How Long Is a Boat Actually?

[Akka]

Almost nobody will ever measure your boat, even roughly; but almost every marina will charge you according to its length. That "length" is determined by one of two methods: what you put on the marina registration card when you sign in; or what your yacht registration says. The latter is simply copied from the builder's certificate, issued when the boat is built, and as you have already discovered, this "length" may have little relationship with reality. In general, I think, builders overestimate the length of the boat, because bigger boats command higher prices.

Since you're the builder, I think you can simply state a length on your application for registration. I wouldn't worry too much about accuracy, given that nobody else does.

If you're going to keep your boat in a marina very much, I'd say you should estimate your boat's length conservatively. Definitely keep it under 50 feet, because that's a common point for price changes; and if you're ever going to be in Europe, maybe keep it under 15 meters (48.75 feet) -- though at some point you have your conscience to deal with.

The one problem with underestimating the length is that once you register the boat, you're stuck with that length. This may have significant impact when it comes to selling the boat, as price is definitely correlated with hull length. So if you underestimate your boat's length now, you might eventually lose all the money you save at marinas!

When you try to go through the Panama or Suez Canals, you don't have to worry about what you put on the registration -- the boat gets measured from scratch, and what they find determines what you pay.

Hope this helps.

[espresso]

Thanks for all the replies so far!
It seems a bit unfair to pay for the forward projection of the bow rollers and not the deck length. I can sort of understand a marina charging for the bowsprit projection, but even anti fouling is charged according to length.
I think I am going to use the pure deck length!

[espresso]

Originally Posted by Akka

Almost nobody will ever measure your boat, even roughly; but almost every marina will charge you according to its length. That "length" is determined by one of two methods: what you put on the marina registration card when you sign in; or what your yacht registration says. The latter is simply copied from the builder's certificate, issued when the boat is built, and as you have already discovered, this "length" may have little relationship with reality. In general, I think, builders overestimate the length of the boat, because bigger boats command higher prices.

Since you're the builder, I think you can simply state a length on your application for registration. I wouldn't worry too much about accuracy, given that nobody else does.

If you're going to keep your boat in a marina very much, I'd say you should estimate your boat's length conservatively. Definitely keep it under 50 feet, because that's a common point for price changes; and if you're ever going to be in Europe, maybe keep it under 15 meters (48.75 feet) -- though at some point you have your conscience to deal with.

The one problem with underestimating the length is that once you register the boat, you're stuck with that length. This may have significant impact when it comes to selling the boat, as price is definitely correlated with hull length. So if you underestimate your boat's length now, you might eventually lose all the money you save at marinas!

When you try to go through the Panama or Suez Canals, you don't have to worry about what you put on the registration -- the boat gets measured from scratch, and what they find determines what you pay.

Hope this helps.

Hi Akka,
What happens over 15m in Europe?
I see you list your boat as 50ft. Stretchy tape measure?
How did they measure your boat for the Panama canal, and how did it compare to the registered length?

[James S]

When I imported my boat in Lebanon the measurement was what was on the registration....If I wanted to dispute that I had to take it up with the harbor master from my home port in Alaska.
In my case it made a big difference since the boats under 15 meters are required to pay duty of 25% ...boats over are exempt.
48ft = 14.63 meters...damn
Less is better!