One of the tropes you’ll hear again and again as you prepare to go cruising is that you need to be self-sufficient. Being able to fix what might break is one of the basic boating skills that separates who will have a good time and who will be miserable — stuck, waiting for mechanics to show up, waiting for parts to come in on order, or stuck in the purgatory of the boatyard.
Being able to do some of your maintenance makes your life easier, no matter where you’re headed. But the farther afield you roam, the more essential it becomes. If you’re headed offshore or out to the Out Islands of the Bahamas, you need to be prepared to do some boat repair and maintenance.
Self-sufficiency comes down to getting your boat back to a place where it can be repaired professionally if needed. In the US, having a SeaTow or TowBoat membership might be enough. But even then, you might find yourself in a spot waiting hours for them to get you, and if you only had some simple tools, you might be able to fix it yourself — at least well enough to get home. When you head to the islands, you can’t count on there being any tow boats near enough to help.
So, be ready. Start by having the tools and enough knowledge to be self sufficient out there. It’s never too soon to start.
More Boat Maintenance Means Less Boat Repair
In the simplest terms, boat maintenance is what you do to keep the boat from breaking, and boat repair is what you do after it breaks anyway. In my experience, you can head off nearly all mechanical boat repairs by keeping on top of your maintenance.
In some cases, the connection between the two is obvious. If you don’t change the oil in your diesel engine for a few years (or clean its heat exchanger, or change the coolant, or…), it will eventually need expensive repair.
But here’s something you might not realize. From personal experience, I can tell you that during routine boat maintenance, I discover potential problems that could develop into serious issues if not dealt with quickly. Over the years, this has saved me many thousands of dollars and days/weeks/months of delayed cruising plans.
So boat maintenance is about far more than just checking the tasks off the list; it’s about actively inspecting your boat regularly and knowing what’s going on. It’s about noticing that one engine mount bolt keeps coming loose or that belt dust pile reappears in the engine compartment.
No hired mechanic, no matter how much you pay them, will know your boat that well. If they are good enough to catch a problem, they’ll just fix it. Maybe they won’t even tell you, or you’ll just get the bill. But searching for deeper root causes? Noticing changes over time? That’s all up to you.
Basic Boat Maintenance Tasks by System
All cruising boats are made up of a handful of individual systems, but the variation within these systems is mind-blowing.
The first step for any boat owner, whether you’re outfitting a new boat or just trying to catch up on maintenance for one you’ve already got, is to sit down and map out their boat’s systems.
- Hull and deck, including hatches, railings, lifelines, handholds and deck fittings
- Steering and autopilots
- Engine(s) and running gear
- Generator
- DC electrical system (12/24 volt), including alternator, batteries, and chargers
- AC electrical system (110/220 volt), including shore power, chargers, and inverters
- Electronics and radios
- Gas system (i.e., propane, LPG, butane, etc) and appliances
- Refrigeration
- Bilge pumps and plumbing
- Fresh water plumbing, and keeping the tank water safe
- Watermakers
- Sewage/Marine Sanitation Devices (MSDs) plumbing
- Climate (Air conditioning, heating, lighting)
- Ground tackle and handling gear (windlass)
- Bow thruster
- Dinghy handling gear (davits and cranes)
- Sailboat spars, rigging, and sails
Every boat will have a different list of systems, ranging from the simplest sailing dinghy to the most complex megayacht.
After you’ve got a list of all the systems, you need to get specifics on how they work. Each system probably contains a slew of different pieces of equipment, each made by a different manufacturer.
To learn your systems, head to Google and find an owner’s manual for every piece of equipment on your boat. Make a file folder on your computer or tablet (something you’ll always have with you on the boat), and download each document that applies to your boat. Older gear may be hard to find, but with some digging, you can usually turn up even the oldest scanned copies of these documents. You’ll probably have a collection of single-page installation guides and 300-page information and maintenance manuals.
You won’t like the next step of the boat maintenance saga, but it’s important. You need to read all those documents and educate yourself about how everything on your boat works. Even if it’s already there, review the installation instructions. I bet you can find at least one piece of equipment in your boat that was installed incorrectly, perhaps even by the factory.
Making a Boat Maintenance Logbook
I have one logbook for my boat, a simple Moleskin notebook where I record every trip and every maintenance task. I have a table of installed equipment, serial number, and date purchased.
I have a schedule of maintenance tasks that I routinely need to accomplish, along with the date last completed.
This could be done in a tidy spreadsheet, but I happen to like the freestyle notebook. It’s my boating bujo (bullet journal, iykyk).
Finding a template to use online is impossible because every boat is so different. Even two hulls of the same make and model will be outfitted differently, with varying equipment combinations installed.
So, it must be a personalized effort for your vessel. The work that goes into putting it all together will be rewarded with a far greater understanding of what’s going on inside your boat and why. When something needs maintenance or repair, you’ll know exactly where to find the documents to tell you how.
Along the way, you should find some helpful tables that lay out maintenance schedules for the big service items. Your engine will undoubtedly have tasks to be completed every 50, 100, 250, 500, and 1,000 hours (or every 6, 12, and 24 months, as the case may be).
Smaller items might have simple tasks, like descaling your air conditioner every season or defrosting the fridge at least once a month. Collect these little to-do items in a master schedule in your boat maintenance logbook or spreadsheet so you don’t forget them.
Basic Boat Maintenance Tasks Every Boater Should Be Ready to Do
In addition to having the books to tell you how to do the job, you’ll also need the parts and tools to complete it.
As you go through all those owner’s manuals, watch for parts and tools you need on hand to complete basic tasks. Keep a list of part numbers handy for those items you’ll be buying repeatedly, like hull anodes or raw water impellers.
If it’s a new-to-you boat, start doing the tasks on the list. You don’t know when they were last done, and you’ll learn a ton while doing them. And, as you find you need more parts and tools, keep updating your onboard supplies and logbook lists.
Here are some ideas to get you going: some of the things we do on every boat.
- Replace a dirty fuel filter — spare filters, filter wrench
- Bleed a diesel fuel system — screwdriver
- Tighten or replace an alternator belt — wrenches
- Replace a water pump impeller — spare impeller, wrenches or screwdriver for cover
- Change/replace the engine and transmission oils — oil change pump, new oil, spare filters, oil rags
- Tighten loose bolts — wrenches, possibly with extension arms
- Cleaning the boat bottom — snorkel gear, diver’s gloves, plastic scrapers, stiff brushes, stainless putty knife
- Untangle a propeller (if it is safe to do so) — snorkel gear, diver’s knife
- Changing prop and hull anodes — snorkel gear, spare anodes, box and Allen wrenches as needed (with tethers so you don’t lose them)
- Bleed air out of a water-cooled AC or fridge strainer — patience
- Jump a dead starting battery — cables or jump-start battery pack
- Assorted electrical troubleshooting and repairs — digital multimeter, selection of heat shrink crimp connectors, crimping tool
- Small outboards (dinghies): clean dirty carburetor, change prop and cotter pin, change the water pump, replace lost kill switch key — carb cleaner and brush set, wrenches, spare prop, and misc. parts
- Refurbishing a boat and regular maintenance — boat soap, bushes, Barkeepers Friend (or other stain remover), wax, oils/sealers/varnishing supplies (if you’ve got exterior wood)
- Canvas repair — needles and UV threads, sailor’s palm, piers, grommet and snap setting tools, industrial sewing machine if you’re hardcore
- Tune your sailboat rigging — spare clevis and cotter pins, shackles, and other supplies, bosun’s chair/self-climber, maybe a Loos gauge if you never have it professionally checked.
Leave a Reply