot of opportunities to learn how to maneuver your boat in varying conditions under power. This is something every boat owner should learn and picking up/ dropping a mooring just won't give you that education. Once you are comfortable handling your boat under power and you feel that she will stay afloat for however long you intend to leave her, no matter how much it rains, then moving out to a mooring is certainly cheaper.
IMO, it is a better place to hang out, but I might be prejudiced; we spend 11 months on our anchor through out the Antilles and one on our mooring in Honeymoon in the VI.
 
#10 ·
Judging by the boats on the shore round here every winter after any significant blow, I'd say yes. Whether they are unloved boats that haven't had their mooring lines checked or not I don't know, but at least in a slip a passer-by (or the marina staff) might notice a line chafed through and throw a temporary one on there for you. I know I have done for fellow dock users in the past. I know that I would sail a lot less if every trip out on the boat was:
Drive to the dinghy
Drag dinghy to the water
Take the dinghy out to the mooring
Try to get out of the dinghy into the boat
Tie the dinghy to the mooring
Go sailing
Untie the dinghy
Get into the dinghy
Go back to shore
Drag the dinghy out
Drive home

Now it consists of:
Drive to the marina
Walk to boat
Go sailing
Walk to car
Drive home.

And that assumes that I do not need to take anything to/from the boat, and I don't want to wash the salt water off after the sail.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Second what capta just said!

I was/am fortunate that a floating dock became avail at my boat-buddy's little landing. The marina that surrounds me has slips and moorings. For my mere 27 footer, a slip would be $1750/6 mo season and a mooring is near ta $1250 !!!
Wadda deal! :wtf:
I got the fairway end of the floater for the whole year for slightly less than the mooring for 6 mo ! :D
Power via (self-supplied) extension cable, water for the tank outta a hose from the nearby apt and showers etc. thru a (landing owner's) deal with the big marina. "Sea fan"s are in use during cold WX, so I'll prolly stay "in" all year.
I believe I have the best of both options as above! Not stuck in a piling cage/slip and not forced to schlep the dink back'n'forth. I'm always at the same level at the dock (3'+tidal changes); parked broadside on, so's I can mount the dock-box/steps and load myself, passengers and gear till I'm blue...if I wanna ;)

Hope ya find a site as good as mine! :D Check CL, local rags and possibly put in a "wanted to rent" ad of yer own. THey're out there, ya just gotta look and wait :'_)
 
#12 ·
Obviously geography is everything and what works in USA may not work in NZ and so on.

We have a mooring. We have had slips in marinas. The cost of a marina to rent in Auckland is about $700 a month. The cost to have my mooring was an initial outlay of a couple of grand, now it costs me $200 a year. For me that's a no-brainer.

And getting to and from, only I get to be wet and uncomfy in the dink, I take the boat back to the walk-on areas of the local marina and all my family and guests step aboard like royalty and I get to load the groceries/gear with ease. Old story - happy wife = happy life.

Plus I read all the threads about how people have these elaborate plans and systems to get their boats in and out of slips without damaging their vessel and those around them and I just smile.

I also don't require $1million of public liability cover on my insurance.
 
#13 · (Edited)
I have had both. The mooring REALLY depends on where it is. Over in the Severn I had a mooring in a very sheltered spot and a slip for my dinghy. I could tie up temporarily to load and unload or get water. Do NOT underestimate water. It can be a major pain to have no easy access to fresh water.
If you do don't have a good spot to keep a dinghy, a good spot to park, and a dock for loading and unloading being on a mooring can be a large PITA.
On the plus side the boat rides easy into the wind, sleeping is better, and hurricane prep is taking the canvas down.
 
#14 ·
Bought a new to me boat a few years ago and it took over a year to sell the old boat.
Kept the old boat in my slip and rented a ball for the new boat. So for that year plus I had both a mooring ball and a slip.
Avantages for the ball:
Beautiful out there, view constantly changing, quiet, neighbors farther away, almost like being at sea when the tide is running, and I just plain liked it.
Disadvantages for the ball:
We lived two hours away so if we got there and the weather was bad, we were late, and the bay was sloppy out we went in the dink. Didn't have solar, wind generator, or genset. Had to run the old Perkins 1 O4 to keep the batteries up. On New Year's Eve morning woke up at 5:30 am to 50 plus knot wind. No way our 8' hard dink could make it back to the dock. Got up naked made sure everything was secure went back to sleep. 7:30 am our yacht club called us. They were having a pretty good time watching us bounce around out there.
Said they would send someone out in the club's 18' tender when it laid down enough for them to have the courage to come and get us. Woke up again at 10:30 am all was calm.
My wife just plain preferred a slip.
Advantages slip:
Easy to get to by foot any weather. Easier to show boat you are trying to sell. Just plug into electric and water. Neighbors watch your boat. My wife just plain likes it better.
Disadvantages:
Easier for anyone to get to. Neighbors. Less feeling of freedom and adventure.
I'm sure there are many more pro and cons.
ps sold old boat and moved new boat to slip.
Wife happy.
 
#16 ·
I have my boat on a pile mooring. Tying up is bit more tricky than a standard mooring or a slip. It can be a pita because of having to row out. There is a pier I can tie up to and load, fill my water tank and wash down. All and all I prefer my mooring to a slip because it is cheaper and it is more isolated. I also have a much better view of the city.
 
#17 ·
This is our first year with a boat and although we originally chose a mooring because of the significant cost savings, we are planning to stick with it. Temperatures are cooler because the boat is always pointing into the wind, we have more privacy, it's easy to pick it up at the end of a sail, and did I mention it was cheaper?

What makes the mooring truly work for us is our dinghy with outboard. If we had to row to the mooring or wait for the tender, then I'm sure our satisfaction with the situation would be much lower. As it is, we load the dinghy up, start the outboard, and five minutes later we're at our boat. I don't mind having to load it with our supplies and shuttle to the boat. In fact, I rather enjoy the dinghy ride. For us, we feel like once we're at the marina we've arrived at our little vacation getaway.
 
#19 ·
We had a choice of a slip or mooring at the same marina. Moorings have a lot of advantages and it was a tough decision, but ultimately I took a slip for two reasons.

1) We can keep the frig plugged in. Nice to get to the boat and the beverages on board are already cold. For our short cruises, we do bring a couple of gallon jugs of water that we've frozen at home. Between those frozen jugs and the pre-chilled cooler, we're good to cruise for a few days without having to run the frig.

2) Easier for someone to check on the boat. We live about an hour from our boat, but I have a friend who lives just a few houses away. If I forget to do something--or wonder if I've forgotten to do something (like, did I really close that hatch????)--I can call him and he'll walk by and see. He's a generous guy, but I'd hesitate to ask him to a dinghy ride out to do the same thing.

All that said, I'm still thinking about taking a mooring next season....
 
#20 · (Edited)
I think a lot depends upon where you are and how it is done locally. Personally you could not pay me to be in a marina, er, trailer park on the water...;):D I work in them every week. Last week at one I had to endure 6 hours of the thud, thud, thud, thud of a subwoofer (could not hear the rest of the music just the thud, thud) 8 boats over and the "dude" on the back deck drinking PBR tall boys at 9:30 am in his wife beater..... His buddies then showed up and they proceeded to block the entire dock with lawn chairs so no one could get by without waiting for them to move. Lovely place......

I've had boats on moorings for my entire life and have also been on boats and worked on boats full time that lived in marinas. I was a commercial lobsterman in my younger days and kept my boat on a mooring even then. I fished 6 days per week and never missed a single day (except for Hurricane Gloria) even dragging my dinghy to the water.

Much of the North East is comprised of moorings and perhaps 85 -90% of the boats in Maine are on moorings. We don't have waiting lists at many marinas up in Maine, lots of vacant dock space, but do have a number of anchorages with mooring wait lists..

The idea that you will sail less on a mooring is a complete falacy unless you are simply lazy. If you want to sail you will sail.

We have both a dinghy dock and launch service for access and it could not be easier. If we have piles of gear to load there is our clubs dock or the town dock, but it is rarely necessary.. I can be under sail, without running the motor, just as fast as I can get away from any dock but I don't have to short run the motor to do so. I also never have to tie spring lines and deploy fenders just drop the pendant and we're off. I simply walk down the ramp, step into the launch and am on our boat in about a 50-60 second launch ride. Could not be any easier.

The main reason I prefer moorings is for storm safety and hull protection. Nothing worse than chronic fender rash or shark bites out of your boat in storms.. I would rather have my boat on our well engineered and designed mooring than on any dock or on the hard in a big storm....

Our boat rode out the storm that did this without so much as a scratch and suffered zero chafe on the mooring pendants. Our mooring was specifically designed to handle severe storms.



This was some video footage at another anchorage of the same storm that sank all those docked boats above.. Unfortunately it was taken well after the peak of the storm and well after the wind had died off. The seas were still pretty good though.. You can see why moorings are preferred up here during our Nor'Easters. Not a single boat on a mooring in this cove sank or broke free... Pretty typical for folks who actually take care of their mooring system and design them well.


If I was a full time live aboard then I'd likely want to be at a slip, does not mean I'd like it, but if not living aboard, there's no way I would choose a marina over a mooring here in Maine... Just my .02, based on where I sail......
 
#44 ·
The main reason I prefer moorings is for storm safety and hull protection. Nothing worse than chronic fender rash or shark bites out of your boat in storms.. I would rather have my boat on our well engineered and designed mooring than on any dock or on the hard in a big storm....

Our boat rode out the storm that did this without so much as a scratch and suffered zero chafe on the mooring pendants. Our mooring was specifically designed to handle severe storms.
I know you have posted your mooring setup before. Do you have a link to it handy?
 
#21 ·
I have a mooring because it is cheap but I did ave to drop $1k for a dinghy because I got sick of the balancing act and multiple trips to load. Now if we could just get te dogs to climb on we will be set.
 
#22 ·
For me, a mooring with good launch service is the best of both worlds. Less expensive than a slip. Easy access and on/off via the launch, even if you have lots of provisions to bring along. For a daysail, we're underway within 10 minutes of arriving at the marina. Having the boat on the mooring offers way more privacy and comfort (always nose to wind) as we do dine and overnight on the mooring occasionally.

For when we do take a multi-day cruise and want the dinghy, I can remove my dinghy from the rack, drop it in the water and install the 3 HP outboard in 3 minutes; then another 5 minutes putt-putting out to the boat.

My own observations confirm another's observation that the slips can at times resemble a floating trailer park; not my idea of a good time.
 
#23 ·
Obviously, having easy, efficient means to get to your boat is essential to enjoying the benefits of a mooring. From where I park my truck it is about 100 feet to my dinghy tied to a dock and maybe 100 yards out to my boat. I can be on the boat within 5 minutes and sailing within minutes thereafter. I can easily sail off the mooring, though I usually leave the mooring with the main up and the motor at idle speed. I'm sure quicker than many could untie and stow fenders/lines and maneuver through a maze of docks to get to open water.

For us, we use the boat more than if we were on a dock. If there's no wind, we'll still go out after work and have dinner on the boat, swim, and relax, spend the night if it's a weekend. I wouldn't have any desire to just hang out on a boat tied to a dock, and obviously forget about swimming. (I'm sure some mooring fields you would not want to swim in, ours is nice and clean with only about a dozen moorings in all.)

I guess we really don't bring that much with us, as I've never thought twice about loading the dinghy and then transferring onto the boat. We usually pack a soft cooler with food/drinks and a change of clothes. We also have very minimal power needs. Basically charge our phones and use a light for a few hours at night, sometimes a bit of music.

We're the white sailboat in the center.

 
#24 ·
Hi all. For me, this was an interesting read. It is funny how one's mind gets set in a certain way. From my personal experience this is what got stuck into my mind:

Dock equals:
  • power boats
  • plugged in for TV, fridge, power stuff
  • very social, people sitting on the dock in their deck chairs "socializing"
  • (or) the elderly who have trouble getting in and out of a dingy
Mooring equals:
  • sailors
  • people who like to visit one-on-one with others
  • people who spend more time "out on the water"
Pretty silly. There were some really good reasons people chose docks that I had never thought of.

We have always had a mooring. Having read all these posts, maybe when I get old, buy a power boat and want TV I might get a slip on a dock (JUST KIDDING!!!!)

We mostly all do it differently for our own reasons.

To the original poster - in most cases you are not chained to either for life, so, you could try both.

This is our mooring.



Shalom

Rik
 
#25 · (Edited)
I enjoyed this thread, My situation is a little different as Where I sail is located on a large lake. I leave my boat at a dock for several days at a time and have had very few problems. I have found as there are only about 5 sailboats on the lake people want to look at the boat. Most people are very nice and ask if they can come on board and look it over. This is fine with me as I live alone now and enjoy some company. I keep drinks, snacks and such ready for visitors. Many people will say" I have never been sailing" We fix that in a hurry.I have returned to the boat to find people taking family pictures on the boat and thats ok as everything is locked and secured when I leave. The dock makes a lot of noise at night and the slap of the waves sounds wike a steel drum at times. You also deal with people fishing and walking around the boat. The nights I spend on the boat are a little different as I find a nice quiet cove and back into it laying out 100/150 foot of chain and anchorline.The lake is surrounded by heavy woods and I run ropes on both sides to my winches. This is the perfect way to spend the night and love doing this every chance I can.I am trying to get permission to install heavy mooring with balls for myself and others from the city at this time.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Lots of good input so far.

A couple of things I would add:

In the summer it's much cooler on my mooring than at the dock. Even in a heat wave, at night I sleep under covers.

My mooring is a couple hundred yards out in the bay. NO BUGS. None. So I don't need screens at night.

In nice conditions sail on and off my mooring.If the weather turns to stink and you miss judge your mooring ball you simply come around again for another try... Not so easy to back into that slip when it's blowing 30 and raining. Oh, and if you want to sail, you WILL be single handing at times.

As others have said, water and power are something to think about. If you are renting a mooring, most places have a place to tie up, get a charge, fill up your tanks and wash the boat, do some repairs, etc.

In general, as all things in life, you get what you pay for:
A more expensive marina will have a launch, nice dingy dock, a place to tie up for a few hours if need be, etc.
A town mooring with no access might be a few bucks a year for the permit and you buy/maintain the gear.

There are often local "secrets" for mooring access if you start looking around.

If you have your own mooring and are on a budget, all you need is a kayak, a roof rack and a place to park your car.
 
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