www.iFourWinns.com

Mine didn't have one and this seems like it would be a good option to have. If you have one, do you like it? What brand does FW use? I am thinking of installing one myself.

Oh how the other half live!!!!!

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Brett DiMichele

I have one in our 348. It's made by Dometic. It works pretty well. It has a very nice quality hose too, not the typical cheapie that comes with a wetvac. And the hose is long enough to let me vacuum up in the cockpit too. The only thing it doesn't have is an agitating brush. It comes with a round brush, a 3" wide flat and a 8" wide floor attachment (and a extension pole for using it). Since the hose isn't powered there's no power brush head. Supposedly there are vacuum-powered brushes. But I prefer to just drag the rugs home and use a regular steamvac on them.

It works. That and you don't have to deal with trying to store it somewhere since it's built-in already. Of course you do still have to stow the hose and attachments but those come in a nice mesh bag.

So yeah, as an option I'd certainly recommend considering it.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Is this the one in your boat? https://www.campingworld.com/browse/sku ... unum=29045

Pretty similar to ours. Except ours is white. I agree with Bill's comments. Nice addition to the boat. Not quite as much suction as I'd sometimes like, but more than enough to tidy up. If we didn't have it, I'd probably be just as happy with some form of dirt devil though.

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2004 Sea Ray 420DB
Formerly: 2005 348 Vista

We say the same thing about you:

At the gas dock...
When the monthly payment is due...
When the insurance bill comes...
When I have a hose in one hand and a scrub brush in the other...
When friends want to spend the night...
When I need to haul the boat to change the outdrive oil...
When it comes time to change the engine oil...

Shall I continue?

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2004 Sea Ray 420DB
Formerly: 2005 348 Vista

Yep, that looks like the same one. Installation of it is easy, it's mounted by four screws into a rectangular hole in the A/C access panel. Then it's just a single 110vAC electrical connection. Don't know if they include the AC wiring if the vacuum isn't installed. But even if they didn't the panel for it is literally just 3 feet up inside that same cabinet. So adding one would be very trivial.

I agree that a Dirt Devil would work just fine if this wasn't installed. And it's not like place where they mount the Dometic gets used for anything else.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Yeah, well, not when there's 4' chop and a head wind! It's almost painful to watch some poor soul in a tiny bowrider getting beat to crap trying to make headway in those conditions.

But I'll add one other time it's better to have a small boat:

When slip fees are based on LOA.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Trust me guys.. the only thing keeping me from a big boat with twin honkin diesels and IPS drives is the fact that it's not trailerable!

If I ever get to the point where I can live with letting a boat sit in the water and all the maintence that goes along with it, just to keep it shiney and presentable, then I will get my really big boat.

I still haven't gotten to that point yet, and when I look at all the big cruisers at the marina where I put in.. I just can't get over how quickly they go from new to eww. The sun and the water is hard on them for sure!

As for the other half comment, hope no one was offended as that was completely in jest (notice the smiley at the end). I am not envious or jealous of those with a bigger boat, because I know what it costs to feed and clean one!

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Brett DiMichele

Sure, slime grows on the bottom when it's in the water but the decking isn't going to be any different. Sun is sun, whether it's in your driveway or wet-slipped. Granted, you could pull the trailer into a garage. Or get a covered wet slip. But I'm not sure I'd count above decks maintenance as being much different between the two (besides the added surface area to clean/wax!)

Then there's the whole nonsense of boat ramps. If there's one thing that would keep me from ever owning a trailer boat that would be it. The thought of having to regularly deal with the idiots at loading ramps would just turn me off boating entirely.

Now, if/when we get a place on the water with it's own pier then I'd probably consider a smaller boat, but would keep it up on lifts. Being able to pull it "for free" with my own trailer would certainly be a nice option instead of paying through the nose for the travel lift at a marina.

I doubt anyone's offended either way (hopefully!). I'm certainly not. I'm just glad to be ON a boat when I have the time!

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Bill,
I've got the same vacuum but ours came with a vacuum powered agitating brush. After the first time I used it I spent a little while trying to figure out how the power was being transferred to the head because it worked so well. From the amount of power the brushes had I figured there was no way it was vacuum powered.

I'm probably in the same camp as everyone else about the vacuum. Definitely a nice to have but also not a need to have. On the other hand with the way I seem to obsess about the boat if it didn't have it I would probably feel compelled to add it.

So I got the brush but I didn't get a nice bag to keep my accessories in, they're just in the box they came in. Oh well, you win some you lose some.

Ben

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2001 Cruisers 4450
Volvo TAMD-74P 480hp Diesels

Heh, I'll trade ya the bag for the brush! Next time you get a chance can you see if there's a part number on the brush attachment? I'd like to see about getting one for our boat. The cockpit carpet doesn't really clean up all that well with just the plain attachment. When I hit 'em with the Sebo vacuum at home they clean right up. It's the brush that makes the difference. Granted, if I'm lugging them home I usually just clean them with the SteamVac instead.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

That's what I do.. I bring them up to the living room and run over them with my Dyson Ball and then hit them with the Hoover Steamvac. The problem is, as nice as Berber's are.. They are such a bear to get clean!

I am glad FW just made these "lay in" carpets though (unless the other Vista's have snaps?) I don't like snaps in a cockpit liner.

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Brett DiMichele