What Are Trim Tabs On a Boat?

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Whether they come with the boat, or you add them aftermarket, trim tabs are a pretty useful feature. Knowing how to properly utilize them will help you maximize your boat’s performance and get on plane quickly.

So, today we’ll talk about what trim tabs are, how to use them, how they’ll improve your boating experience, and other tips that can help you make the most out of them.

What Are Trim Tabs?

Trim tabs are a part that helps provide lift whenever you need it—similar to elevators and ailerons on an airplane. Trim tabs are a pair of stainless-steel planes mounted on the transom of your boat to boost both planing and acceleration.

With them, your boat can get onto a plane quicker as well as use less fuel.

Boats that have trim tabs installed can plane at a lower speed and lower RPM since the tabs are there to simultaneously hold the bow down and the back end up. If that wasn’t the case, the boat would simply fall off plane at that same speed and RPM.

Aerial View Of Couple Driving Speedboat On Sea

How Do Trim Tabs Work

Trim tabs are raised up or pushed down by an electric or hydraulic ram. Their size, the speed of your boat, and the angle of deflection are a combination that makes the stern lift.

Rocker switches on the dash electrically control the hydraulic pumps. These hydraulic pumps are on the inside of the transom. Trim tabs are on the outside of the transom.

When they’re properly sized, trim tabs boost the performance of the boat. They adjust the running angle of the vessel and help you with several things:

Getting better visibility
Getting on plane much faster
Correcting listing
Increasing the control of the boat in various water conditions
Boosting the overall efficiency of your boat
Correcting rhythmic bouncing which means a more comfortable ride
Improved safety

How Do You Use Trim Tabs?

You’ll learn how to use trim tabs to get on plane relatively quickly.

First of all, there are two two-position, momentary switches on your trim tab control. They are labeled Bow Up and Bow Down.

When you want to move the trim plane on the port side downward, just push the front starboard button. This way, the starboard bow will move downward when your boat is planing.

Push the front-port button when you want to move the trim plane on the starboard side downward. Now, when the boat is planing, your port bow will move downward.

Push the back-starboard button when you want to move the trim plane on the port side upward. This is how you’ll move the starboard bow upward when your boat is planing.

Some Extra Tips On Using Trim Tabs

Distribute the weight of your boat evenly

Make sure to check if you distributed the weight of your boat evenly before leaving the dock. Your boat needs to sit evenly in the water. You can compensate for that by using trim tabs and power trim, but starting in the right, evenly distributed position will make things easier.

Don’t forget trim tabs and power trim work as a team

With power trim, you can adjust the prop path to be parallel to the water flow. On the other hand, you can go for trim tabs to trim the hull of your boat.

When each of these two aides does their part, they work as a team that helps you maximize the performance of your boat.

Start with trim down

In most cases when you want to take off from displacement speeds, your boat will do best when the bow and engine are trimmed down. That’s because boats rise pretty fast onto the plane.

Still, once the boat is on plane, make sure to adequately adjust the trim, considering the sea conditions.

Try not to over-trim

Make sure you don’t deflect the trim tabs too far, especially if your boat is moving at higher speeds. Sea conditions and extreme changes to the angle of the bow while the boat is moving can cause it to veer.

Even if you have trim tabs, they’re not magical. You can independently adjust them, but try to keep the balance. Moving one trim tab significantly further down than the other one can cause your boat to lean to one side.

Monitor propeller, speed, and RPMs as you trim

Propellers of the motor boat before the trip

As you start to trim up, make sure to pay attention to the three main keys – propeller ventilation, speed, and RPMs. These elements will tell you if the boat is properly trimmed and if its performance is at maximum efficiency.

For instance, when you trim up, that will lead to a sharp rise in RPMs, a slight drop in speed, and/or propeller ventilation – which means you’ve trimmed up too far.

Do You Have To Have Trim Tabs?

Are trim tabs something you simply must have? Definitely no, but they can bring some benefits.

Small Boats

Do small boats have trim tabs?

Small powerboats under 22’ don’t have trim tabs installed, mostly because of the expense.

On the other hand, even though those boats don’t have them, they still need them.

With trims, the performance of many small power boats with outboards and sterndrives would be much better.

You will have benefits from trim tabs if:

The inflatable needs to be run wide open to actually stay on plane
The cuddy cabin burns too much fuel, in case you have to run faster
You see the bowrider stick its nose in the air whenever you accelerate from idle
You have ever gone through a scary bow-high take off in situations when you were crossing a wake or not so pleasant feeling during stern-first landing

Large Boats

Trim tabs are used more when it comes to larger boats. They are an excellent solution for performance boats, cruisers, fishing boats, trawlers, and yachts of all sizes.

However, trim tabs are suitable for both large and small boats. Regardless of boat length, hydraulic or electric trim tabs give your greater control of trim.

Both small and big boats benefit from trim tabs. The reason is the same – trim tabs fix uneven weight distribution and get boats on plane quickly. They improve safety and speed as well as the overall performance of the boat.

Low aerial view of large mega yacht crossing the ocean at sunrise.

Are There Different Types Of Trim Tabs?

There are different styles of trim tabs: bolt/electric, classical style hydraulic, self-leveling, bolt edge mount, and some high-performance types.

If you don’t have a boat that’s originally equipped with tabs, you can install them afterward. The general rule is that you’ll get the most if you put the widest span tabs that fit your transom. The rule is simple – the bigger the surface area is, the greater will be the lift.

Conclusion – Are Trim Tabs Worth It?

Some boats already have trim tabs, while on some you’ll need to add them afterward.

Are trim tabs necessary? The short answer is no.

Trim tabs are not cheap, especially if you have a smaller boat. However, they could be useful and bring you many benefits like less bouncing, a more comfortable ride, burning less fuel, better safety, reduced wake, improved visibility, etc.

If those are things that matter to you, trim tabs are definitely going to be a good choice for your boat.