Boat inspection stations

FFS drain your bilge, ballast whatever you can between lakes.
The longer we can keep something like Zebra mussels out the better.

I started pulling my plug after my boat got stuck in a big rain storm outside and filled with water, pretty simple to hose down with the garden hose and throw the muffs on if your heading to different lake or province. would literally take 15 min out of your day. If your like me 90% of your boating is at the same lake anyway so no big deal.

these stupid invasive species spread fast, i got one lousy snail in a few fish i bought for my 90 gal aquarium and a month later if was full of them, only takes one to ruin everything.

I've own numerous boats over the yrs and all way's have pulled the plugs on them for transport. Most boaters i know fallow the same practice, it is part of transporting a boat out of the water, just like strapping down, putting your rigging down and securing things for trailering the boat.
Being that i learnt my boating ethics from living at the coast(Vancouver) and area. Washing the trailer and the boat it self after pulling out is just part of owning a boat and boating. Doing the same after boating inland water, either lake or river is a no-brainer if it helps protect our fresh water.

I'ed be willing to bet if the water was to damage your boat after pulling it out we'ed not be having this conversation. LOL

I may be alone n this opinion but after reading your posts here I'm gonna guess perhaps your attitude may be the issue when being inspected. I've never had to pull into one with the jet but have over curiosity when passing one without the boat. Found them helpful and had a great convo about what I need to look and watch for etc
Its just really no big deal and very important

FYI lots of jet inboard systems do retain water in the drivetrain when out of water; block, heat exchanger etc

phatboy07 said:

Agreed......HOWEVER.....i find it agrevating to no end that it seems like a vast majority of the folks who are in charge or running these check stops do not have the knowledge to understand certain equipment, types of boats, and other deficiencies that are a problem when it comes to getting all the water (ie surf/wake/ski boats) and then start to ask for unneeded and unacceptable ways of proving this. I have been asked in the past to prove my impeller (jet boat) wasn't holding water (? I'm guessing in the bowl/Volute/stator) ummmmmm ok, I will just whip out my packable tool box for you and get right at that .....when I said that's not gonna happen very easily they asked me to start the boat to blow any water out. Now depending on the model of jet used this is not good practice at all and can lead to damage to certain components. Not that I couldn't with my set up but they shouldn't be demanding to have his done. Have even heard of telling people to take off the propeller on some boats as well. Can't confirm this though. Anyway They were hesitant but after explaining they decided to give me a warning. WTF. Literally a "we will let you off this time but be prepared to maybe have to start or take apart your boat. There needs to be some common sense and training for this. I can't believe I have to put up with this and pay for this.

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I've gone through inspections in AB, BC, and Idaho. Fairly simple, plug out and clean your boat. I'm never in there for more than a couple of minutes. For the most part, they do a walk around, and lift the flapper on my exhaust and run their hand in there. When I get home from holidays I always purge my ballast tanks before I drop into another lake.


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If you read my post again (dont forget the part about Agreeing with the other post) the only time I ever and have ever had a problem was when asked to do something that can lead to damage and/or is quite frankly getting excessive (such as having to disassemble parts of the boat that are not easy to take apart). I am to assume that this is common practice across the province/country and I am in the wrong? What about wake/ski boats with ballasts? Cut them open? I have no attitude when being inspected, that can lead to other problems during inspections depending on who is inspecting (another topic for another thread perhaps). Its funny (not really) because you can ask questions such as mine in the calmest, nicest, almost seem reserved and scared when asking...but usually get an "attitude" response in return, why is that? I cant ask these questions to the inspectors? I cant ask why I dont want to possibly wreck my own equipment? Regardless if I did have an attitude how does that change the situation that I described I was in? What if some poor guy wrecks his eqipment because he unfortuantly doesnt know and just wants to "do the right thing" in the inspection? Some people are not even mechanically inclined to safely take apart a fishing reel let alone certain boat equipment apart, even if it is easy for others....why cant this be better streamlined and have a better knowledge base for inspectors provided? We pay for it...why cant we expect a little better for our hard earned money?

**Also just so we are clear...I AGREE with the inspections...just not how some of them expected to be done**

Grew up on the east coast with boats, pulled plug, washed boat/trailer and flushed motor every time. Really not that difficult, part of the joys of owning a boat.

Can you flush a jet boat propulsion system on a trailer?

LBZ said:

Can you flush a jet boat propulsion system on a trailer?

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Most of them got a garden hose hook up.


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neilsleder said:

Most of them got a garden hose hook up.


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If that's the case I don't see the problem then. If you know you are switching lakes or crossing the border, flush it. Simple. Not sure what the issue is.

LBZ said:

If that's the case I don't see the problem then. If you know you are switching lakes or crossing the border, flush it. Simple. Not sure what the issue is.

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I'm really not aware of any jet units that don't self drain. These boats are design to be pulled out of water summer or winter and can operate in very cold condition's. Even though the hall's of jet boat's vary and many are more of a toy, jet boat's are really the SUV or work horse of boat's and the jet units are design to operate in various weather and all season condition's. Water left in the unit when out of the water would freeze and could cause serious problems.
It's more about being familiar with your boat and in this case i don't think he is. Some like already mention will have a garden hose hookup, water will at times remain inside that hose and if you have a wash down system you would need to drain it. But otherwise no water stay's in the unit or even the motor.(in most cases)
I've put in Okanagan lake in January for fishing laker's with mine at -15 during the day and basically did nothing to it when pulling it out other then let the water self drain. Like i said most jet units water doesn't stay in them.
You should hose them down though, including the drive unit, i usually stick the hose up the drive unit to riinse off if i transport to another region or lake. Its good practice.
This is especially true with the ones with the close loop cooling systems.

I have no problem with these at all. Some of the stuff they ask you to do are silly. Like telling me I have water in my leg after driving through a couple rainstorms. But I would rather have them then have lakes destroyed because of envasive species like zebra muscles. Last year they stopped a guy who was just about to put his boat in at pigeon. His leg was covered with them. Brought the boat from out east. If they got into our lakes then everyone would be complaining that nothing was done to stop them.

I have been thru a bunch of these checkpoints, Medicine Hat a few times, and near Cochrane a lot as I pleasure cruise Lake Minnewanka. I have no problem talking to them and confirming what I have done. I always pull my plug as its a breeze. They staff that look for the invasive little critters often know little about my boat, but are more than willing to listen. I have even had the dog go around and sniff the boat.
They give you a sheet and sign the bottom giving a location and date, they are well on their way of signing the backside of the page now.

And to the nay sayers, its easy to complain about an extra step. I think of it the same as sledding, I always wash, fuel and fill up the sled with oil after each trip so its basically the same idea.

I was pulled into one at the bc/ab border. Right at Demmit. I had just purchased the boat from Ontario. What a time that was. Can you say zebra muscles haha. I was lucky to be pretty informed on invasive species being from Ontario myself. They wanted the plug pulled an went thru my bilge system. Answered a tonne of questions. I understand why they do it but it was a hassle.

Cheers

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unless its a sport jet, all jet units hold water and if the engine is raw water cooled it will hold some too. Didymo is something there always worried about in NZ between rivers and when race boats come back to Canada and USA