Guide to electric winches for boat trailers

Make your boat easier to handle with an electric winch

When you buy a boat trailer, most are factory-fitted with a manual winch for pulling the boat onto the boat trailer. But using a manual winch can be exhausting in the hot summer sun, and you will certainly get sweaty trying to pull the boat onto the trailer.

It’s important to have suitable equipment, so a good solution to make heavy work easier is an electric winch, which can pull the boat much easier. We also want to provide you with some tips and tricks for choosing the right winch and how to mount it.

Choose an electric winch size according to the weight of your boat

Depending on the weight of your boat/dinghy, choose an electric winch of a suitable size so that it can pull the boat onto your trailer. A good rule of thumb is to choose an electric winch with a towing capacity of approx. 1.5 times the weight of the boat. Keep in mind that the boat often weighs more than stated by the manufacturer, which is the reported dry weight. Also take into account all the equipment you have on board, fuel, etc.

Here at Biltema you will find several different types of electric winches in our range able to pull different weights, so remember that it’s better to buy an electric winch that’s too big than buying one that’s too small, as it will be burdened too much.

How to mount the electric winch on your boat trailer

It is important to find a suitable location on the trailer for the electric winch. If possible, place it high to reduce the load when the bow of the boat bow is positioned on the rear keel roller. It is also a good idea to keep the manual winch on the boat trailer as an emergency backup.

Hvis det er besværligt at få plads til begge spil på spiltårnet, er det en god ide at placere det ene på et særskilt beslag, det er dog altid det elektriske spil som bør have den bedste placering, da det bliver benyttet mest.

Battery type and connection

You should also choose a suitably sized battery. In the vast majority of cases, a 60-75 Ah battery will be sufficient if you are able to charge the battery in between uses. The battery must be connected with a cable of suitable thickness that is able to supply the large amount of power needed when using the electric winch.

A 60-75 Ah battery is usually sufficient to pull a dinghy onto a trailer. The battery model in the picture has a carry handle, which makes it easy to remove when the battery needs to be charged.

The battery can be placed on the boat trailer but it’s important to securely attach it to load-bearing parts of the boat trailer so that it does not fall off when driving or during sudden braking. You should also place the battery in a suitable battery box that is larger than your battery, so that you can also store battery accessories and even a few tools to keep them dry.

A battery case/battery box is also really good at keeping the battery and battery connections free of dirt and debris.

Should you use wire cable or synthetic rope for your winch?

On most winch types, a steel wire rope is often installed, but development in recent years has focused on the synthetic rope, and many people prefer to replace the steel wire cable with synthetic rope. There are several advantages of synthetic rope:

• You are less likely to tear your fingers on braided rope.
• Synthetic rope is stronger and you can therefore go down in size.
• Synthetic rope does not rust.
• A synthetic rope is safer than a steel wire cable if it snaps.

Replacing your steel wire cable with a synthetic winch rope is fairly simple, and it’s a good idea to choose a rope with an eye splice, as it can counteract wear.