Boat Lift Heights

[Jimm]

The necessity of a boat lift has come up so I have started looking into getting one installed. My covered dock was built for the previous owner's pontoon boat and I only have about 3 feet above the cage when the lake is at full pool.
Since the lake is owned by a utility you have to go through a lot of hassle with permitting and blue prints to renovate or build any structure in the flood plain.
So my question is how high is high enough? I'm sure this is not a one size fits all kinda answer but, ballpark would be good.

[RUGER761]

Depends on the lift model and how the bunks are set up. 3ft should be enough to get it fully out of the water and still leave a little wiggle room between the tower and the rafters to account for wave bounce (assuming you are looking at a floating lift vs a hoist). Are you looking at a used lift or a new lift? New they would be able to tell you how it needs to be set up. Used make sure your bunks are high enough and nothing is in the way to catch your prop, strut, or tracking fins. Rudder is typically far enough back its normally not an issue.