The Quick and Easy Drybox Solution for a Small Boat

The bowlocker on my Boston Whaler stays pretty full. In the picture you can see the lifejacket and anchor and rode. I also keep a gallon jug of water and my marine toolkit in the bowlocker. This leaves no room for anything else.

Here's a pic of my drybox (left) tucked in the stern of the Boston Whaler, right next to my livewell cooler.

On my little Boston Whaler, the only enclosed storage on the boat is the bow locker. It isn't very large, and any water on the forward deck area drains right into it. It is not self-bailing, so I have to keep the plug in at all times, and I use it to store the anchor and rode, a life jacket, a gallon of water, and my boating tool kit. With all those items inside, the lid barely closes.

So, in essence, I have no dry storage at all on the boat, and only a little space remaining in the bow locker for stowing items that can get wet. There is no space on the boat where I could build in an enclosed storage compartment, so I decided removable storage was the way to go.

I use a Coleman cooler. It is an excellent solution to the problem of dry storage on a small boat. It fits nicely behind the helm bench, and can be moved anywhere or removed from the boat for cleaning. It is splash-proof, so riding in waves and taking spray doesn't bother what's inside. Being a cooler, of course, it is insulated, so it doesn't get too hot in the sun, making it a reasonably good place for temperature sensitive electronics or food.

My Coleman cooler drybox has plenty of space for a couple of towels, an extra shirt or two, and all the various things which would otherwise have no good home on board the boat. When friends come along, the cooler/dry box collects wallets, cell phones, cameras, or any other items that should not get wet.

Permanent Drybox Gear

In addition to the gear that everyone brings aboard, some things always remain in the dry storage box so that they will be with the boat at all times. I always keep our water skiing mirror in there, and a few insulated can holders for drinks, and a chamois cloth in there for wiping down the boat. I also keep a few area plastic-laminated navigation charts in there, mostly in case someone else needs to use the boat when I am not around. I have all those charts in my head, where I have logged every place I have run aground. (I update the mental charts regularly by hitting new stuff.)

I keep a couple of dollars and a few quarters in the dry box, because you never know when a few bucks for a stranger or a quarter for a phone might solve a big problem. I keep a spare set of sunglasses or two in the dry box. I have had to drive a boat home into the sun after dropping my sunglasses overboard, and it wasn't much fun, so backup sunglasses are comforting to have along. I also keep a pair of diving gloves and wetsuit booties with walking soles in the box, because you never know when you'll have to walk in or pick up something nasty or dangerous. I also keep in my drybox a few paper towels and plastic cups, because you never know when cocktail hour might unexpectedly arrive.

I also use the dry storage box as an extension of my boat tool box, to hold things that are too bulky to fit in the small waterproof Pelican case that I use as a tool box. I keep a roll of duct tape in the dry box, and a small can of WD 40. I also keep some bungees and light braided line in there, in case I need to tie something down.

For boats on which built-in dry storage is insufficient or not available, a cooler is a cheap and easy alternative that does a darn good job of keeping your stuff safe and dry. It can also serve as an extra seat on the boat, and can be floated in to shore when at a beach, both as a way to transport stuff off the boat, and as an extra seat on the beach. When it gets old and cracked, a new one is readily available almost anywhere for very little money.

• Dry Storage Solutions — Tips on small portable dry storage.
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• Shop for Pelican waterproof cases

The post What’s in YOUR Drybox? first appeared on Tropical Boating.

Selecting Your Marine Toolbox

First, if you want a waterproof marine tool box, get one that is also airtight. I've used a "waterproof" marine tool kit on small boats, and most are merely water resistant. Eventually, the water and salt get in, and your tools get ruined if you don't notice it quickly. I went through lots of tools. I tried using a fishing tackle box and just being careful about protecting it from spray, but the results were similar. I could not find a tool box which could survive on a small boat and keep the tools separate from the water and salt.

I gave up and bought a Pelican box. It's more expensive, but worth the money. Pelican marine boxes are sturdy and airtight, not just waterproof. I have had mine for ten years now, and the only time water got in was on one occasion when I inadvertently closed a plastic tie-wrap in the lid, preventing the gasket from sealing. Fortunately, I discovered it before much damage was done. Before I bought the Pelican box, my tradition was to find out that my tools were rusty and unusable when I actually needed them. It's nice to open it up knowing all will be well inside.

What's Inside my Marine Toolbox?

At right is a photo of the contents of my own marine toolkit contents. On top are the upper and lower foam pads. One fits inside the lid of the tool box, and contains first aid supplies, fishing licenses, and boat registration. Although the box is watertight, the papers, band-aids and gauze are kept in a Ziploc bag slipped behind the foam lid insert. On small boats (this is primarily used on our 15' Boston Whaler), I gave up trying to keep a separate first aid kit. None were sufficiently water resistant, so I just carry a few first aid supplies in my tool kit.

The foam insert for the bottom of the box (top center in the photo) has some plastic tie-wraps, a piece of light braided rope, and two short lengths of electrical wire with terminal ends on them. To the right is the Pelican case itself. The knob on the front is a pressure relief valve. If you load your case in a warm room and take it out into the cold, you might not be able to pull it open without releasing the vacuum — that's how truly airtight it is!

Here are the contents of my boat tool box (from left to right in the photo):

• A wrench
• Some Neosporin antibiotic ointment
• A bit of galvanized bailing wire
• A little bottle of Hydrogen Peroxide
• The thing that looks like a bottle opener is actually a kind of wrench. It has little teeth along the edge of the top-shaped cutout, and fits small nuts and bolts. The other end is tapered, and makes a decent screwdriver.
• A razor blade
• Needlenose pliers with wire cutter
• Fishing pliers with wire cutter. Fishing pliers are double-jointed, and close with the jaws parallel to each other, making them nice for small nuts and bolts.
• A really loud, shrill whistle. OK, so it's really dirty as well, but it's a one-piece whistle of sturdy plastic, and can't fail. It is the only piece of equipment in the box that is required by the Coast Guard on my boat.
• A pair of pliers
• A Phillips head screwdriver
• An adjustable wrench
• A length of electrical wire (about 5' long) with insulated alligator clips on each end. This is very useful if you need to find out whether some wire or connection is actually working, or when you find out one is not working when needed. Clip, clip, and go.
• A short Phillips head screw driver and a short flat screwdriver. It is very frustrating to be unable to fix something because your screwdriver is too long. A friend once had to cut his screwdriver and then turn it by grabbing the shaft with Vise Grips.
• A spark plug wrench with flat screwdriver on shaft
• Electrician's pliers with wire cutter
• A small rag. I ruined lots of t-shirts before I learned to carry along a rag.

The only items missing from the picture are a smallish pair of Vise Grips and a roll of electrical tape.

The Importance of Having the Tools When You Need Them

Having a watertight marine tool kit can get you out of lots of trouble. A few simple tools and supplies can mean the difference between getting home on your own and being towed home, or worse. Lots of problems on a boat are electrical, so don't forget that in addition to tools, you may be a piece of wire short of going home. Bring raw materials. That little oily rag is not there because I'm neat. It is there because engines are hot and electrical problems can be sparky. You don't always want to grab things with your bare hands. If something has broken, some bailing wire might get you home. A friend once wired together a broken shift lever on my outboard engine, and did such a good job that I left it that way for a few years, until the engine was next at a professional marine mechanic's shop.

A few first aid supplies can allow you to clean, disinfect, and protect a small wound. If you do not have basic disinfectants and bandages, a small cut can turn into a raging infection. I keep the razor to open up deep wounds for cleaning, and to remove fish hooks, spines, and splinters. The light line has many uses, one of which could be a tourniquet if someone is bleeding badly.

On most outings in small boats, I never open the box. But I've learned to always keep it aboard the boat, even for the shortest trips. It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. Worst of all is to need it, have it, open it, and find only rusty junk inside. Been there, done that, got the rust-stained rag.

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The post What Should Be In Your Small Boat Marine Toolkit first appeared on Tropical Boating.