Inflatable boat trailers – Complete guide

What is the easiest way to haul your inflatable boat? Put the whole thing on a trailer, of course. If you have the space to store it and the time to drive a bit slower (due to towing), inflatable boat trailers are great.

In this detailed guide, you will learn all about how to choose a trailer, what modifications you may need, and how to tow it as well.

Let’s get started!

How to choose a trailer for an inflatable boat

There are several things you need to pay attention to when buying a trailer for your SIB (but not as many as you would need for a traditional boat).

Basic trailer requirements

If you consider any trailer for a SIB, make sure they have:

• a working lighting system that can be hooked onto your car’s for functioning brake lights and turn signals
• fenders above the wheels, which protect the boat from road debris (stones, etc.)

You don’t need active braking on trailers that haul inflatable boats, because they are not heavy.

Trailer dimensions

In order to make sure your boat fits the trailer, you need to consider the length of your boat.

The point is to have the transom still resting on the trailer, with the front still behind the tongue and bow rest.

Trailer capacity

All trailers are rated for a maximum load capacity.

When calculating the curb weight of your inflatable boat, make sure you add the weight of everything that will be in/on the boat while on the trailer:

• boat
• motor
• fuel (7 pounds per gallon)
• batteries
• supplies
• water (8 pounds per gallon)

Inflatable boats are much lighter than traditional fiberglass boats, so load capacity should not be an issue.

Trailer material

Trailers are made of either steel or aluminum.

What is the difference?

Steel is stronger, heavier, and usually cheaper. The downside to trailers made out of steel is that they will rust, being since steel is a ferrous metal. This becomes especially problematic with salt-water.

Aluminum is lighter, not as strong. It will corrode like steel, but will not rust. It is usually more expensive.

Galvanized steel is steel with benefits. Galvanization is a process that protects the steel from corrosion and rust. It is also more expensive than regular steel, but cheaper than aluminum.

Which material should you choose for your boat’s trailer?

If you plan on launching your boat into salt-water directly from your trailer, you should go for an aluminum trailer or a galvanized steel one.

There are other water launching options which I’ll get to in a minute, where you’ll be fine with a normal steel trailer.

Trailer support system

There are 2 ways a boat can be supported on the trailer: on bunks or on rollers.

• Bunks: Bunks are longitudinal pads to support the soft hull over a long length. They are meant to cradle your boat with even weight distribution. Bunks  (also called bunkers) are usually made of marine-grade plywood and covered with marine carpet.
• Rollers: While loading and unloading your boat becomes easy, there are many tradeoffs. The weight of the boat is concentrated on the rollers, so the boat’s material can develop little indents where it sits on the roller. They don’t cradle the body of the boat at all.

Trailers with bunkers are better for transporting inflatable boats.

Now that you’ve read about the aspects you need to consider, let’s have a look at the best inflatable boat trailers I have used or come across.

Flat deck trailer for your inflatable boat?

Flat deck trailers can work well, even though they are not designed specifically for hauling boats.

There are just a few things you need to be mindful of:

1. You need to deflate your keel when using a flat deck trailer of course.
2. If the tubes are left fully inflated, the transom will be sitting in the air. This may become a problem if you leave a heavy motor on the transom since it can cause extra wear not just on your transom, but also the rubber where your transom meets the tubes.
   To remedy this, let some air out of your tubes, you that the transom sits on the solid part of the trailer.
3. You may need to install a bow rest (bow stop). This is attached to the tongue of the trailer and supports the front of your boat.

Best galvanized steel inflatable boat trailers

If you are looking for a good trailer that will withstand the elements and salt-water, Galvanized steel boat trailers offer the best value.

Here are two of the best in 2024 you can check out:

Malone MicroSport Trailer

The Malone Microsport is made of rustproof galvanized steel, so you can launch your boat directly into the water off of this trailer.

It is marketed as a kayak trailer, but like the C.E. Smith (below), the bunkers are fully adjustable, meaning you can set their width and angle to suit any inflatable boat as well.

This trailer is a great choice. It is a bit more expensive than the C.E. Smith, but it is of higher quality, has larger wheels, and a 5-year(!!!) warranty.

The trailer is made in the USA of galvanized steel, so you can safely launch your boat into fresh or sea water without worrying about corrosion. The taillights are submersible as well.

The DOT-compliant tires are rated for 75 MPH, so you will get to the water as fast as you would otherwise on the highway. The tires are larger than the ones on the C.E. Smith trailer.

Since this trailer is originally designed to haul kayaks of up to 20 feet (6 meters), the tongue is very long, so you won’t have any problems with even the largest inflatable boats. You can reduce the length of the tongue though if it’s too long for storage.

A cool thing about MicroSport trailers is that they have a lot of accessories you can upgrade to later on.

You can:

• Add a second level to place a cargo box on
• Buy dedicated kayak holders,
• Or even a travel bag that goes under the boat.

This trailer costs more than the C.E. Smith Trailer above and does not include any of the accessories that come standard with the Multi-Sport.

	Malone MicroSport Trailer
Deck Material	Galvanized Steel
Frame Material	Galvanized Steel
Deck Size	Width and length adjustable
Overall Size L x W	159 in x 78 in
Wheel Size	12 in
Brakes	No
Lights	Yes, LED lights
Fenders	Yes
Load Capacity	800 lbs
Ship Weight	217 lbs
Warranty	5-year Limited Warranty

The MicroSport comes as a kit, shipped in 4 boxes. It assembles in 4 hours with standard tools, 3 if you’re a handyman at heart. You don’t need to drill or anything major. The electrical, mechanical, and hub assemblies are pre-fitted, so that takes a lot of work out of the equation.

Here is the assembly manual if you want to have a look. It is 22 pages of color assembly instructions.

C.E. Smith Multi-Sport Trailer

This C.E. Smith boat trailer is made in the USA (North Carolina) out of galvanized steel, which means it is rust-proof, just like the Malone trailer above.

This is also a good value boat/kayak trailer in 2024, I highly recommend it if you can find it in stock.

It is designed to carry boats of around 12-13′ in length, with a maximum weight capacity of 800 lbs.

You can optionally get an extra-long tongue for the Multi-Sport trailer in case your boat is longer. The original tongue is 6′ long; the extra-long one is 7.5′. This means that you can increase the length capacity by this extra 18″.

The Multi-Sport Trailer comes with 2 carpeted bunk boards. You can configure their position and tilt angle to suit your boat or kayak perfectly.

It rolls on 4.8×8″ tires, which are not super large, but still rated for highway speeds.

It also has a leaf spring suspension system, which is strong and reduces the effect of bumps from rough roads.

The kit also includes submergible DOT-approved lights, the winch, winch stand, hook and strap, hitch coupler, and safety chains. Everything you need to get your boat to the water.

As the trailer and all of its parts are made in the USA, you can quickly order replacement parts if you need to.

It is shipped unassembled, you need to screw it together at home. Here are the assembly instructions in case you want to have a look.

	C.E. SMITH GALVANIZED STEEL WATERCRAFT TRAILER
Deck Material	Galvanized Steel
Frame Material	Galvanized Steel
Deck Size L x W	11 ft 8 in x 4 ft 6 in
Overall Size L x W	140 in x 54 in
Wheel Size (in.)	8
Brakes	No
Lights	Yes, submergible LED
Fenders	Yes
Load Capacity	800 lbs
Ship Weight	212 lbs
Warranty	1-year Limited Warranty

Folding trailer for inflatable boats

The biggest disadvantage of trailers is that they take up a lot of space in your driveway or yard.

But not folding trailers!

Have a look at the Ultra-Tow Folding Trailer Kit, it is also available on Amazon here.

It can be used as a flat-bed trailer to get your inflatable boat from A to B, and when you don’t need to use it, you can simply fold it away and store it upright.

Great way to save space.

And best of all, it is made of aluminum, so it does not rust!

Just like the Ironton boat trailer above, this comes as a kit, so you need to put it together yourself.

If you’re looking for a folding trailer for inflatable boats, this one is a good option:

	ULTRA-TOW FOLDING UTILITY TRAILER KIT
Deck Material	Rustproof aluminum
Frame Material	Rustproof aluminum
Deck Size L x W (ft.)	4 x 8
Overall Size L x W x H (in.)	144 x 62 1/2 x 22 1/2
Wheel Size (in.)	12
Brakes	No
Lights	Yes
Fenders	Yes
Load Capacity	1170 lbs
Ship Weight	195 lbs
Warranty	1-year Limited Warranty

As this is not a boat-specific trailer, there is a considerable amount of DIY involved before you can put your boat onto it. You will need to build bunks and secure them onto the bed of the trailer. You may also want to build a bow stop to secure the front of the boat as well.

This also means it is a bit cheaper than the previous boat-specific trailer, check out the current price here.

Cheap inflatable boat trailer

If you don’t want to spend $1000+ on a trailer for your SIB, this boat trailer kit at around $500 is your best choice.

This is the Ironton Personal Watercraft and Boat Trailer kit, here it is on Amazon.

It is a kit, which means it arrives disassembled in 2 boxes and you need to put it together yourself.

This budget trailer is perfectly suited for moving a SIB around:

	IRONTON BOAT TRAILER KIT
Deck Material	Steel
Frame Material	Steel
Deck Size L x W (in.)	77 1/4 x 40 1/4
Overall Size L x W x H (in.)	126 3/4 x 52 1/2 x 16 1/4
Wheel Size (in.)	12
Brakes	No
Lights	Yes
Fenders	Yes
Load Capacity	610 lbs
Ship Weight	216 lbs
Warranty	1-year Limited Warranty

This trailer is made out of steel, but it is not galvanized. This means that you cannot use it to launch your boat into the water, otherwise, it will rust and become unusable very quickly.

The trailer is very easy to customize. You can choose where you want to place the bunkers and what angle the bunkers should, so it will fit any small boat or kayak.

Installing extras, like ratchet straps and transom tie-down straps is easy as well.

It does NOT come with a bow rest for some reason. You can buy one separately if needed, like this one.

I helped a friend put one of these together, we finished in about 5 hours. The instructions were good, but there was a wiring problem since the frame does not ground the wires because the metal-to-meal contact in the rear is poor due to the thick paint they use. As a result, the lights didn’t work.

There is an easy fix though: you need to run a ground wire from the back bar to the front ground point. This completes the circuit.

This trailer is popular so it goes out of stock often, check it here.

Here are a few extras you might need if you opt for this trailer:

• Trailer jack to lift the tongue up and down with ease
• Trailer winch to pull the boat onto the trailer easily

Aluminum trailers for inflatable boats

If you are looking for an aluminum trailer for your inflatable, you will need to pay considerably more than the basic options above. Think $1500 plus…

In fact, if you will only be towing inflatable boats, you probably don’t need one. Unless you are bent on water-launching your boat.

In this case, there are a few companies that build aluminum boat trailers:

• Loadrite
• Magictilt
• Karavan

Your inflatable boat will probably cost much less than an aluminum boat trailer though. Just saying.

How to position an inflatable boat on a trailer

You need to be mindful of how you position your boat on the trailer. You don’t want it flying off, bouncing around, or swaying sideways on every bump and wind gust.

It goes without saying that the boat needs to be balanced on each side. It cannot be heavier on either side when laid into a resting position on the trailer.

Once placed on the trailer, you will need to make sure it stays put.

Ratchet strap

To make sure your boat does not bounce up-down when driving over bumps, bolt a ratchet strap to the trailer on one side, and something you can hook it into on the other. You will want to do this at around 1/3 the boat’s length from the front.

You want to be super safe, so you can add another ratchet strap at 1/3 from the rear, with a hook on the other side.

You can get this ratchet strap pack on Amazon for $20 dollars.

Securing the stern with transom tie-downs

To secure the stern of the boat, it is a good idea to use transom tie-down straps. They are a quick and easy way to secure the stern on each side.

Make sure the ones you get are stainless steel so they do not rust, like these transom tie-downs.

Mind the tongue weight

The tongue weight is the weight being placed on the hitch ball at the front of the trailer.

You need to be careful with how you position your boat, as too little or too much tongue weight will cause problems.

How to balance the load on the trailer?

The rule of thumb is that the tongue weight should be 10-15% of the total weight of the trailer and its load, with the remaining weight load carried by the tires.

• Too much tongue weight will cause impaired handling and excessive rear tire wear.
• Too little tongue weight will cause the trailer to sway from side to side as you can see in this demonstration.

Launching your boat

Water launching a boat off a ramp (or another suitable area) is relatively straight forward. You simply back into the water and release the boat as can be seen here.

You need an aluminum or a galvanized steel trailer to do this though. Of course, aluminum and galvanized steel boat trailers are a bit pricey.

Your low-budget alternatives to launching your boat into the water from the trailer are:

• If your boat is light enough, you can simply carry it.
• If it’s a bit heavier, it will have a transom, onto which you can fit launch wheels. Check out my detailed guide on launch wheels to find out why they are the best thing next to sliced bread.
• Get a launching trolley. It’s not as convenient as launch wheels, but it’s a good option.

Personally, I prefer using launch wheels on my Newport Vessels boat. Installing it was an easy upgrade, and it works like a charm no matter where I use it.

Modifications

There is some work you will need to put into making the trailer fit your inflatable boat, but once you do it, you’ll never look back.

Check out this forum as well, it has lots of mods and interesting solutions to problems people faced when setting up their trailers.

FAQs

Here are some quick questions I had before I got my trailer.

Do you need a separate license to tow an inflatable boat trailer?

Since trailers used for inflatable boats are short and light, you generally don’t need a separate license to tow them.

You should check your state’s laws though.

Do you need to register the trailer?

Check your local laws, as some states require official registration of all trailers.

But even if your state does not, it is still a good idea to do so.

Why?

There are 2 reasons:

1. In case your trailer is stolen, it is much easier to administer the theft of a registered trailer. Trailers can be traced easier if registered.
2. You might travel to another state where trailer registration is required.

Do you need brakes on an inflatable boat trailer?

You will want to check your local laws, but typically, brakes are required on trailers that will have a total weight of over 3000 lbs.

With inflatable boats, this is not an issue. The combined weight of the trailer and boat will rarely exceed 1000 lbs.