Passenger capacity of a 37' Grand Mariner?

[Chris M]

That's awesome, thank you! And good to know about the HIN process; I can see if we've got something like that up here.

Right now there's one insurance company that isn't asking for a HIN, serial number, or a registration number; I've just got to persuade them that I'm not too much of a risk to cover despite my lack of experience in a boat this size.

 

[jleonard]

Someone once posted more eloquently;
the boat sleeps 6, dines with 4, and cruises with 2.

I used to say that my 40 Albin “ partied 20 but slept 2”.
That said I had 15 to 20 aboard several times for a harbor cruise. It was never a problem.

 

[Chris M]

Hooray I managed to insure her!!

And for anyone else in BC who is struggling to find insurance, try Hailey out of Westland Insurance, the Chilliwack Cheam Avenue branch. She was absolutely fantastic for me and I'm happy to recommend her. Also we were able to do everything 100% online; you don't have to be able to get to Chilliwack (I'm on the Island myself).

Hailey Blenkarn
Insurance Advisor
Westland Insurance Group Ltd.
office: 604‑703‑7640 ext. 137144

www.WestlandInsurance.ca

 

[Chris M]

A note for anyone else trying to determine passenger capacity:

According to this website (Boat Capacities), the U.S. Coast Guard uses this formula:

(Length x Width) /15

So according to that, the maximum number of people I could safely carry in optimal conditions would be about 32, which feels excessive. I feel much better about potentially carrying 8-10 now!

"If your boat or watercraft is not required to be affixed with a boat capacity plate*, the U.S. Coast Guard recommends the following formula to determine how many passengers can be carried safely on your watercraft:

Safe Number of Passengers = L x W/ 15

It is important to understand that this formula is effective in good weather and is a basic guideline. Any equipment** that is onboard will decrease the amount of space available for passengers."

* Manufacturers are required by law to affix a capacity label on all mono-hull boats that measure less than 20 feet in length and that are built after October 31, 1972.

** They seem to be including the engine in "other equipment", so you might want to figure out how much your engine weighs, and reduce the number of people accordingly. According to Transport Canada a "person" is an average of 75 kg, so about 165 lbs or so. --Mind you, I'm using "passenger" to mean total number of people in total, including crew etc, whereas it has a slightly different meaning according to TC. Consider it synonymous with "souls" so far as this thread/max. capacity of boat goes.

 

[slowgoesit]

Wow! For us (registered length) is 50', width is 16.5' so 50 x 16.5/15 = 55 people!?! Guess I need to get some more life jackets! (We only have 23 on board)

 

[douggairns]

So, um, when I asked the previous owners if they knew her length at the waterline, they said 37'. Sigh...

So I had them measure her at the yard. Her waterline is 32', which is awesome (but the insurer wouldn't take that, drat it). But it ends up that the Aquaculture course I'm in the middle of gives me a bunch of Small Vessel certifications by the end of it, in, like, six weeks, so, awesome!.

But, er... Tip to tail, bowsprit to the far edge of her tender... She's 42'.

I did not tell the insurance agent that lol.

(I suspect the 37' is minus the tender, and possibly the swim grid, but the tender for sure).

So here's a question for y'all: When you give the length of your boats, do you include the bowsprit? And the swimgrid? Or nah?

Nawwww, not unless you want to pay more for dockage. I think most Marinas measure from the waterline. My 39 is about 46 ft with the bowsprit and the swim platform.

 

[SteveK]

Wow! For us (registered length) is 50', width is 16.5' so 50 x 16.5/15 = 55 people!?! Guess I need to get some more life jackets! (We only have 23 on board)

look at all the missed opportunities to have most of all friends and family on board.

 

[ranger58sb]

I think most Marinas measure from the waterline.

We haven't found that to be a constant. And along the AICW, for example, OAL is important because the marinas will sometimes cram an X' boat into an X+3' space along a face dock. X needing to include anything hanging off the bow (anchor?) or stern (dinghy?).

I'd say most marinas:
- charge by foot of LWL, or
- charge by foot of OAL, or
- charge by length of slip.
I'd guess one of those is almost bound to cover all that take length - of some sort -- into account.

-Chris

 

[rslifkin]

I'd say most marinas:
- charge by foot of LWL, or
- charge by foot of OAL, or
- charge by length of slip.
I'd guess one of those is almost bound to cover all that take length - of some sort -- into account.

And some are happy to just take the manufacturer's length, which in some cases is LOD or hull length. Most commonly I've seen charges by LOA or by size of slip (or sometimes LOA with a certain minimum for a given slip).

 

[ranger58sb]

And some are happy to just take the manufacturer's length,

Ah. Yep, I forgot about that one!

-Chris

 

[slowgoesit]

Our registered length is 50'. In reality, with the dinghy is on the davits, and the anchor, LOA is 61' and change. I tell people "Registered 50" If they persist, I'll tell them LOA

 

[Shrew]

Drinks: 10~
Eat: 6
Sleep: 2

 

[brumon]

Congrats on the new-to-you Grand Mariner—solid classic trawler, love the tri-cabin layout. No luck on a brochure/manual for the '77 model (tried a few archives, nada), but here's the scoop from trawler vets and regs:

No official capacity plate required for rec boats your size, so it's more art than science. USCG's basic formula for max folks is (LOA x beam in feet) / 15 = ~32 for your 37x13 (481/15). But that's pie-in-the-sky for dinky runabouts—subtract for gear, engines, and common sense, and it's still overkill for a trawler. Real talk: weight distribution matters way more than raw numbers. Keep 'em spread out (no piling on the flybridge or one rail), and factor seas/conditions. Extra 300-500 lbs from 8 adults? Negligible on 300 gal fuel, but watch stability if they're top-heavy.

Practical limit: Sleeps/dines 6 easy (your berths nail it), cruises comfy with 4-6, parties 8-10 if light and chill (plenty of PFDs aboard). I've seen similar 37s handle 10 for harbor hops without drama, but 12+? Nah, gets squirrelly quick. Start conservative till you feel her out—test with buddies and a static test (all aboard, engine off, note list/heel).

Hunt more: Check C&L Marine's old site scraps or call a broker like Murray Yacht Sales; they list specs sometimes. Or post pix of your capacity sticker spot (if any) here. What's your typical run—bay or bluewater?

 

[mvweebles]

I used to say that my 40 Albin “ partied 20 but slept 2”.
That said I had 15 to 20 aboard several times for a harbor cruise. It was never a problem.

I've had a bunch of people on our 36-foot Willard for day-cruises and such. For anyone contemplating similar, suggest making sure bilge pump outlets are above loaded waterline and have a siphon break loop. Also make sure the siphon break for the engine is well above loaded waterline.

Peter

 

[Chris M]

Congrats on the new-to-you Grand Mariner—solid classic trawler, love the tri-cabin layout. No luck on a brochure/manual for the '77 model (tried a few archives, nada), but here's the scoop from trawler vets and regs:

<snip>

Hunt more: Check C&L Marine's old site scraps or call a broker like Murray Yacht Sales; they list specs sometimes. Or post pix of your capacity sticker spot (if any) here. What's your typical run—bay or bluewater?

Oh, I'm not taking her anywhere near blue water for now, probably forever. I'm fully aware she's a coastal cruiser! Probably just stick to the northern Georgia Strait until I get more familiar with her, and get some more saltwater practice under my belt; sounds like getting her into and out of Campbell River will be quite exciting enough for me ha ha!

She doesn't seem to have anything like a capacity sticker on her anywhere, so I think for now I'm going to stick with the max 6-8 estimate; honestly even picturing 10 on her feels like a lot.

Good idea contacting the brokers about it, thanks!

 

[Chris M]

I've had a bunch of people on our 36-foot Willard for day-cruises and such. For anyone contemplating similar, suggest making sure bilge pump outlets are above loaded waterline and have a siphon break loop. Also make sure the siphon break for the engine is well above loaded waterline.

Peter

Ooh, thanks; would never have even considered that! Going to be hard for things to drain if the drains are under water!

 

[rslifkin]

She doesn't seem to have anything like a capacity sticker on her anywhere, so I think for now I'm going to stick with the max 6-8 estimate; honestly even picturing 10 on her feels like a lot.

That should be plenty safe. Provided you don't put a stupid amount of people on the flybridge you'll likely be feeling crowded and like you don't want any more people before it's actually unsafe.

 

[mvweebles]

Ooh, thanks; would never have even considered that! Going to be hard for things to drain if the drains are under water!

Problem isn't that they won't drain, problem is they will back-flow into the boat if submerged without a siphon break. Bilge pump primes the line and the boat starts filling with water. Bilge pump might keep up........for a while.

Most older boats don't have siphon breaks on the bilge discharge lines. They should.

Peter