Must know about Center Lift Pontoon Trailers

YOU MUST KNOW THIS ABOUT CENTER LIFT TRAILERS We try to impress upon our customers the potential difficulties that exist with a center-lift pontoon trailer. The wheel base is narrow and marine dealers have horror stories about boats being tipped. You must pay more attention when towing with a center lift trailer. Pontoons have been towed safely for sixty years on this type of trailer, and the majority of owners who take the proper precautions never any trouble. Although, in our opinion, single axle center lift trailers are unsafe and people who sell them know it and don’t care. We won’t sell them. Because you’re towing on a trailer with a 40”-44” center of gravity it’s critical that the boat is firmly attached to the lower frame of the trailer. If you hit a curb and the boat is not secured properly it will very likely tip over. If the boat isn’t fastened in the front it could easily slide off. Lo-Loader trailers have four (two in the front, two in the rear) tie down brackets. Boats securely attached to these brackets have a reduced likelihood of tipping.
	A damaged safety pin indicated that the boat was not fastened to the trailer. The boat bounced up and down when traveling and bent the pin.


Don’t let a friend ruin your pontoon trailer. Center lift pontoon trailers are sold by the bed length. The most common sizes are 18’, 20’, 22’, & 24’. You should fit the trailer to the length of your pontoon boat. If you have a 20’ pontoon buy a 20’ trailer, 22’ a 22’ trailer, etc. Most center lift pontoon trailers “cantilever” front to back to lower the pontoon boat or back to front to raise the boat. There is a a characteristic of engineering that is often overlooked (or not understood) about cantilever systems, be they pontoon trailers or cantilever style boat hoists, etc. Any weight extending beyond the back of the top rails is multiplied by TWO. If you have a 20’ trailer and use it with a 22’ pontoon boat, the trailer has to work harder to raise the weight of the extra 2’ of pontoon boat. If the extra weight is 300 pounds, the trailer will lift an extra 600 pounds. 600 pounds might not be a problem for a well built 20’ pontoon trailer. However a 22’ or 24’ trailer used to lift a 27’ inboard/outboard, double decker style pontoon, with all the weight in the back could damage the trailer. Lifting an extra 1,000 or 1,500 pounds, multiplied by two would be 2,000 or 3,000 pounds. In this situation, you could jeopardize the integrity of the winch and lifting system. You will almost certainly bend the back of the trailer.
Customers frequently buy center lift pontoon trailers to be used on multiple boats or even to rent. It’s the customer’s responsibility to make sure that renters or friends don’t damage your trailer. Trailer manufacturers recognize this type of damage. Since the trailer was overloaded or the boat not secured properly, companies will seldom offer any remedy under warranty.
For Information Call 800-877-1544 or 574-970-1311

Trailers for Pontoons

800-877-1544 or 574-970-1311