Boarding Ladder Upgrade: A Ladder You Can Reach and Use From the Water

On a calm, warm day at anchor or the dock, engine off, put on a life jacket and get in the water. Without anyone helping: can you reach the ladder? Can you unlatch or pull it down? Can you get a foot on the bottom rung without lifting your knee to your chest? Is there something solid to hold at the top? Most people are surprised how hard this is.

With the ladder deployed, measure from the waterline down to the top of the lowest step. Compare it to the 22-inch minimum. If your boat sits lower with a full load, measure in that condition too. A ladder that stops at the waterline is the most common problem.

BoatUS describes four main types:

• Swim-platform ladders: fold or telescope off a platform; usually need no more than three steps to reach the depth because the platform sits close to the water.
• Transom ladders: hinged units on sailboats, often part of the stern rail.
• Removable ladders: clip into brackets bolted to the gunwale or deck. Handy, but if stowed underway they can't help someone who falls in.
• Portable gunwale-hook ladders: cheap but often flimsy, swing under the boat, and must be hung from inside the boat.

If your main ladder can't be deployed from the water, add an emergency ladder: a rope ladder with rigid steps stored in a bag on the boat, with a pull strap that hangs just above the water.

In 2008, the Foundation had volunteers make more than 200 reboarding attempts with portable ladders on a jon boat, a RIB and a 17-foot center console. Their lessons:

• A ladder that worked great on one boat often failed completely on another. Match it to your boat and test it.
• Short, simple one- or two-step ladders that didn't swing far under the hull scored best.
• Many testers liked a homemade loop of thick polyester line, sized to fit them, as much as any store-bought product.
• On a tippy jon boat, boarding at the stern or bow near something to grab worked best.

• On a stern ladder, mount it as far from the centerline (and the propeller and exhaust) as practical.
• On an outboard or sterndrive boat, turn the engine hard toward the side you've picked and mark how far it swings; the ladder goes outboard of that mark.
• Make sure there's a solid handhold within reach of someone standing on the ladder.
• On sailboats, the side by the lifeline gate is often easiest.
• On outboard boats, BoatUS notes the port side of the transom is a common choice, because the steering, control and fuel lines usually run inside the starboard side and swimmers would have to climb over them.
• A small transom swim-platform kit (platform plus telescoping ladder) is a popular retrofit on outboard and sterndrive boats. Before ordering, measure how much flat transom you have above the waterline: BoatUS's writer learned that some transoms are too short for the strut below and the handrail above, and the maker then suggests a different model.

A folding ladder needs a pull line or strap that hangs low enough to grab from the water, and a latch that holds it up while underway but releases with a tug. Check that it can't be released by a wave, but can be by a tired swimmer. Weighting the bottom rung of a rope ladder helps it drop all the way.

Hold the ladder or mount in place and mark the holes with a grease pencil. Look inside: can you reach every bolt to put a nut on it? Are there wires, hoses or fuel lines behind the spot? Is there room for a backing plate? If you can't reach the back side, pick another spot.

Center-punch each mark, drill a small pilot hole, then the full size, slowly and with a sharp bit so the gelcoat doesn't chip. Running the bit in reverse through the gelcoat helps. If the transom or deck is cored (plywood or foam between fiberglass), seal the exposed core in each hole with epoxy so water can't get in and rot it. See through-bolting accessories.

Use marine-grade stainless bolts, nuts and washers, with a backing plate or large washers inside to spread the load: a ladder carries the full weight of an adult pulling and bouncing. Bed every bolt and the mount base in marine sealant. Tighten evenly; check your ladder's instructions for any torque figure. Never use screws alone into fiberglass for a ladder.

Repeat step 1 with the new ladder, and have every regular crew member try it, including the lightest and least agile person. Time how long it takes. If anyone can't do it, adjust: a longer ladder, an extra step, a better handhold, or a different spot.

Look for:

• Cracked welds or bent tubes, and loose or cracked steps
• Hinge pins and latches moving freely, not seized with salt
• Mounting bolts tight, with no cracks in the gelcoat around them (a sign of flexing)
• Rope ladders: chafed line, faded webbing, brittle plastic steps
• Pull strap still in place and reachable

Rinse with fresh water after saltwater use and lightly lubricate hinges as the maker recommends.