Re: Boat Survey - What to Look For
Get a surveyor, but don't trust him anyways. My experience (and several others I have spoken to) with a surveyor was very bad. We ended up in court and we both lost. He lost his fee plus $1500 and I lost $5000 replacing the leaking fuel tank he missed. You're buying the boat so make sure you look at it very closely. For the engine - Take it out on a sea trial and insist on WOT or at least a fast cruise speed for at least 5 minutes to expose any overheating problems, leaks, etc. If the engine can't handle that you want to know before you own it. Look for chafed hoses and wires, leaks or corrosion. Do a compression test. For the hull - Get a flashlight and a mirror and look everywhere you can. Tap with a coin everywhere you can, listening for a dull thud which indicates hidden rot or delamination of the figerglass. Test all the boat's systems. Watch for blistering of the gel coat below the waterline if it has been stored in the water. Look for leaks (or their evidence) from above if it has a cuddy cabin. If possible, look at it after a good rain. If you don't find anything wrong you haven't looked hard enough. There WILL be problems with any boat but you want to know about them before you start.
