How to carry an 11ft 110lb. boat on the roof?

[ob1]

'99 Coleman Santa Fe with the ABS roof.  Any suggestions on a way to hold a boat  on the roof?  110lb boat  11ft long 55 inches wide.  I could spend the $325 and have a Yakima rack installed, but I was also told that those roofs are pretty strong and if you could just pad it and strap the boat it would work.  Any thoughts or suggestions?  I know they would bolt the rack towers through the roof.  I'm not the original owner so I was trying to avoid that if it ever leaked.  He also said I could just buy the Yakima kit for $225 and just install it myself and save the $100 labor.

[flyfisherman]

You might consider those foam canoe carrying blocks that fit over the boat's gunnel on each side. If you do decide to go this route, make sure the foam blocks are as close to the far edges of the ABS roof as possible as that is the strongest part of the roof.

That's the way I carried my 12' aluminum canoe/boat on my previous PU, a '96 Coleman/Fleetwood Yukon (renamed Cheyenne in '99), with no problems. Of course, that boat was half the weight your talking about. Got to be careful about the total weight ... are you carrying anything else on the roof?




Fly

[ob1]

Just the boat

You might consider those foam canoe carrying blocks that fit over the boat's gunnel on each side. If you do decide to go this route, make sure the foam blocks are as close to the far edges of the ABS roof as possible as that is the strongest part of the roof.

That's the way I carried my 12' aluminum canoe/boat on my previous PU, a '96 Coleman/Fleetwood Yukon (renamed Cheyenne in '99), with no problems. Of course, that boat was half the weight your talking about. Got to be careful about the total weight ... are you carrying anything else on the roof?




Fly

[flyfisherman]

Ought not to be a problem. The good thing about the foam blocks is that you can use them on other vehicle roofs after you get to where your going ... providing you got some one to help you hoist the thing on top of the vehicle!

[ob1]

I'll have to just put it up there and play with the straps.  My concern is side to side movement on the PU.  Where to strap it?

[wavery]

I'll have to just put it up there and play with the straps.  My concern is side to side movement on the PU.  Where to strap it?

Good concern.

The back is easy. Just run a strap to each end of the bumper. Criss-cross the lines so that the left corner of the boat is tied to the right side of the bumper. That will keep it from shifting forward and side to side. It will be necessary to have the boat placed forward on the top so that the bow protrudes in front of the top and the stern is (slightly) forward from the edge of the top. If the stern is placed right on the edge, you will have no leverage to keep it from sliding forward. It's important that the boat cannot move at all. If you can attach your tie-downs forward of the stern on the boat, you can allow the stern to rest farther back on the top.

The front is a little more challenging because tying straight forward to the tongue will keep the boat from shifting back but not side to side or lifting slightly. With the bow about one foot (or more) forward of the roof edge, you can form a tripod by running one line straight forward and 2 lines back and down to each corner of the frame. The forward strap will keep the boat from shifting back and the 2 down and back lines will keep the bow from shifting side-to-side or lifting in the wind.

Using the tripod method, you don't have to worry about sinching the boat down so tight that it may damage the PU roof. It need only be snug. Never use bungie cords for securing a load.

These work great:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=47708

[ob1]

Thanks - Now I just need the boat and the trailer together to test it out.

[flyfisherman]

Here's what one of those canoe carrying kits look like ~

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_61131_200006008_200000000_200006000_200-6-8


I tie my canoe/boat down fore and aft (front and back), real snug. Then, using one of those straps featured in that foam carrying kit, I go over the top of the boat (which is bottom up on the roof of the PU) with a strap and attached at  each end to a length of parachute cord which goes under the PU. That parachute cord works best forward of the camper wheels (of course) and door, which means that tie down is forward toward the bow of the boat. When cinched down, means no gust of wind is going to get under the boat and lift it off whilist your tooling down the pike!



Fly

[McCampers]

Weld stake holders on your bumpers. Knock together a custom made cradle for the front and back bumpers of your PUP so you can take the cradle on and off while setting up the PUP.  Don't forget to put a locking pin device through the stake holders and the uprights to your cradle.  I'd make the entire thing out of aluminum to save on the weight and keep from having to paint it etc.  Put a pipe protector foam piece where your boat meets the cradle front and back and VOILA! you have your carrier.

[ScouterMom]

I've used the foam thingy's on cars & vans for canoes for years, and never had a problem with them. they do have some ability (because they are foam) to 'grab' to a roof and not slide around too much, without marking the roof - but if the canoe (or boat) is properly strapped as decribed above, It isn't going to shift much, if any.

On tip about shifting - many times you think you have the boat anchored well and as you drive, you find the straps shift a bit.  Once you have the boat on the camper or roof, drive 5- 10 miles, get out and check the straps. You may need to tighten or adjust them a bit.  

I check the straps everytime I stop, but I've never had to adjust them after that first 5 mile check. (other than anchoring flapping ends - you don't want them to flap, as they can wear paint off the car and make annoying noises)

________

My old starcraft does NOT have a roof strong enough to hold anything - it was designed before anyone thought of putting AC units and bikes on a PUP - so I made this 'canoe/bike carrier' for ours.  It holds the canoes across the roof without putting any weight on the roof at all.  I haven't actually made the bike frame - but it will suspend across the roof also, and I will be able to carry either bikes or 2 canoes.

I have tried the carrier with a canoe, and it works and pulls great.  Once we get to the campsite and remove the canoes, the rack telescopes down below the level of the beds (and can even support the beds, if I want them to) and the beds pull out over them.





If I tow the camper without canoes or bikes, the racks travel in their lowest position and you don't even know they are there.

Laura

PS - On Father's day weekend - June 14? we are doing a canoe trip on the Wisconsin River - around Arena/ Spring Green.  Our plan is to use the camper as a canoe trailer and carry TWO canoes on the top of the PUP and TWO canoes on the VAN .  We'll sleep in the camper Friday night, and in a tent on the river Saturday night.  If it all actually works, I'll post pictures  - it's going to be something to see if I can actually DO all that! LOL!

[McCampers]

Scooter Mom, you put into metal what my mind saw except I would have side-to-side limit stakes on the cradle.  That would answer some of the problem with the shifting.  You could make those adjustable as well.  Nice job!

[ScouterMom]

Scooter Mom, you put into metal what my mind saw except I would have side-to-side limit stakes on the cradle.  That would answer some of the problem with the shifting.  You could make those adjustable as well.  Nice job!

I did something similar for the 2X4's I adapted to carry 2 canoes on top of my Chevy Van's built0in luggage rack.  Since the canoes we carry are all the same size, we dropped a bolt thru the 2X4 with a small piece of rubber hose on it - 4 hose/bolts guide the gunwhales of the canoes so they ride straight, & so we knew how far forward and back they should be on the van top.  If I only want one canoe on top, I can leave the bolts off.  But we found we really didn't need them, so when we built the camper carrier, we didn't put them on.

laura