Boat Essentials: Electric Winches for Easy Launching and Retrieving

Boat Essentials: Electric Winches for Easy Launching and Retrieving

Experienced boat owners know that while ownership is one of the most satisfying recreational privileges imaginable providing you with lots of marine adventures, launching, as well as retrieving a boat can sometimes feel like anything but a privilege. Even in optimal weather, working on a short, slippery ramp with a steep angle can be problematic.

After a long, hot day on the water, recovering a long boat there can feel as if you’re wrestling with the entire ocean. More than any other attribute or accessory, your trailer winch is responsible for the amount of effort you need to put into every launch or retrieval.

As it happens, winches aren’t the kind of accessories that boat owners want to spend a lot of money on. The reality, however, is if you want to take the hassle, along with the risk of personal injury out of trailering your boat, you want to invest in a winch that’s built to do the backbreaking work for you. That’s precisely where electric winches come in.

Electric Winches Give You the Pulling Power for Every Situation

Source: offroadpull.com

Let’s be honest, while launching and retrieving a boat of PWC is a ritual that every owner undertakes, feature-rich electric boat winches are what they need to be sure that they can get the job done quickly and safely every time. Unlike hand-cranked mechanical winches, powerful electric winches have the continuous pulling power that’s needed to defeat the multitude of resistances that are at work every time you move your boat on or off the trailer. They provide the peace of mind that you want as a boat owner, but without breaking your back or your budget.

With weight ratings for boats up to 9000 kg on a 45° incline, marine-product manufacturers like Powerwinch, Sherpa, and Atlantic Products lead the way with premium quality, heavy-duty electric boat winches boasting their own special ranges of features that include:

  • High speed (10FPM), 12 V/24 V operation on series wound, 6.6 hp motors;
  • Electronic braking with remote power in/freewheel out capabilities;
  • Aluminium housings with corrosion-resistant, stainless steel fittings;
  • IP68 rated protection against dust and moisture, as well as submersion to 1 metre; and,
  • Wireless remote controls with manual override.

With their light weight, and heavy-duty construction, not only are modern electric winches more compact than their hand-operated counterparts, they also offer a level of rugged, low-maintenance versatility that renders mechanical winches virtually obsolete. The electric design even makes it possible for you to perform double line pulls, effectively giving you the extra leverage and pulling power to execute safe retrievals when both the operational and environmental conditions are working against you.

Exceptional Conditions That Demand Electric Winches

Source: winchesonline.com.au

While Aussies are recognised as some of the most capable and intuitive boaters in the world, the mix of unforeseen operational and environmental difficulties that can arise during launching and retrieving can pose more than their share of problems. Even the most experienced boaters are sometimes surprised to find that the level of the tide, and the amount of gravel or moss on a ramp are still only a few of the factors that could be virtually impossible to overcome using a mechanical winch, which can include:

  • Your boat’s weight. The amount of fuel, equipment, and even the contents of your livewell or baitwell tanks can all have an effect on how much friction a winch would need to overcome in order to get a boat on or off a trailer.
  • Your trailer’s state. Awkwardly angled and poorly positioned trailer skids, or corroded and sticking rollers are major sources of surface resistance that typically require more than just mechanical muscle to facilitate launching and retrieving.
  • Conditions below the waterline. Although there’s always a chance of being able to work around the dangers of slick and slippery ramp surfaces above the waterline, the eroded and shifted sediment below the waterline can be an incalculable hazard for both you and your boat.

Ideally, you need a winch that’s engineered to tackle the full range of challenges that a boat owner might be confronted with anytime they pull to the ramp; and only electric design winches make it possible to confidently launch or retrieve any size boat or PWC, regardless of the conditions. You just need to be sure that yours is outfitted with ropes and cables that are sufficiently rated to handle the job at hand.

Cordage and Cables Designed Especially for High-Torque Electrics

Source: thehulltruth.com

Nowhere is the saying that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link more true than in boating – and ultimately, nowhere in recreational boating is it more true than when you’re talking about trailer winches. Even the most powerful winch is utterly ineffective without properly weight-rated cordage or cables; and make no mistake: failing to respect their limits can have catastrophic consequences for both you and your boat.

Under load, an insufficiently rated winch cable can break with fatal recoil; that’s why they should always be rated for ½ to ¾ of your boat’s gross weight, with allowances made for fuel, equipment, and even the added resistance that a wider beam can create. Preferences vary, but If you’re inclined toward outfitting your winch with a lightweight synthetic rope, you want tough, robust cordage that offers the following traits:

  • 30% – 90% greater breaking strength;
  • Superior resistance to prolonged salt, moisture, and UV exposure; and,
  • Fray-resistant, no-kink qualities.

If you’re more comfortable with a classic multi-strand steel cable though, you only want one with the chemical and abrasion resistance that’s available exclusively with winch cable. The continuous torque that’s produced by electric winches means that in addition to the mandatory higher tensile and hook strength, these cables also need a range of crucial characteristics that include:

  • Unmatched durability and friction resistance;
  • Zinc galvanised, high chromium-content construction; and,
  • Extraordinary resistance to fraying or breakage.

Not surprisingly, cost can also be a factor when comparing winch ropes to winch cables. Steel winch cables cost noticeably less than synthetic ropes, an attribute that you’ll want to keep in mind when evaluating all of the long term costs tied to electric winch ownership.

The Final Word

At the end of the day, you can’t afford to cut corners when it comes to the equipment you use for launching and retrieving your boat. The type of winch you use is critical, and relying on one that doesn’t give you maximum flexibility under less than perfect conditions can end up costing considerably more than you’d ever expect.

Powerful, feature-rich electric winches allow you to quickly, confidently, and ultimately safely launch and retrieve and time you want. They have all the power you need, when you need; and you’ll be impressed by how affordable they are.