About 12 percent of American households own a recreational boat. As there are about 124 million households in America, this means that there are almost 15 million boats that need to find adequate storage. It’s important to keep your boat, which often is a large investment, safe from the elements. Though there are many ways to do this, including storing it at a separate facility, many people today are exploring the option of employing their garage to house their boat.
Things To Consider When Planning Boat Storage
When you’re thinking about creating an indoor space for your boat, you need to think of everything, from the amount of clearance space needed, to room for other supplies, to the size and style of the garage door that is best suited to the task. One thing that surprisingly often doesn’t get taken into account is the length of the trailer. Remember that it’s not just the dimensions of the boat that need to be involved in the schematics, but also the added room required by the trailer upon which it sits. You need to think about its wheelbase and tongue, so you’ll need extra room on the sides and in the front.
Whether you’re building a new garage from the ground up or retrofitting your old garage, you should keep in mind the three A’s. The three A’s in boat garage design include adequate space to move the boat without performing highly technical and difficult maneuvers. In ideal circumstances, you want to be able to push and pull the trailer into and out of the garage in a straight line. This means that you need to think about the property in front of the garage, as well as what’s inside of it.
Another of the A’s is additional space for storage and organization. You don’t want to cramp the space in the garage that you use for your other vehicles, so you must design the space adjacent to the trailer and the boat. Cabinets and a flat desk or bench-type surface are often constructed to help with storage.
Lastly, you’ll need to consider ample space for activities. Garages are used for lots of purposes, so make sure that you’ve considered these, as well as your new needs, when planning your design.
Space Is at a Premium
Generally, this process of upgrading to store your boat is one of considering space. The rule of thumb is to record the dimensions of the boat and trailer and then work out from there, asking questions along the way. Do you want room to perform projects on the boat while it is in the garage? If so, have you considered how high the ceiling should be? Do you want to have room for the equipment that is used with the boat, from fishing gear to water skis to cumbersome floats? You just need to think about the big picture.
You Can Obtain the Perfect Design
Even though there are variables such as the footprint of the garage that must be taken into account, which could increase the expenditure of the investment, designing the perfect garage to house your boat is achievable.
If you have questions or concerns about changing or retrofitting your garage door for boat storage, contact Bayside Garage Doors today! We’ll happily get back to you within 24 hours.