Category: Tips

Choosing a Boat

There are two reasons why boaters buy the wrong boat. The first reason is that they haven’t actually determined what they plan to do with their boat and based their purchase decision on those plans.…

About Fuel

How much do you need? How much fuel you need to carry depends on the design of your boat and the intended use. In a sailing vessel, for instance, a 50 gallon tank of diesel…

Furuno FRS-1000

This unit packs lots of navigation capability in a user-friendly package A chart plot overlaid by radar will likely be the most popular FRS-1000 mode. Combining readings from a vessel’s radar, sonar, chart plotter, GPS…

Assessing boat interiors

When inspecting an interior, try not to use a designer’s eye, but rather a mechanic’s eye. In other words, don’t judge other people’s idea of design, simply decide whether the raw interior will work for…

First Appearances

The first impression anyone has of a boat is the exterior cosmetics. There are many reasons for purchasing a boat – one being the beautiful lines. From a distance almost all boats are beautiful. As…

Prepare for the worst

When you start out on a trip, you expect the best. The crew is all cranked for a great cruising experience – you’ve got your menus planned, you’ve laid out a cruise plan, made sure…

Diesel Maintenance

Be Kind to Your Machine!! If you did not receive a manual with your engine, get one. Diesel manuals contain every bit of information you need to know about how to maintain your engines, and…

Estimating Maintenance Costs

Many people budget for boat payments and perhaps insurance but neglect to take into consideration the maintenance cost of owning a boat. The following is a short list of regular maintenance items: (more…)

Reviving a teak deck

We often get commissioned to revive a teak deck – usually when it is past the stage of simple maintenance. There are many tell-tales signs of this stage – rubber that has risen above the…