Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

[snowbird3]

I was looking at a salt water boat for sale on EBay. What are the ins and outs of putting a salt water boat in fresh water. Obviously the outdrives will have taken a beating but can you run the engines without any modifications?

 

[Georgesalmon]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Running in fresh water is Even better than flushing it with fresh water.

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Having grown up on the TX. coast, I fished salt and fresh water. I had two tackle boxes and rod-reels; one for each. Reason was that once the salt got into metal, it just corroded, plain and simple.

So expect to have excessive corrosion to deal with on any metallic object. Other than that as snowbird said it's better for your engine. The salt will still be there and the associated corrosion and will continue to grow, but at a slower rate.

After I moved inland, I said that I would never own a salt water boat again. I never have. My story.

Mark

 

[DBreskin]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Other than regular maintenance one of the things you may have to change immediately is the sacrificial anodes (often referred to as zincs).
The anodes come in three types of metal: Zinc, Aluminum and Magnesium. Zinc is for saltwater use; Aluminum is for mixed salt- and fresh-water use; and Magnesium is for freshwater use. If you have zinc on the boat now you should change to aluminum or magnesium for freshwater use.

 

[OllieC]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

The boat will love you for it. Mine was in salt for 5 years (trailered and flushed) and now is retired to fresh water. When I drop her in the Mississippi or Lake Superior, I can almost see a smile on her face. :joyous:

In all seriousness, look at the obvious signs of rust in/on the motor. Bellows, risers, manifold, mounts etc. Also, check electrical connections for patina/corrosion. Canvas is Canvas and salt likes to eat that stuff up if not taken care of. I had to replace all of mine.

This forum is an excellent place to look for the ins and outs of your boat. It's helped me out.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

It depends on the boat. You don't say what you are looking at, as to style, type, brand, age or price. Salt water use is not the end of the world.

Outboards are made for salt water and there is little appreciable difference between a used motor run in salt or fresh, until you get 15 years or so on it. Then, it's still a good motor but you want to look it over for neglect. When they get 25 years on them, bolts may be frozen and hard to remove for repairs. Yes, the inside of the block will look different, but it's not like the salt water is going to eat gaping holes in the metal. It's better if it's been flushed regularly; it's not a big issue if it hasn't.

Salt can be hard on your impeller but you want to replace that on any used boat when you get it anyway.

I can't speak to an i/o especially one that hasn't been set up and maintained for salt. Check your bellows.

Trailers can be a wreck if they were regularly dunked in salt water and especially if they haven't been rinsed, but it seems there are fewer and fewer salt water boaters who know to use rollers and winches instead of the short-cut dunk/bunk.

Quality hulls handle salt water fine. But there are some cheap boats with sub-standard (non-marine) fittings that don't age so well. Some are also equipped with non-marine electronics; they won't last. Some boats like bass boats are made for fresh water only. But even the cheap ones can handle life on the coast if the owner takes extra care of them. So if it's one of those, like a i/o bowrider, look it over carefully. If the fittings are rough, get a better boat.

 

[snowbird3]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Okay,

So I'm a bit of a gambler. I just "won" a 28' Cruisers Yacht on Ebay. Here is the link:

2004 Cruisers 280 CXI Cruiser Twin Volvo Penta 5.7 Low Hours No Reserve | eBay

So now the question is...what did I get myself into? Obviously the following things have to be addressed:

- Repair rash/holes and repaint gelcoat
- Clean up outdrives
- Change out anodes
- Transport this bad boy up to Canada!

The last point seems to be the "longest pole in the tent." I'm not sure if there is companies that can do "door to door" delivery of boats from the US to Canada. I assume not since out countries are a little protectionist. Right now I'm looking at buying a trailer up here and either renting or buying a truck and making the trip down to NJ to pick it up.

Honestly, I'm pretty happy. It's a $50K boat and I got it for $14K. A few repairs and some TLC and I've got a boat I wouldn't have ever been able to afford and my family will enjoy it thoroughly.

Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Cory

 

[tazrig]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

I wish you had consulted us here before you pulled the trigger. You have some major damage to that boat based on the pictures. The damage to the fiberglass is fairly extensive. It goes through the gel coat to the fiberglass mat underneath in a bunch of places. which has to be fixed or you risk rot of the underlying structure. The engines may not have water in them but have clearly been sitting in saltwater up to just below the alternators (look at the silt line going across them) and the pulleys below them are corroded. (further proof it sat in salt water) The cockpit floor is covered silt (light mud) which indicates it too was under water. The skegs (fins under the outdrives) are missing, probably snapped off during super storm Sandy, the biggest storm that the New York coastline has seen in the last 100 years. I could go on but I think you get the point. My only advice is to get out of the deal anyway you can. You are looking at a major mess and more $$$ to fix up that boat than you even want to know about. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but better to know than to throw out $14K.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

maybe, maybe not.
I don't see a silt line on the engines, or on the surrounding bulkhead. I see a lot of external corrosion but can't say it's killer. that can come from electrolysis when the batteries short out, or being left on in wet conditions, etc. Not the best looking motor, granted.

obviously the holes in the hull have to be fixed but all that occurred while the boat was banging around. Unless the boat was submerged above the holes and sat there for days, no significant water would get into the inside to cause big problems.

the dirt on the upper decks is dirt. not silt from being under water (look at the condition of the berths, etc. below). Looks just like my boat's decks after Irene (and it stayed on the trailer). No problem there.

If it was stored plug out, whatever water got in, got out.

But here is where I have concern: what is the effect on the outdrives, probably stored down, and the transom where they attach, from the full weight of the boat sitting on them? How about banging and dragging around on the pavement while the boats played bumper cars?

I'm going to split the difference between the OP and Taz. There could be big issues in the motor and transom/drives, but just as likely not, especially as to the motors. it's not a boat that sat underwater to the helm for weeks. But it warrants an inspection before committing.

Or what is the difference between that used boat, undamaged, at retail compared to $14,000 + shipping + new engine blocks + outdrives + transom structural repair+ hull and swim platform repair? That's your best case v worst case.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

A used boat in pristine condition would be in the high 40's on the great lakes. a quick google search of a few yacht brokers shows mid 50's in Texas and Utah.

I agree the boat has some serious issues based on the photographs. I hope the bid was contingent on a marine survey.

Best case, 2 new outdrive lowers, a bunch of fiberglass hull repair, a few grand in replacing the broken and missing hardware and hundreds of hours of sweat equity.

Worse case, a complete hull gut and repair, two new motors and drives, and salvage the remaining

 

[tazrig]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

maybe, maybe not.
I don't see a silt line on the engines, or on the surrounding bulkhead. I see a lot of external corrosion but can't say it's killer. that can come from electrolysis when the batteries short out, or being left on in wet conditions, etc. Not the best looking motor, granted.

obviously the holes in the hull have to be fixed but all that occurred while the boat was banging around. Unless the boat was submerged above the holes and sat there for days, no significant water would get into the inside to cause big problems.

the dirt on the upper decks is dirt. not silt from being under water (look at the condition of the berths, etc. below). Looks just like my boat's decks after Irene (and it stayed on the trailer). No problem there.

If it was stored plug out, whatever water got in, got out.

But here is where I have concern: what is the effect on the outdrives, probably stored down, and the transom where they attach, from the full weight of the boat sitting on them? How about banging and dragging around on the pavement while the boats played bumper cars?

I'm going to split the difference between the OP and Taz. There could be big issues in the motor and transom/drives, but just as likely not, especially as to the motors. it's not a boat that sat underwater to the helm for weeks. But it warrants an inspection before committing.

Or what is the difference between that used boat, undamaged, at retail compared to $14,000 + shipping + new engine blocks + outdrives + transom structural repair+ hull and swim platform repair? That's your best case v worst case.

I agree the berths appear to be undamaged. It said in the ad that it floated off it's stands. With no plug in it I'm guessing it sank stern first and sat stern down bow up with the stern partially submerged in water for at least a couple of weeks until it was salvaged. New York was a real mess after the storm for quite some time. If you look on one of the pics you can see salt remains on the gauges. The boat was covered with the canvas during the storm judging by the damage to the canvas. You may be right about the deck just being covered with dirt not silt but it seems hard to believe that much dirt would have entered and spread out that evenly with the canvas up. I just have a vision of that boat sitting at a bow high 30-40 degree angle partially submerged in salt water in a tangled mess of boats all around it. I agree with you on the drives, I too suspect there is more damage than what is showing in the pictures. Believe me, I hope I'm wrong and the boat only has minor damage. I also hope the sale is pending a survey. It would be interesting to find out from the OP if he does have a survey done, what actual damages there were to the boat. That's the only way we'll know for sure.

 

[sasto]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Appears to be a steal. I don't see where the ad says it floated off stands with plug removed, nor do I see evidence of this. I do miss things though.

Trailering her might be out of the question. 10' beam? Check online with the states and Canada where you will be towing her. Permits will be needed in each state.

I once broke the law towing a 9 1/2' beam from NJ to FL....illegally. 8 1/2' is the limit without permits in all states I crossed. This is something I will never do again.

Good Luck!

 

[H20Rat]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

At least to me, that doesn't at all appear to be a boat that had any significant water in it... The gauges look fairly good for a 10 year old boat that went through a hurricane, there would be far more corrosion if they had been submerged. Also, look at all the bedding/cloth stuff... None of that got wet, so either it was intentionally thrown in to stage the picture, or somebody has been living in it since. Taking the pictures at face value though, the interior stayed fairly dry. As far as the silt/dirt in the interior, I've seen boats that have sat outside without a cover for a couple days look worse than that! Nothing a couple minutes with a hose won't clean out.

Lastly... Look how clean the hull is. No scum/algae or other creatures living on it, so it wasn't sitting in the water after the storm. As the seller said, it had been winterized (and presumably cleaned), and then was hit.

My guess is that you did get a bargain. Find someone that knows fiberglass repair and make him your best friend. The drives may or may not be usable, won't know until you dig into them.

 

[snowbird3]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Thanks for all the input fellas. I ended up backing out of the deal with no issues from the seller. Information provided to me on this forum was very helpful in making this decision. If I was living in NJ and had some local folks to work on it, I probably would have gone for it. Shipping to Canada was quoted at $2500 which I thought wasn't too bad. So I imagine I could have had it on the water in the $25K region but my confidence in all of the other sub-systems and engines would have been measured.

I was also offered a "second chance" bid of $13K on a 2000 Maxum 3300 SCR with similar damage but a much bigger boat. I wasn't sure I wanted the hassle of anything over 30 feet puls the extra costs involved.

Thanks again for all of the great input.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

if it floated off the stands and landed in a creek somewhere then it may have had longer exposure swamped, but if it was washed around on the hard, the water was gone the next day. Hurricanes, unlike floods, leave even quicker than they come.

After one of the Florida hurricanes a boat dealer found shredded leaves inside a water-tight radio compartment. Covers mean nothing to hurricanes, and what blows around is like a wet dust storm. A dirty film is left everywhere. I've lived through 55 years of them (and we may have a big northeaster this week!)

 

[Floridaguy32514]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

I may be way off, or it may be a Florida thing, but you need to check on legalities, If I remember right it is ILLEGAL to sell any vessel or vehicle that has been submerdge in water during a hurricane, even if they disclose it, it's flat out illegal

 

[tazrig]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

I may be way off, or it may be a Florida thing, but you need to check on legalities, If I remember right it is ILLEGAL to sell any vessel or vehicle that has been submerdge in water during a hurricane, even if they disclose it, it's flat out illegal

Here in New England anyway it is legal so long as you disclose and the boat gets sold with a salvage title.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

Not sure how I missed this thread, but looks like one of the better hurricane boats.

NADA looks to be about $37K, so $50K might be a stretch. I guess the question is if it can be fixed up for about $20K (probably).

Never heard about legalities so selling hurricane boats . . . we should put that to the "ill-informed knowledge" test.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

but since this boat wasn't submerged, that doesn't matter. just because a boat has been through a storm doesn't make it 100% junk. A car can be in a "wreck" which can mean everything or very little.

You have to look at the particular boat; we've been guessing from a small amount of information, making assumptions and considering probalities. The only certainty to come from it all is, don't buy it without a close look!

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Salt Water boat in Fresh Water

I am curious if you are planning on fixing it yourself, or having it done at a boat shop? In terms of your original question about salt water versus fresh water. There is really no difference in the boat, as you may know, the difference is in the maintenance.

Just glancing at the pictures of the engine, I would take the riser/elbows off of the exhaust for an inspection and at a minimum, new gaskets .