About - Page 10 of 21 - Safe Skipper Boating & Safety Afloat Apps for phones & tablets

How a propeller works

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Have a look around any boatyard and you will notice quite a variety of propellers – some have two blades, some have three and others have four or more. While most propellers are completely rigid some have blades that fold. Propellers can be right handed, where they...

Sterndrive maintenance

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Sterndrives are a popular form of propulsion in the powerboat market. While popular, they require a fair amount of maintenance, their care and maintenance can keep a DIY boater very busy. The main factors to be aware of are salt water corrosion, lubrication and...

Saildrive maintenance

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

There are less maintenance tasks to carry out on a saildrive transmission than on a traditional inboard shaft drive system with its associated stern gear. For example, you don’t have to worry about engine alignment, cutless bearings and stern glands. I owned a...

Cutless bearing replacement

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Just before a propeller shaft meets the propeller it passes through a bearing known as the cutless bearing, which supports the shaft and helps it rotate smoothly. Cutless bearings are tube shaped and typically made from bronze, marine grade brass or stainless steel...

Stern gear maintenance

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

The term “stern gear” encompasses propellers, propeller shafts, shaft couplings, rudder tubes, rudder assemblies, propeller shaft brackets, propeller shaft seals, stern tube assemblies, bearings and more. The stern gear of a boat needs to be checked...

Marine engine electrical system

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Boat owners who grew up sailing boats without engines often treat the idea of boat engine maintenance with a fair amount of trepidation, whether inboard or outboard varieties. This trepidation has a tendency to go up a notch when the subject of maintaining an...

Boat engine cooling systems

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Some boat engine breakdowns are unavoidable but those caused by lack of maintenance or regular checks can be avoided. Failure to maintain an engine’s cooling system is a well known example of this, so it is well worth spending time checking over the cooling...

Marine diesel exhaust checks

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Most marine exhausts are water cooled, with water from the engine’s raw water cooling system used to cool the exhaust gas. The water and exhaust gas mix together in the injection bend, where it turns into steam before cooling and condensing back into water which...

Electric motors and hybrid systems

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

As with the car industry, in recent years there have been considerable advances with the development of electrically powered propulsion in the leisure marine sector. This has resulted in electric drives which have increased power and much greater ranges than in the...

Marine engine oil system maintenance

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

The regular maintenance of a marine diesel is key to preventing engine failure at sea. This means doing regular checks of the fuel, cooling, electrical and oil systems. The oil system needs daily checks of the engine oil level and additional checks for oil leaks. It...