Draft and Bridge Clearance on Z225 Divante

william.bryant2 · 04-23-2012, 04:11 PM

Hello, I am in the process of putting storing my boat on a local lake here in Michigan. The marina asked the bridge clearance and draft because there is a channel to navigate that may be shallow for the boat and also bridge to clear to gain assess to the main lake. I dont have my owners manual at home it is on the boat. Does anyone by chance know this information.

Thank You

***mikeyt*** · 04-23-2012, 05:17 PM

The draft is 31" with the drive down and 14"with the drive up. Hopefully someone else knows the clearance height...

DCB_MINDED · 04-23-2012, 11:07 PM

Hey Mikey, do they measure this with the boat empty, or loaded to capacity? Cuz it will change with the amount of fuel/people/other crap that we haul around.

***mikeyt*** · 04-23-2012, 11:15 PM

I'm not absolutely positive but i believe its measured with a 1/4 tank of fuel and nothing else in the boat. Perhaps someone else here knows the answer to that question?

DCB_MINDED · 04-23-2012, 11:31 PM

You have sparked my curiosity, and I can't seem to find a definite answer on Google. But I did find this website that explains how much that the weight of cargo adds to your draft

How to Calculate Draft | eHow.com

But it looks like it would be a bit skewed for our Mariahs, since the sides are tapered. Due to the tapered sides of a typical runabout or cruiser, the water displacement changes as the boat floats deeper. I'll keep digging on this one, and let you know what I find out.

DCB_MINDED · 04-24-2012, 12:42 AM

Okay, after further research, it seems that the question "what is draft?" is highly debated. Some Manufacturers measure draft empty, others full. Some measure to the keel, others to the bottom of the engine. Even definitions from one dictionary to the other are different. Some state "the minimum depth of water a boat will float in" others state "distance from the waterline to the bottom of the keel" It seems like another one of those mysteries that are up for interpretation.