Newport Beach Man Aims to Keep Seals off Boats Humanely

David Alptekin tried everything to keep the seals off his boat.

But, the Newport Beach resident said, everything he tried was ugly, bulky or dangerous. Worse, often his efforts didn’t even stop the marine mammals, which were determined to get some sun.  

like to hang out on docks and boats to keep themselves warm. They become a nuisance for boat owners because the animals can damage boats. Also, when the animals get together in a group, they bark day and night.

Alptekin says that about four years ago he finally found something that deters the animals. He invented Seal Stop. It's a small device that makes the boat uncomfortable for the seals to rest on but does not hurt them.

Not only did Seal Stop solve his problem, the 62-year-old Alptekin said, but now the Newport Beach Harbor Patrol and the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration are considering using his invention in government harbors and abandoned ships to keep the seals away.  

With his invention, Alptekin says, he wants “to make docks and boats look like docks and boats” again.

“I want to have my boat looking good like a boat and not like a battle zone,” Alptekin said in an interview Tuesday.

About seven or eight years ago, Alptekin, who has lived in Newport for two decades, bought a boat and docked it in the harbor.

In a few months, he found seals lounging on his deck.

He’d shout at them and spray them with a hose to get them back in the water. But they’d come back.

He tried a number of ways to keep them off the vessel: nets, rope, buckets full of water, chairs tied together.

The problem, Alptekin said, is that the different techniques either make it a chore to get in and out of the boat for the humans, or the devices can be dangerous, or ugly or present “no challenge to the seals.”

“Seals are very intelligent mammals,” Alptekin said. “They are more intelligent than dogs, actually.”

After three years of trying to deal with them, Alptekin, an architect, built the prototype of what would become Seal Stop. It was made of rotating blocks of pine wood with pointed edges that were uncomfortable for the seals to rest on. The seals could still get on the boat, but they’d soon go back into the water.

Over the past four years, Alptekin has been refining his invention, making it cheaper and more efficient. Seal Stop is now plastic, which doesn’t rot, as does wood, and the devices can easily be installed on the boat or dock’s hull. He says one of the most important things about the device is that it doesn't hurt the seals. Like his prototypes, the devices still rotate and have edges that are just pointy enough to bother the seals but not enough to cause any damage. Alptekin has applied for a patent.

In 2010, he said, officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration told him they may want to use it in government harbors, such as Moss Landing Harbor in Monterey.

And according to Alptekin, the Newport Beach Harbor Patrol is looking into Seal Stop to keep seals off abandoned boats.

If boaters want to see his invention in action, Altpekin said, they can motor by one of his customers at 331 Via Lido, where the devices are installed on the dock.

Alptekin, who has a wife and two daughters, said he’s happy his invention is getting noticed.

“I feel great because I think the Seal Stop is being used by more people,” Alptekin said. “The more it’s used the more beautiful Newport Beach will become.”

Click here to see Seal Stop products and pricing.