Aquador 26HT questions...

[alt]

Asking on behalf of someone else...

Can anyone offer any advise/things to watch out for re. Aquador 26HT (2002)

The boat is fitted with a KAD43 which i'm quite famailar with and instil quite a bit of confidence, so it's mainly the boat/hull i'm looking for advise on.

The cushions have been stored in-doors for the winter, but I do worry when I see all that wood-work in the HT cockpit... will it stand the test of time?

Boat is currently 10 years old and is being viewed next week, so any tips that can be offered would be greatly appreciated. Few questions to date:

1) The diesel cooker - is it efficient? I'm un-familar with these cookers, are they practical, or do they put a huge load on batteries to fire up? Would it have a seperate exhaust?

2) There is a "Wallas Diesel Cabin and Cockpit Heaters" installed - can anyone offer any advise on this?

3) While familiar with the engine, not familar with the engine bay on the boat - Is access good for routine servicing?

4) I've seen KAD43 engined 26HT's before and they seem to plane nicely - Is 230HP enough for such a boat? It would be aimed at cruising rather than sports boat, but easy planing would be essential.


Thanks folks

 

[gjgm]

Had a couple of Wallas cookers, though have to confess now I am not sure how often I ever used them as a small £50 induction hob (with shorepower ) is somewhat easier.
One ring is the heat element side (ie the HOT one), and the other ring I think works off the hot exhaust.. so the two arent the same "power", so you know when testing.Yes, has its own exhaust, but its pretty simple- a hole through the boat. Cant think the cooker puts much strain on the batteries.. I am guessing its just a small glow to get it fired up?
At some distant stage some Aquadors were built in Ireland..maybe totally the wrong period in your case, but they were supposed to be somewhat below the Scandinavian build quality.

 

[alt]

Thanks for the info.

I am aware of the issue re. Irish built Aquador's - I am led to believe that this is not one of them, but will check with the builders certificate

Keep the info rolling in!!

 

[Spi D]

AquaD'or ranks high among boaters, and it is well deserved.

Very well built, high finish and meant to stay good for a very long time.
Being from Finland (boat and Wallas) it is made to withstand the nordic climate which is no less demanding than the British. In some respects even worse (close to Siberian winters..)

Designed with practical useable details like easy access through open bow rail, safe side decks etc.

Tests are plenty available, although not all in English
MBM did one of the DC: http://www.motorboatsmonthly.co.uk/galleries/mbmtest/24152/1/0/aquador-26dc

This brochure shows details:
http://www.flippermarin.se/UserFiles/Interboat/www.flippermarin.se/Documents/Aquador 2008.pdf

 

[Nautorius]

Asking on behalf of someone else...

Can anyone offer any advise/things to watch out for re. Aquador 26HT (2002)

The boat is fitted with a KAD43 which i'm quite famailar with and instil quite a bit of confidence, so it's mainly the boat/hull i'm looking for advise on.

The cushions have been stored in-doors for the winter, but I do worry when I see all that wood-work in the HT cockpit... will it stand the test of time?

Boat is currently 10 years old and is being viewed next week, so any tips that can be offered would be greatly appreciated. Few questions to date:

1) The diesel cooker - is it efficient? I'm un-familar with these cookers, are they practical, or do they put a huge load on batteries to fire up? Would it have a seperate exhaust?

2) There is a "Wallas Diesel Cabin and Cockpit Heaters" installed - can anyone offer any advise on this?

3) While familiar with the engine, not familar with the engine bay on the boat - Is access good for routine servicing?

4) I've seen KAD43 engined 26HT's before and they seem to plane nicely - Is 230HP enough for such a boat? It would be aimed at cruising rather than sports boat, but easy planing would be essential.


Thanks folks

As an Ex 23HT owner I will fill in the gaps. The Wallas Cooker. Check it has been serviced, has a working Glow plug and yes it does need Battery power to work exhaust (which is seperate out the side of the boat: Hint do not cover with Fender) so will need a second or third leisure battery. Wallas service in the UK is patchy so make sure it all works! When it does work I loved it, not the fastest but clean and does not smell and very efficient on diesel.

Same thing for the Heaters. Very good if serviced and working...

Engine bay on 26Ht is excellent. Plenty of room as only a single instalation. It is low on headroom but the whole area under the cockpit table angles up for access so no worries.

Single Kad 43 is fine on the 26HT, it is not the fastest boat but lots of grunt to get on plane and bash through big seas (because in an Aquador you just keep on going!)

The cockpit floor (and cabin) is a teak panel. It will get scratched but you can buy new sheets from KJ Howels so do not worry about that. Overall I love the 26HT, the only issue is headroom down below especially in the Head!

Cheers

Paul

 

[volvopaul]

Kad 43 probably one of my favourite engines they just about got it all right to spoil it with the 24 valve head!.

 

[robinborton]

Aquador 26HT

Hi,
I sold an AQ 26HT in October last year which I had from new and loved it and now own a 28c.... I like Aquadors... I used it mostly on the Thames but went to sea 2 or 3 times a year
Nautorius got it right re Wallas heater and hob. The woodwork gave me no problems
The KAD 43 was a great engine and plenty of performance for me and good access.
The holding tank corroded and leaked on mine which was not a nice problem to have ..it's aluminium and won't last forever, apparently others have had the same problem.
I had to have lots of work done to get a BSS certificate but you won't have this problem on the sea, let me know if you want more info.

 

[alt]

robin - Thanks for the info, is it easy to inspect the tank, as I have been informed this boat has a 40l holding tank... it woul dbe nice to be able to inspect it.

volvo - Agree, I love the KAD 43's!

 

[robinborton]

Aquador 26HT

Hi
You can see some of the holding tank which is very small at 40 ltrs but not the bottom which corroded on mine. It was't easy to replace but then what is.
The teak lifted a little on mine on the swim platform but on a 10yr old boat it wouldn't be surprising
I don't think you will have any regrets buying a 26HT
Good luck
Robin

 

[alt]

Folks,
This boat has been inspected, and there are some queries/issues/concerns... I would like to discuss further with you!

I will number the specific issues with photo's to back up what I am saying, if anyone has any advise I will gladly take on board. My main issues are the basic spec of the boat, but there are a few items that also need attention...

1) No electric windlass. This would be a real deal-breaker for me, especially if one was used to an electric windlass. I don't think it would be worth spending the money to install one.

2) The cabin needs a good clean which can be done, but many of the light fittings need replacing as they look nasty with what looks like rust - Would direct replacements be hard to find?

3) In the heads/shower, there is no shower drain installed! My understanding of this is that the drain must drain water into a box at a lower point, with a bilge pump/float switch installed. This then pumps out through an out-let above the water-line. Any idea of a price for this, or if kits can be bought, or do you need to make your own box?

4) There is no hot-water system installed, as you can see by the lack of connections under the sink... but look to the next pic

See below that there are calorifier/hot-water lines coming out of the engine, that go to the rear of the engine, cross the rear of the engine and come back up forward on the star-board side and disappear.... can anyone come up with a reasoning for this? Are these 2 lines just looped? I could not find any hot water tank and could not trace lines any further... could it be a case that there is infact a hot water tank installed, but just not connected up to the taps? You can see the 2 black hoses infront of the white plastic water tank

5) I notice the wiring in the engine bay is a little tatty - is this normal for Aquador?

6) Here is the holding tank, on the port side just infront of the passenger side. I notice there is a waste out-let outside, and the 'dump' line which can be blocked off by Sea-Cock - all seems OK here? The toilet itself is OK but I suspect the manual pump may need replacing soon

7) The anchor light is completely broken - Much involved in replacing?

8) The teak looks to be in OK condition

9) This seems to be the control for the hot air system and it sort of confuses me. When you use 'Heat', not a whole lot happens. There is a switch at the helm which turns on a fan, and this then produces air from the out-lets which eventually heats up. I understand the concept of this previously having an Eberspacher... but I thought it would be all one system, rather than having to power up an additional fan? This fan only has 2 settings (low or high, or off) at the helm so it just seems a strange system

10) Can someone confirm that this is the cooker heat setting? The cooker did seem to heat up quite a lot!

11) The timber in the cock-pit floor need serious attention. Can this be sanded or is it a matter of replacing the sheets?

 

[alt]

12) The stat on the fridge is totally gunked up and is seized - I could not find a master switch for it and couldn't tell if it works or not because I was not there long enough. Can this individual item be changed, or is it a more serious issue? The fridge is a 'Coolmate' (I think.. feck forgot to take pic of the logo)

13) I noticed a lot of water in the front bilge. It's fresh water but boat is on fresh water lake. I wonder could this be innocent and just be there because the drain is blocked? The only other thing in there is the inlet sea-cock for the toilet. I notice that there is not a lot of space in here.. is this where the shower bilge-box thing is supposed to go?

14) The snap button things for the carpets are all corroded together (Strange as boat is on fresh water) and all need replacing... shouldn't be too big of a job?

The canopy windows themselves are in great condition, but the zip's and other items need attention... wonder if this is a big job?

Your thoughts are most welcomed!

 

[[2068]]

If you add up all those things, it could be quite expensive in total to fix.
Which makes you wonder how well the engine/outdrive were looked after.
But, it could make sense if priced attractively as a "boat that needs some work" if the mechanicals were solid.

 

[whisper]

Blimey!!

For what is supposed to be a top quality brand that boat is a mess. It's obviously not been looked after physically, where it's visible, so as the above post enquires, what about the engine/mechanicals??
Ours is a 2002 Botnia and has stayed in much better nick. I'd only consider buying the Aquador if it was at a very realistic price considering the 000s it will need to bring it back to scratch and up to a decent spec.
Disappointing and seems to be a bit of a "wrong un".

 

[andy59]

That boat looks as though it has had a lot of damp on it over time , I would get an electrical survey done as well as the engines ( including behind panels where you cant see ) or allow a big chunk of dosh to have things fixed . As others have said , it just looks unloved and thats not good with damp boats .

 

[Spi D]

So sad to see how neglect can turn even the nicest boat into a mess.

Takes a number of years to get this bad and fixing it will be a huge task, probably not worth the cost and effort. As mentioned, the neglect is more than likely to also have affected mechanical stuff like enginge, drive, steering and instrumentation.

Unless a give-away I'd walk from this one. No reason to insist in buying a bag of problems when so many nice boats are on offer.

 

[Greg2]

Looks to have been a well used but unloved example unfortunately. My primary concern would be to check the service history on the engine and drive....if the rest has been neglected then it is quite possible that the mechanicals have not been looked after either. If you can satisfy yourself on this point, don't mind doing some work and can get it at a good price (and I mean a very good price) then it might be worth a go because most of the things you have listed are fixable.

It really al depends on what you want.....a project or a boat you can use straight away.

 

[Firefly625]

So sad to see how neglect can turn even the nicest boat into a mess.

Takes a number of years to get this bad and fixing it will be a huge task, probably not worth the cost and effort. As mentioned, the neglect is more than likely to also have affected mechanical stuff like enginge, drive, steering and instrumentation.

Unless a give-away I'd walk from this one. No reason to insist in buying a bag of problems when so many nice boats are on offer.

+1,

 

[David_J]

I would agree with everything that has been said.
Personally I would not touch it even if it is a really good price.
If the things you can see are that bad then how bad are the things you cannot see?
I guess its ok if what you really want is a project to work on but it will for sure be long and expensive. I know a few people in Uk who are selling boats and they feel its a buyers market so there are sure to be better deals available.

 

[sea-commander]

In the 4th picture you can also see some damage on the wood, probably moisture. I guess it must have been smelling a bit "wet" inside?
Also the cannopy will need replacement soon. Fixing the zippers might help for a certain time, but the condition doesn't look too good.

I'm quite surprised - the Aquadors I know are normally very well looked after, opposite to this one...

As said above - if the price is good for you, I'd have a survey for the engine and electricals.
Not sure if this would be the best deal.

Good luck
Chris

 

[wakeup]

I would agree with everything that has been said.
Personally I would not touch it even if it is a really good price.
If the things you can see are that bad then how bad are the things you cannot see?
I guess its ok if what you really want is a project to work on but it will for sure be long and expensive. I know a few people in Uk who are selling boats and they feel its a buyers market so there are sure to be better deals available.

Has this boat been submerged in salt water at some stage? I would turn and walk from this one. All of the signs of serious neglect. I am sure the cosmetic stuff can easily be addressed but seem that this all signals that the rest of the mechanics and electrics will be shot.