About - Page 9 of 21 - Safe Skipper Boating & Safety Afloat Apps for phones & tablets

Boat plumbing maintenance & troubleshooting

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

A boat’s fresh water system needs annual maintenance to keep it in good condition. Some boats have far more complex systems than others, with pressurised hot and cold water, associated pumps, an accumulator, calorifier and pressure valves, all to keep a boat...

Boat maintenance below decks

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

While most interior maintenance work can be done when a boat is afloat, some jobs such as servicing the seacocks have to be done ashore. It makes sense to do any major interior repairs and improvements with the boat hauled out in the boatyard. A boat that is ashore...

Boat interior inspection and checks

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

While a boat is ashore, the most critical interior checks to carry out are those that concern the safety of the boat. This entails the integrity of all through-hull fittings and seacocks, the gas system and the electrical system. Critical checks Check all the...

Common marine electrical problems

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Most problems with marine electrical systems arise from four possible sources, a lack of maintenance, a poor standard of initial installation, insufficient battery capacity, or ineffective charging systems. Water ingress is a frequent issue – salt water can corrode...

The Boatyard Book – a boat owner’s guide to yacht maintenance, repair and refitting

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

“This well-presented volume is a guide to making the best use of boatyard time and facilities by careful planning and good organisation…his examples and explanations helped reduce the fear factor and should improve my conversations with...

How to ensure your boat is in proper working condition

by Safe Skipper | Boat Handling, Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Guest author: Eva Tucker for Volvo Penta We all have been that friend or have that one friend who can’t seem to get enough of their boat. Whether it’s fishing off the back, racing upfront with a buddy on deck- there are few things better in life than being...

Boat batteries

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

It is important for all boat skippers to have a basic knowledge of boat electrics and this includes understanding how batteries work. Under-sized battery banks are one of the key factors behind power failure at sea, as well as the premature failure of batteries. It’s...

Boat electrics inspection checklist

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

With the boat ashore, here are some recommendations for carrying out a boat owner electrics inspection. Safety is always paramount so remember to do the checks with the batteries off. Wearing a head torch helps, make notes as you go and only tackle a repair if you are...

Boat electrics

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

All boat owners should have a basic knowledge of electrics, both to avoid encountering electrical problems at sea and to stand a chance of solving them should they occur. It goes without saying that the marine environment is bad news for electric systems and all their...

Propeller care and maintenance

by Simon Jollands | Boat Maintenance, Preparation, Yacht ownership

Propellers are complicated and repairs should be done by specialists but owners can carry out checks and some routine maintenance themselves when the boat is in the boatyard. A propeller is critical to a boat’s performance, fuel consumption and ride, so it...