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I had these same questions when I was starting to work on my Montauk. I very much appreciated all of the advice, weighed the arguments, and looked at how I anticipated using my boat. In the end, I installed one. I like to crab, and the pots often drag up a bunch of muck and yuck which ends up on deck. Since I am now keeping my boat in the water, I'll wash down the deck with the hose at my marina & drain the water using the bilge pump. Hopefully the mud that is in solution won't affect the pump's lifespan too much, but I will find out.

I also could have left the plug out when docked and drained the mess out the next run, but I like to have a dry deck and at this point in my boating career I haven't figured out the trick of leaving the helm when I am solo and on plane to put a plug in, and being comfortable about doing so. I'm sure it is a matter of technique and experience.

If I was trailering, I probably would have made a different choice.

Dennis