7 Helpful Boat Towing Tips
Boats are wonderful to have, but unless you’re extremely lucky, you probably don’t live right on a body of water where you can use them. That means you’ve got to tow them, which involves getting a trailer hitched up to your truck or SUV and hitting the road.
However, before you head out to Lake Havasu or Utah Lake, you’ll want to make sure that you know how to tow your boat safely. A heavy boat on a trailer can present some challenges while driving and if you’re not careful, you could end up in a serious accident.
Germaine Marine is your local boat dealer, serving Arizona and Utah. We’ve provided the following tips to help you successfully and safely tow your boat to wherever it is you want to cruise.
1. Check Tire Pressure
Adequate tire pressure is essential to safe towing, as is making sure that your tires are in good condition. It is never smart to drive on bad tires, but it’s especially risky to do when you’re towing. Use a tire-pressure gauge to check the tires on your towing vehicle and your boat trailer, then air them up to the correct psi levels as noted on the tire sidewall or in your owner’s manuals. Make sure the treads have sufficient depth and that there are no cracks in your tires, too.
2. Don’t Go Over Your Weight Limits
Both your towing vehicle and your trailer have weight limits and it’s very important to stay under them. An overloaded trailer is more likely to sway and it’s also more likely to become disconnected from your towing vehicle. Likewise, if you overburden your towing vehicle, you’ll get poorer gas mileage and put too much strain on your engine. Know the weight limits of your vehicle and trailer and do everything you can to stay under them. The gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) is found in your driver’s side door or owner’s manual.
3. Load Your Boat Correctly
An unbalanced trailer is also more likely to sway and become disconnected. Make sure that when you load up your boat, you’re balancing its weight evenly between right and left in addition to placing 60% of the weight towards the front, with 10 to 15% of your weight over the hitch. Secure everything on your boat in place and make sure that the boat itself is snugly lashed to the trailer so it doesn’t slip as you drive.
4. Test Lights & Brakes
The lights and brakes on your towing set-up need to function properly to keep you and other motorists safe. Test out the lights and signals and have someone spot you to make sure that the trailer’s lights are connected correctly. Try the brakes by doing a test-drive slowly around a parking lot or other empty area.
5. Adjust Your Mirrors
Your boat and its trailer will likely block the view through your windshield and rear-view mirror, so you’ll need to rely more heavily on your side-view mirrors instead. Make sure to adjust your mirrors before you start driving so that you can see as much of your blind spots to either side as possible. You may even want to install some mirrors designed specifically for towing that will grant you more visibility.
6. Slow Down
Even if you’re in a massive hurry, you’ll do yourself no favors if you try to race to your boat launch only to end up in a car accident. A trailer and towing vehicle set-up is too challenging to travel with at higher speeds. Keep your vehicle at five to ten miles below the speed limit, remain in the right-most lane as much as you can and allow other vehicles to pass you on the highway. If you’re traveling in rainy or icy conditions, you’ll need to slow down even more to keep yourself safe.
7. Keep Your Trailer Maintained
Finally, the best way to make sure you’re always practicing good towing safety is to inspect your trailer on a regular basis and keep it in good working order. Perform an inspection before each trip and if you find anything that’s amiss, make sure to address it at home or contact a service department that can assist you with trailer maintenance.
If you ever need some assistance with your boat, you can always get in touch with the service department here at Germaine Marine. We’ll be happy to schedule you a maintenance appointment with our team of professional mechanics so that we can address any issues you’re having promptly and get you back out on the water.
When you’re ready to check out some new and used boats for sale, peruse our website or visit one of our two dealership locations. Germaine Marine proudly serves the states of Utah and Arizona.