DIY maintenance a benefit

This may have been said already, I admit to not have read the full thread; engaging the yard or a professional may give you the (false) reassurance that the job has been done properly, but is it the professional with the 30 years experience who turns up to do the job, or is it the lad, gets there late and is all a rush because he doesnt want to work late as he's on a promise that evening?
 
Having a stake in the outcome of the work is a great motivator to doing a good job.
Not all so called professionals are professional in any sense whatsoever.
 
Sans Bateau said:
This may have been said already, I admit to not have read the full thread; engaging the yard or a professional may give you the (false) reassurance that the job has been done properly, but is it the professional with the 30 years experience who turns up to do the job, or is it the lad, gets there late and is all a rush because he doesnt want to work late as he's on a promise that evening?
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I think that could more so with the older chap with 30years experience on a promise that night? Lol
 
BelleSerene said:
'professional maintenance' is in practice usually just specific tasks the professional has been hired to fix such as engine service, antifouling, periodic rig check, only done when specifically requested by the owner
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Exactly this. Ariam was previously chartered, and maintained by the charter company. All the big items that you might put on a maintenance calendar - engine servicing, rig replacement, etc - were done by the book, but there were dozens of little things that a conscientious owner would notice and attend to as and when, which were left undone. Presumably charterers who were giving the boat back in a couple of days were willing to live with them, and the maintainers didn't spend enough time on board to notice and, if they had, wouldn't have fixed them without the work being requested and paid for.

That said, some boat-owners are technical numpties and their fixes are worse than useless :D. So it depends.

Pete
 
IT has been said here which I can reaffirm, there isn’t anything that I can’t get at for maintenance but I do dread some as I know how awkward they are to do.
It does give you a hands on experience of the systems onboard if something does go wrong.
 
Sans Bateau said:
This may have been said already, I admit to not have read the full thread; engaging the yard or a professional may give you the (false) reassurance that the job has been done properly, but is it the professional with the 30 years experience who turns up to do the job, or is it the lad, gets there late and is all a rush because he doesnt want to work late as he's on a promise that evening?
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Indeed!. Such a lad lad forgot to do up the circlips when renewing our stern gland, so the rubber join to the stern tube came apart. Slight leak of water as we moved away from the hardstanding, but being suspicious I noted it. Could have been disastrous in a heavy sea if it had come off completely when I was too preoccupied to lift the access hatch.
 
The only time I have not undertaken my own maintenance or repairs have been on an insurance claim, upholstery work and sail repairs, otherwise I have fitted new engines, repaired damaged glass fibre sections, fitted new hatches, winches etc. and installed new electronics.
The advantages are you know your boat thoroughly and know that in an emergency you can undertake a repair, the disadvantage is working in the freezing cold in the middle of winter, especially lying around under you boat whilst slapping on the antifoul, if you are to avoid losing a seasons sailing by working on her on a nice warm Summer’s day.
 
I have experience of a very reputable boat yard removing the backstay to give access for the crane slings, launching the boat reconnecting the backstay and leaving out the split pin.
 
>I do my own maintenance because at least I know it's done properly. Having had a boat "professionally maintained" for a number of years, I got fed up re-visiting things because they weren't done to the standard I was happy with. You also have the benefit of knowing how everything works, should something fail en-route.

I also agree having had to fix things, long distance sailing everything breaks more than once except electronics all other things are made for weekend and holiday sailors.
 
mjcoon said:
Electronics excepted because break = discard, so no 2nd break?
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I think just because solid-state electronics are generally highly reliable provided they stay dry, and effective watertight enclosures are now the norm so that they do. So despite all the grumpy old men sucking their teeth about "unreliable electronics", reasonably modern electronic devices are actually among the more reliable items on a boat compared to mechanical things that wear and clog up and get installed badly and so on.

Pete
 
Its a bit of a catch 22 this question: I am an inveterate self maintainer. The standard of maintenance has (I hope!) increased over the years. I know how everything works. I know what to look out for, and I generally know what hasnt been done yet. However, in the early days I am now aware that i was missing things I just didnt know needed to be done. I've learned the hard way what happens when things are not given proper maintenance, and shudder at some of the botches I unwittingly made until I learned better.

Whether self maintenance is a good thing or not depends so much on the knowledge and skill of the person doing it. And how is a prospective buyer going to know whether your work was up to scratch, or even whether it has been done at all? I've seen some horrendous failures resulting from sheer ignorance. Not just mine, either!
 
A genuine question - how does self-maintenance affect insurance claims? For example, you change your own skin fittings, boat founders due to water ingress from one of said fittings leaking, you claim on your insurance.
 
prv said:
I think just because solid-state electronics are generally highly reliable provided they stay dry, and effective watertight enclosures are now the norm so that they do. So despite all the grumpy old men sucking their teeth about "unreliable electronics", reasonably modern electronic devices are actually among the more reliable items on a boat compared to mechanical things that wear and clog up and get installed badly and so on.

Pete
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Absolutely. And most "electronics" problems are down to plug/socket/power supply issues.
 
Giblets said:
A genuine question - how does self-maintenance affect insurance claims? For example, you change your own skin fittings, boat founders due to water ingress from one of said fittings leaking, you claim on your insurance.
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I have, in the past, built various boats from scratch, and have had no difficulty getting full insurance cover. As a "practical boat owner", surely if you're doing something to or on your own boat, it's your own and others lives that you're dealing with. Insurance is a long way down the line.
 
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