What size of Kicker Motor is needed for 22' Boat

[bberry]

What size H.P Kicker Motor is needed to push a 22 foot, 4000 Pound Grady.
I just want the Kicker Motor as a Back Up Motor that will make Head way in a Moderate Wind or Current conditions . I have Sea Tow but I fish in the Chesapeake Bay area around Large Piles of Rocks and the Bridge Pilings with a strong current sometimes and want a Kicker Motor that will keep me safe if a Motors Breaks Down until Sea Tow gets to me.
Thanks for any Info that may help on Kicker Motors before I Buy one.

 

[Pete1313]

I've got a suzuki 9.9 High Thrust on my 248 voyager and it pushes it at 3 kts at half throttle easily (little wind, no current). Full throttle may get me up to 5 kts.....

I think its enough to keep you off the rocks and/or keep your bow into the sea....and even make decent headway in moderate to light weather, but as a true backup in bad weather, I think you're going to need something way bigger and heavier.....might as well get twins then......

 

[uncljohn]

I have a 228, live on the chesapeake, and I got rid of my 9.9 kicker. Rarely is it calm enough for it to be useful. In any headwind you can hardly keep steerage. Doesn't work for trolling. Save your $ and get 10 years of Sea Tow. Just my opinion....

 

[Strikezone]

I have a 228, live on the chesapeake, and I got rid of my 9.9 kicker. Rarely is it calm enough for it to be useful. In any headwind you can hardly keep steerage. Doesn't work for trolling. Save your $ and get 10 years of Sea Tow. Just my opinion....

I agree

 

[bberry]

I have a 228, live on the chesapeake, and I got rid of my 9.9 kicker. Rarely is it calm enough for it to be useful. In any headwind you can hardly keep steerage. Doesn't work for trolling. Save your $ and get 10 years of Sea Tow. Just my opinion....

I agree also With Sea Tow and Have Sea Tow but I fish in the Chesapeake bay area around Large Rocks and Bridge Pilings with Strong Current and in case of a motor going down ,I want something that will keep me off the rocks until Sea Tow gets to me. Thanks for Info

 

[bhemi]

Kicker

I have a 9.9 Mercury on my 28 Marlin for salmon trolling. It works great. I lost my engines 15 miles from port on the west coast and it brought me home. It took 5 hours but I got home. A lot of guys on the west coast really like the 8hp high thrust Yamaha with power tilt/trim.

 

[greenhabah]

Do you have time to drop anchor?

 

[uncljohn]

I agree also With Sea Tow and Have Sea Tow but I fish in the Chesapeake bay area around Large Rocks and Bridge Pilings with Strong Current and in case of a motor going down ,I want something that will keep me off the rocks until Sea Tow gets to me. Thanks for Info

By the time you get to the stern, lower the kicker, lower the kicker bracket, open the fuel line, prime it, and pull or push start it, you would be on the rocks. You could deploy an anchor in less time, and you'll still be calling Sea Tow.....

 

[jellyfish]

I have a 208 with a Yamaha 9.9 HT kicker and it works great. Its tilts down very fast and I have a 25ft power cord with remote at the helm it takes 10 seconds to tilt and start. The remote power steering box with a cord lets me steer from almost anywhere on the boat. Most speed I can get is about 6 to 8 MPH I love mine.

 

[BabyG]

I see too many boats with useless kickers. I use mine to troll, I can adjust from 1 knot to 0.8 knots with easy great for fluking.
It also got me home from 33 miles out once.

23 Gulfstream 25hp kicker 4 stroke yammi

 

[jellyfish]

I see too many boats with useless kickers. I use mine to troll, I can adjust from 1 knot to 0.8 knots with easy great for fluking.
It also got me home from 33 miles out once.

23 Gulfstream 25hp kicker 4 stroke yammi

Its useless......until you need it! :lol:

 

[VeroWing]

I use a 9.9 kicker for my first 22 seafarer. Used it once when main outboard died to push boat over ten miles thru "hells' gate" and the Harlem river. Luckily tide was in my favor, or it would have never happened.
If you want a little stronger engine, and the same size, I'm pretty sure that most 15hp outboards are the same size as the 9.9s.

 

[LUNDINROOF]

The first kicker I had on my 248G was a 2-stroke 18HP Mercury. At the time I had it installed, my dealer recommended a 9.9 Suzuki 4 stroke. I didn't think 9.9HP was big enough and I was afraid that the 4 stroke would not have enough "push" for the 248 so I insisted on the 18hp 2-stroke.

BIG Mistake!!

Because my main engine, a Merc Optimax in oil injected, I had to carry a extra 5 gallon fuel tank with mixed fuel for the kicker. It was always in the way and every year I had to empty the fuel can and put fresh fuel in it. Never mind the safety problems of carrying 5 gallons of gas in the cockpit. Max speed was around 5 kts.

Katrina ate my kicker becasue I stored it in my camp. The camp did not survive but the boat did. I replaced it with a 9.9 4-stroke Suziki electric start, power tilt. Best thing I ever did. The dealer plugged the fuel line directly into the main fuel tank with a "Y" and all I have to do to use it is press a button to lower it into the water and press a button to start it. WOT speed is still around 4.9 to 5.5 kts.

Same speed with half the hp. Go figure!

Dealer says I will not get much more speed unless my kicker gets to the 50 hp level. At that point, its not a kicker anymore.

 

[Sterling Douglas]

Not greater than hull speed

A kicker is not going to push the boat faster than displacement or hull speed. That is not a lot for our size boats.

Maximum Hull Speed (knots) = 1.34 * Square Root (LWL)

LWL: Boat Length at Water Line. Note this is not the overall length or listed model size.

If you are moving the right direction, we shouldn't complain about 5 or 6 knots.

For everyone with a kicker, now is the right time in the season to make sure it is running well. Also not a bad time to practice deploying it, making sure brackets are lubricated, etc. Using it to troll or take a little cruise is not a bad idea. You want to have a good feel for how it operates so you know what to expect when you need it.