Repair & maintenance guides

Marine Sealants Explained: 5200, 4200, 4000UV, Polysulfide, Silicone and Butyl Tape

Pick the right sealant before you bed a cleat, a through-hull, a window or a transducer. The wrong goo either leaks in a year or glues a part on so hard you damage the boat getting it off.

Marine Stereo Troubleshooting: No Power, Lost Settings, No Sound or Bluetooth Trouble

Track down a boat stereo that won't turn on, forgets its presets, resets when the engine cranks, plays no sound or won't keep a Bluetooth connection. Work from the free checks (switches, resets, fuses) to voltage tests, speaker wiring, water damage and software updates before you buy a new unit.

Marine Vinyl Stain Removal: Ink, Sunscreen, Grease, Mildew and Pink Stain

A stain-by-stain plan for boat seat vinyl that follows your vinyl maker's own cleaning list, starts with the mildest method, and keeps you away from the products that strip the protective top coat, rot the stitching or crack the vinyl.

Marine Water Heater Care: No Hot Water, Relief Valve, Anode and Winter Draining

Most boat water heaters warm up two ways: a 120-volt electric element at the dock and a coil that borrows hot coolant from the engine underway. Learn the safe owner checks when the hot water quits, what a dripping relief valve means, and how to drain and bypass the tank for winter.

Missing or Faded Capacity Plate: How to Read It and Get a Proper Replacement

The capacity plate tells you how many people, how much weight and how much horsepower your boat can safely handle. Learn what each line means, which boats must have one under 33 CFR 183, how to order a replacement from the builder, what to do if the builder is gone, and why homemade numbers are a bad idea.

Mounting Hardware Where You Can't Reach Behind: Blind Fasteners

Learn how to mount light accessories on a boat when you can't get a hand behind the panel, using blind rivets, rivet nuts, well nuts, toggle anchors and bonded studs, when to cut an inspection port instead, and what must never be held by a blind fastener.

Moving Your Boat From Fresh to Salt Water (or Back): Anodes, Flushing, Corrosion, Bottom Paint and Trailer Upgrades

What to change when a lake boat moves to the coast, or a saltwater boat moves inland: switching anode material, a flush-after-every-trip routine, raw-water and closed cooling parts that wear faster in salt, bottom paint that suits your hull and drive, marine-grade hardware, and trailer upgrades that survive salt dunks. Built from BoatUS, Mercury, Yamaha and Boating Magazine advice.

NMEA 2000 Network Basics and Troubleshooting (Plus Chartplotter Updates)

Understand the backbone, terminators, power tap and drop cables that tie your chartplotter, engine data, GPS, depth and autopilot together, then track down why a device keeps dropping off. Finish by updating chartplotter and device software the safe way.

No Spark - Safe Ignition Checks for Outboards, Sterndrives, Inboards and PWCs

Engine cranks but never fires, and you suspect the ignition? Work from the cheap, common causes (kill switch lanyard, key switch, plug wires and caps, plugs, battery) to a proper spark test, and learn what the stator, CDI and coils do and when it is time for a dealer.

Oil or Fuel in the Bilge: Safe, Legal Cleanup

What to do when you find oil, diesel or gasoline in your bilge. Soak it up with oil-only absorbents, keep it from being pumped overboard, dispose of it properly, report any sheen on the water to the National Response Center, and find the leak so it does not happen again.

On-Water Towing Plans: BoatUS vs. Sea Tow vs. Your Insurance Towing Coverage

Compare a BoatUS or Sea Tow towing membership with the towing coverage on an insurance policy: what each pays for (tows, soft ungroundings, jump-starts, fuel delivery), why hard groundings and sinkings are salvage that only hull insurance covers, how to call for help, and what to have ready when you do.

Onboard Tool Kit and Spare Parts: What to Carry on a Day Boat or a Cruiser

Build a tool kit and spares box that fits your boat and how far you go. A blown fuse, a clogged fuel filter or a dinged prop shouldn't end the day or turn into an expensive tow.

Outrigger Care: Poles, Halyards, Release Clips and Bases

Keep your outriggers strong and working by rinsing them after every trip, checking poles, halyards, pulleys, release clips and through-bolted bases for wear and corrosion, storing them down and secured, and handling them safely under way and near power lines.

Owning a Boat in an LLC or Trust: Reasons, Registration, Coast Guard Documentation, Taxes and Insurance

Why some owners put a boat in an LLC or a trust, what it does and doesn't do for liability, how it changes state titling and Coast Guard documentation, why states go after out-of-state LLC tax schemes, and how to keep the insurance, loan and paperwork lined up. General information, not legal or tax advice.

Portable Gas Cans and Fuel Storage: Filling, Storing at Home and Aboard, and Getting Rid of Old Gas

Gas cans and portable boat tanks are handy and dangerous in equal measure. Learn what makes a modern can compliant, why you always fill it on the ground, how to store gasoline at home and on the boat, how long ethanol fuel really lasts, and how to dispose of old gas legally.

Portable Toilets on Boats: Emptying, Chemicals, Odor, Seals and Winter Storage

A portable toilet (Porta Potti type) is the simplest legal head for a small boat, as long as it is emptied the right way. Learn where to dump it, which chemicals to use, how to stop odor and leaks, how to secure it aboard, and how to store it for winter.

Powered Winch and Windlass Safety: Keep Fingers Clear and Power Within Reach

Electric and hydraulic winches and anchor windlasses can crush hands and pull a person into the drum in seconds. Learn where switches and the emergency power cutoff belong, how to keep hands and lines safe, why the windlass should never hold the boat, and how to brief your crew.

Propane (LPG) Safety on Boats - Locker, Solenoid, Sniffer and Leak Test

Learn why leaking propane sinks into the bilge, how to inspect the locker, cylinders, hoses, solenoid and gas alarm, and how to run a simple leak test. Repairs to a propane system belong to a qualified marine technician.

Protecting a Docked Boat: Mooring Whips, Bumpers, Fender Boards and Chafe Gear

Set up your dock or slip so wakes, wind and tides don't grind your hull against it, using mooring whips, dock bumpers, fender boards, spring lines and chafe gear, and know what these can and can't do in a storm.

Reading Marine Weather Forecasts: Advisories, Wind, Waves and Go/No-Go

Learn where to get the official NOAA marine forecast for your waters, what small craft advisories and warnings really mean, how to read wind and wave numbers, and how to make a simple go/no-go call before you leave the dock.

Reading NOAA Tide and Current Predictions for Trip Planning (MLLW, Slack Water and Bridge Clearance)

Tide is the water going up and down; current is the water moving sideways, and their timing doesn't always line up. Learn to find the right NOAA station, read high and low tides against chart datum (MLLW), find slack water and peak current, check bridge clearance against mean high water, and plan launches, anchoring and inlet crossings around them.

Recreational Radar Care: Radome and Open-Array Cleaning, Mounts, Cables and Alignment

Keep your boat's radar seeing small targets by cleaning the radome or open array the right way, checking the mount, cable and connectors for corrosion, and confirming that targets line up with the bow. Includes the safety rules for working near a radar that might transmit, plus winter care.

Remote Boat Monitoring: Bilge, Battery, Shore Power and GPS Alerts on Your Phone

Choose, install and set up a system that texts you when your unattended boat is taking on water, losing battery or shore power, or moving without you. Covers cellular versus satellite, what each sensor really tells you, wiring it so it stays on, sensible alert settings and what happens to your location data.

Renaming a Boat: Paperwork, Removing the Old Name and the Optional Ceremony

Change your boat's name the right way: what a state-registered boat needs versus a Coast Guard documented boat (name change and hailing port go through the NVDC before you letter the hull), getting every trace of the old name off, lettering rules for documented boats, who else to tell (insurer, marina, MMSI, EPIRB, AIS), and the traditional renaming ceremony if you want the fun.