Cruising Helmsman - July 2018

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DIY survey

Cruising Helmsman July 2018

IT MAY LOOK THE YACHT OF

YOUR DREAMS BUT IT PAYS

PRACTICAL TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK.

MAINTENANCE

BUYING a boat can be expensive,

even before you pay for the boat.

You are shown a boat, decide whether it is

a candidate and then have a closer look.

You might even go for a second look

with your partner, but eventually it

comes down to making an offer, subject

to survey. The boat is hauled out, the

surveyor finds all sorts of problems,

and you decide to keep looking.

You do not get much change from a

grand after paying for the survey, even

on a smallish boat. But you do have the

all important documentation that helps

you decide whether to proceed with the

purchase. Trouble is, this scenario can

be repeated several times before finding

the right boat.

One surveyor I spoke to during

research for this article had surveyed

nine boats for the same client, before

suggesting he change focus to a different

design. The expense adds up, which is

why I am suggesting you do your own

pre-survey assessment.

If you are even the slightest bit

practical and/or experienced, you can

avoid the multiple-survey trap. In this

article, I hope to guide you through the

steps and pitfalls in performing a pre-

survey assessment. I focus on fibreglass

boats, because they are the most popular

but, apart from my comments about the

hull and deck construction, this content

applies to all yachts.

WHAT DO YOU NEED?

The idea is to rule in or rule out the current

boat of interest. Your assessment in no

way replaces a professional survey, which

you will probably need for insurance

purposes anyway.

Regardless of insurance, you will

usually save the surveyor’s fee in

negotiating the correction of defects

before the deal goes ahead. Even if the

boat is near new, a diligent surveyor is

likely to find a few issues.

I repeat, doing your own pre-survey

assessment is not a substitute for a pre-

purchase survey. It is to save you from the

need to professionally survey every single

boat you are seriously interested in.

The requirements for doing your own

pre-survey assessment are simple: a

couple of hours’ access to the boat, an

enquiring mind, close observation and

a collection of simple tools you probably

already own. The photo above shows

the gear I take along. See also sidebar:

‘Tools you will need’.

It makes sense to carry it all in a small

bag. The bag lets you keep all your stuff

together and private as you move through

the boat. Owners and brokers can be

nervous about people approaching boat

inspections with a bunch of tools in hand.

Some surveyors use binoculars for

checking the rig. I deplore this practice,

because it only gives a false sense of

security. A survey report claiming “the

rig appeared in good condition” tells you

exactly nothing if the fine print reveals

that the rig inspection was conducted

from on deck.

You cannot detect small, potentially

fatal cracks and other defects in a mast

from deck level. If you must do rig

inspections from the deck, use a camera

with a powerful telephoto lens. The

right camera can be useful for this, but

until drones can be f lown in for close-

ups of every part of the rig, it is still best

for someone to go up there. For more

information about how to conduct your

own rigging survey, see the section

further along on rigs.

Other useful tools are: ice cream sticks,

easily available in the craft section of

Step by step guide

PETREA MCCARTHY