To purchase a boat is truly an adventure, to say the least. There’s so much money that typically needs to be thrown into a boat that some boat owners have started using “boat” as an acronym to stand for “Bust Out Another Thousand.” On the plus side, of course, you can cruise and zip around on the water. Whether you’re going fishing, jet skiing, tubing, or just having a relaxing trip with your family or a significant other, there’s a whole lot that’s very special and exciting about owning a boat. On the negative side, many people end up having to spend a lot. The reason a boat ends up costing so much is that many don’t perform small maintenance regularly. Here’s how frequent maintenance can extend the life of your boat and save you money.
1. Save the Hull
Frequent boat maintenance can extend the life of your hull. The hull of your boat is the body of the boat that sits above and below the water. As you might imagine, this creates a situation where you need two separate forms of maintenance for one continuous part of your boat. The part that’s below the water will have to be scraped and treated often to avoid the buildup of barnacles and also to ensure that there aren’t any weak spots or leaks. Above the surface, you must maintain a good wax coat or some other sort of protective coat. If you perform regular maintenance here, you can get by with inexpensive, quicker maintenance jobs; whereas if you put it off, you’re going to find that the maintenance is a lot more costly and time-consuming.
2. Keep Your Engine Purring
Another way that regular maintenance can extend the life of your boat is by extending the life of your engine. Unlike a car engine, a boat engine may be dealing with salt water, and it is exposed more to harsher elements. This is why boat engines typically break down a lot more. However, with frequent maintenance, you can make sure that your boat’s engine is holding up and performing as it should. Small tune-ups and repairs can prevent you from having to make expensive repairs later on down the road. It’s a great idea to perform regular engine maintenance.
3. Extend Your Interior
The interior of a boat is something that not a lot of boat owners focus on, but they should. Small stains and tears can turn into permanent spots and large rips. This can mean having to perform very costly replacements on things like seat covers, cooler lids, etc. This is especially true if you have a larger boat that has below-deck quarters. Letting small issues slide will ensure that they inevitably turn into big issues. Frequent maintenance can help you save money by not having to spend a lot on big repairs.
4. Avoid Replacement Parts
There are many different ways to extend the life of your boat, and one of the best ways is to care for the smaller parts. The cleat, for instance, is something a lot of boat owners ignore. The bolts loosen, and it ends up ripping away from the hull. Unfortunately, it can take some of the hull with it, or your boat can drift away. It’s very important to focus on maintaining the integrity of your cleat. The same goes for boat propellers. Regular cleaning and maintenance can keep you from having to replace them outright.
5. Stay Prepared for an Emergency
You need emergency supplies on your boat. Flares, drinking water (or a functioning water system), a radio, life preservers, etc. Part of regular maintenance on your boat is to make sure that your emergency kit is always stocked. Sometimes people lose pieces and then don’t have them when they’re needed. Remember to keep up with your emergency maintenance, and this might end up extending your life.
In Conclusion
At the end of the day, it just makes sense to perform frequent, inexpensive maintenance on your boat. This is the best way to not only avoid those costly repairs but to also greatly extend the life of your boat.
