Tender Garages. Why?

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Sundays_Child

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I may need educating here, but what's the big deal with tender garages? It appears the vast majority of 40'+ sportscruisers have them...

It seems to me that a hi/lo bathing platform a-la Sunseeker has loads of advantages:

1/ Easier deployment and recovery of the tender.
2/ FAR larger cockpit.
3/ Larger lazarette.
4/ Larger engine room for improved access.
5/ Easier boarding for swimmers.
6/ Easier MOB recovery.
7/ Nice lounging on foldable chairs with feet in the water.

The only "negative" I can see is the loss of the rear sunbathing area, but that could easily be negated with a hi/lo cockpit table and fill in cushions.

Am I totally missing something?
 
Where else to keep the car?

1593550_10_thumb.jpg
 
I also used to think that tenders of the bathing platform looked a bit, err... gypsy. But on anything under 50' (arguably even 60'), that 8'+ of garage would be far better used as cockpit!

As for the car, it should be on board the helicopter!
 
Personal choice I guess. They do seem to waste quite a bit of space, especially as the sun beds on top are rarely used in the real world. Thus far I'm happy with electric davits which our 4m 30hp rib fits on snugly and firmly - easy to deply requiring only one person, and the out board does not have to be removed either. The tender garages do look neat, but I'm not sure about the benefits, and the tenders need quite a bit of physical effort to get them in and out of the smaller garages anyway.
 
Re: Soot.

Just put a cover over it?

Besides, with sterndrives and IPS able to power boats in the size range I'm talking about, soot isn't an issue.
 
Hi-lo bathing platform is a v expensive option and not viable on boats where the hull stretches aft under the platform. Personally I would rather have an extra 3ft of hull in the water under the platform then a hi-lo bathing platform. But I agree with you on tender garages which are usually too small for a decent sized tender, restrict engine access and eat up deck space. For me the best and simplest solution, especially for Med boats is to have the tender stored on the bathing platform with a passarelle to lift it on and off. Simple, quick and the tender is fully supported when stowed unlike davits
 
I would agree that on a 40 footer the space a garage takes up can be put to better use but I have just taken delivery of our first sportscruiser with a garage (Princess V45) and I have to say we love it. On our previous V42 without a garage in rough water the tender came off the chocks on more than one occasion (ok! so I didn't secure it properly) and recently a friend of mine lost his Jet Rib off chocks in the rough, recovery is not much fun and dangerous.
 
i saw good and bad of boths

I dont like much hi lo bathing platforms as Mike say and if there is a chop and you lift the tender you tend to do some damage to tender hull
as for garages I have some good ones and some bad ones
still if I had to choose I would def go for an integrated bathing platform with a jet ski garage underneath Ferretti style....

Bathing platform is the winner for safety reasons IMO

if the dinghy is well tied up with a good cradles underneath nearly nothing will move it
 
Fully agree a friend of mine has an Atlantis 47 berthed stern too. Yes you've guessed it, for daily engine checks he has to pull the boat out on the bow line extending the stern lines at the same time, drag the tender out into the water plus any associated goods to quayside, just to do the checks then put it all back again. Bloomin darft
 
Thats crazy but not untypical of some other manufacturers too. Even Windy are guilty on one model. You've gotta ask why your friend did'nt check this before he bought the boat because for me that would be a deal breaker
 
Tender Garage

<u>Pros</u>
- Leaves bathing platform clear for mooring etc
- Easy to launch tender
- Keeps tender clean
- Looks neat
<u>Cons</u>
- Takes up space

My first boat had a bathing platform mounted tender without passarelle but the tender was light so could hand launch. It was a tight fit though so cleaning the bathing platform and transom was tricky. Got filthy too. My second had a flybridge mounted tender and crane which sounds ideal in theory but was a nightmare in anything other than flat calm conditions. Combined weight of the two that high up isn't ideal either.

I like the idea of a tender garage.
 
I suppose folks mooring preferences are a factor. Most prefer to moor stern in for easy access, whereas we like to moor bow in for privacy (ie cockpit and dinning away from jetty). I know this is not really feasable in most of the med, but fine in UK and Irl. The ideal dingy storage is probably on the bathing platform with suitable crane, assuming underwater exhaust ducts on cruiser to avoid soot problem on transom.
 
Cons.......... Mark you forgot the biggest con and surely an unforgivable design safety/fault..........discourages the all important daily engine checks which will lead to complacency. Plus of course access to engines when problem occurs out at sea.

Given the above I think I could live with a submercible bathing platform for the tender
 
[ QUOTE ]
Cons.......... Mark you forgot the biggest con and surely an unforgivable design safety/fault..........discourages the all important daily engine checks which will lead to complacency. Plus of course access to engines when problem occurs out at sea.


[/ QUOTE ]
Agreed but surely not an issue on the bigger boats?
 
Engine access is not an issue in the 40-50ft range either. The 47ft I had and the 43ft I have been looking at both have full engine access via a hatch in the cockpit outside the garage. In fact, that is the main access with only some auxilliaries (trim tab ram pumps, back of generator,etc) accessible via the garage.

I love the garage and don't want to be without one again.

Anyway, who cares? I don't need to justify my choice and if you don't like it, don't buy it.

P.S. I'm surprised that the Atlantis 47 doesn't have separate access since the smaller Gobbis have a separate hatch.
 
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