Easy life upgrades to make boating, well, just that much better
Upgrades or changes vary according to boat size, use and obviously budget, there are however a lot of common themes and changes that will improve boating life whether you have a small day boat right up to a liveaboard. The following list of recommendations is based upon the most common problems we see in the yard and the most requested issues to address, plus, some of the installations and changes we see on new boats that can be applied to older ones.
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| A weeks worth of replaced batteries waiting to be recycled |
Batteries
If there was ever something that is going to ruin your day, its flat batteries, this is not just exclusive to boats, cars, trucks, bikes, tractors, you name a vehicle that has an electric start or worse, electronic modules that are dependent of a quality electrical supply, a flat battery or one that is really not suited for how it is being used will turn a smile into a frown in short order.
The good thing is, as upgrades or changes go, this is one of the ones that is very well catered for, everything from high quality starter batteries, all the way to lithium house batteries are available. Today, with availability, the knowledge base and higher quality at lower prices, there is really no excuse to not upgrade your batteries when its time to renew, admittedly, upgrading to some battery types will involve more than just swapping from one type to another, but I can assure you its worth it.
I would go as far as to say the most rotated stock item from the parts department is batteries. One example would be on smaller boats with a single or dual battery installation, instead of using regular lead acid batteries, change them to AGM ones, the price difference is not as much as it once was and the better cycling properties (ability to be discharged and recharged), lack of liquid electrolyte and better ability to withstand the movement and banging around that batteries suffer in boats makes them a better choice, and, a longer useful life helps to offset the higher initial price. Most modern chargers are also compatible with AGM batteries too so no further changes might be needed.
I would always recommend a careful inspection of the battery cables, their terminals and generally what condition these primary cables (negative & positive) are in, no matter how good your batteries are, if the other components that are connected directly to them are in poor condition, less than optimum results will be achieved.
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| Dual battery chargers and a generator |
Charger
One half of the two most common quotes I give (the other being stereos) are battery chargers. The reasons for charger failure vary, but I would like to give a short list why;
- Charger too small, this for me is the most common reason that chargers fail and in turn batteries get ruined, the output from the charger is just not enough to fully charge them.
- Fridges, ???????, what are you talking about? Well, lots of small boats, bow riders, cuddy cabins and centre consoles have electric fridges, in summer it is completely normal to have the fridge stocked with drinks, but these fridges nearly always work on battery power only, so the battery charger is not only charging the batteries (or more likely barely doing so), it is also running a fridge. All it needs is for the dockside breaker to trip and the battery running the fridge is completely depleted and run flat, sometimes with damaging results needing battery replacement. A new charger will not solve that problem, but, it will charge the batteries faster and run the fridge simultaneously.
- Boatbuilders, regularly install undersized chargers, they are getting better, installing chargers that are better sized to rapidly charge batteries but they are not quite there yet, especially on smaller boats where the charger size is barely adequate. Its a practice I don't understand, they must get a large number of returns under warranty for early failures, has neither the charger manufacturer or the boatbuilder looked and thought they should do something about it?
The solution is to install a multi stage charger large enough to actually charge the batteries back up and prolong their life. Battery charger output is measured in amps, battery capacity is measure in amp hours, a good rule of thumb is to size a charger output for at least 10% of the total battery capacity being charged, for example, two 95Ah batteries make a total of 190Ah, 10% of that is 19Ah, an uncommon battery charger size, so 20A would be suitable.
I have been installing a French brand, Cristec, I would highly recommend them. The smaller models work very well on typical petrol dayboats as they are ignition protected.
Most of the new battery chargers have profiles to match the different battery chemistries (lead acid, AGM, Gel etc.), some are even fully programmable to match exactly the charging profile of the batteries installed.
Bilge pumps
Yes, the humble bilge pump, the most hard working apparatus on board, Bilge pumps, the unsung hero of your boat, a previous boat dedicated to bilge pumps. A bit like chargers, too often the installation is marginal and can easily be improved, one of my most recommended upgrades would be to ditch the standard centrifugal style pump and install a low profile pump, you will notice the difference, less water in the bilge for a start, I would recommend the pumps from Whale, they fit in physically reduced spaces and have low profile pickups.
Whilst you are inspecting the pumps, check out the float switches too, in my experience these fail far more quickly than the pumps, some of the best available come from Ultra.
Going back to the previously mentioned batteries, a bilge pumping system is only as good as the batteries that are supplying it. In my experience boats sink or flounder more often at the dock than at sea.
An excess of bilge water is a particular nuisance for sterndrive boats, where often they have the oil pan or sump very low in the bilge, all that water splashing around can leads to accelerated corrosion, in other areas of the boat mold can build up too, giving the boat a generally damp feel and leading to some funky smells.
LED bulbs
Moving breakers
So, something like this should not be undertaken lightly, if you are in any doubt as to what you are doing, you should definitely consult a marine electrician. Why would you want to move them anyway? Well, it is boat centric, some boats require no further intervention as the boat builder had installed them in an area where a normal human being could actually get to them.
As per my previous post on breakers is here, one of the main calls for service support is because a breaker has tripped, a typical example is the anchor winch breaker. On some boats they are clearly labelled and easy to reach, on others you have to maybe open a panel or lift a cushion, not too difficult, however, on some it involves uncomfortable reaching over hot engines and exhausts. If I owned a boat with breakers is hard to reach places, I would definitely move them to an easy location, in my experience breakers trip at very inconvenient times, so having the added aggravation of doing boat yoga and emptying lockers, open engine hatches and so on just adds to the stress.
Sound insulation
This one I have added after recently replacing the whole engine room insulation in a couple of boats, the original "pyramid" sponge type had turned brittle and was dropping mess everywhere, left alone, would have blocked air filters, bilge pumps etc. What it was replaced with was a newer hard cell foam type, after the job was finished, the engines were started (twin diesel) and even though no actual sound readings had been taken, the difference was instantly noticeable.
When replacing the insulation or trying to do something about the noise perceived from the machinery spaces, do not overlook the hatch seals, some are a rubber seal, others a foam tape type, these loose their properties over time, allowing noise to make its way out.
A secondary effect of the new insulation was the colour change, the white finish as opposed to the original dark grey made the engine room so much brighter, there are also some insulation materials that have fire retardant properties also.
On another boat we insulated the locker where the air conditioning compressor was installed, the owner had complained the noise of it was too much when trying to sleep. Finally, a literal back to back comparison, two identical boats, twin diesel motors, the real difference, one had new carpets installed, as part of the installation, the panels over the engine hatches in the salon, the companionway steps down to the galley, all areas with engine room access, the panels had been removed for the new carpet and acoustic underlay had been put under the carpet, what a difference, it was literally night and day, on the boat without this installed, the drone in the background when you were inside was horrible in comparison to the insulated one, these boats were constructed in the 1990s, old school mechanical diesels, 45 foot long planing flybridge motor yachts and yet one was much more pleasant to be on.
Sound insulation might be more important to cruising boats than sports boats or day boating, but for me, sound insulation is greatly underrated, the difference it makes to quality of life on board cannot be exaggerated. Its not just motorboats, sailing yachts with their usually smaller diesel motors can be made to run very quietly, often, the panels around the motor can be removed making the job a bit easier, ask any sailor who has tried to sleep in a pipe berth right next to the motor about what a difference it will make.
Sales - upgrades and preparations
It might sound counter intuitive, upgrading something when it is going to be sold, try not to think of it so much as an upgrade, more as an aid to sale, or what the market demands. The number one reason why viewings do not go well is because the vessel is poorly presented, a clean boat will always show better, Scrub the decks, how to clean your boat like a pro. The following is a list of what will also hold up your sale or make your boat severely less visited when for sale.
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| Exhaust manifolds left too long before catastrophic failure |
Exhausts (sterndrives)
Buyers of sterndrive powered motors, gas/petrol engines at least have become far more aware of the need to have the exhaust manifolds and elbows replaced when they have reached the end of their useful life, realistically this is about five to six years. Yacht brokers are also aware or at least should be of this. Even in a market where we keep hearing the sterndrives are losing ground to outboard power, sterndrives are still very popular and there are a lot for sale.
Replacing exhausts is expensive and labor intensive, it is also one of the most quoted for jobs in the workshop when someone has bought a sterndrive motor. As a buyer, be prepared to negotiate a discount for the work to be done, as a seller, be aware buyers are more switched on and if you don't have invoices for this work having been carried out, expect a low bid.
Upholstery
Can be hugely expensive, but its another point that can make an otherwise good boat look shabby. The easiest thing to is to clean the upholstery, pay attention to the exterior upholstery where the cushions are removable, if they haven't been removed in a long while, you can be sure there will be dirt under or even mold. If you have torn or ripped upholstery, get it fixed, even if the colour match is not perfect, it will look better than leaving it as is.
The plastic windows in camper canvases or spray dodgers, these go yellow and brittle over time, get these replaced, it just looks so terrible, if you are upgrading and keeping the boat, make sure you use quality plastics for the windows, there are better ones available that are more UV resistant, in my experience, the more pliable the material feels, the longer it seems to last, when storing the panels with the windows, huge mistake is to fold them, or for creases, if you catch it early enough, you might be able to stop the glass from forming a noticeable mark, rolling gently is the best way to preserve them.
If you are reupholstering the whole boat, I have a couple of recommendations;
- If you boat in really sunny climates, I would stay away from dark colours, they get unbearably hot in the sun.
- Look at the seat bases themselves, especially removable cushions that serve double duty as locker lids, a lot were marine ply, which is great but over time the wood does deteriorate. You can replace it one of the plastic wooden alternatives or if replacing with marine plywood, give it a coat of resin first, epoxy resin is particularly good for this.
- Do not forget to make some holes in the seat bases to allow any water trapped in the foam to drain, you can have the underside of the cushions upholstered with mesh panels, it stops water being trapped and the foam developing an "interesting" odor.
Stereo
Like battery chargers and batteries, this is one of the most quoted for upgrades or replacements, both for new and existing boatowners. This is boat centric, if you have a ski boat with tower speakers and massive amplifiers, you are going to want to make sure it is working before sale, whereas, most older boats will at the least want a more modern stereo, I do not mean go out and have a top of the line installation done, no, more make sure you have a head unit with Bluetooth and all the speakers work. Music has become increasingly important to boat owners, I have noticed a trend of even the "budget" range of boats (as boats go) are installing high quality marine stereos and offering factory upgrades.
I have written a couple of previous posts about boat stereos, Pump up the volume. An economical guide to upgrading a small boat stereo & Upgrades, adding an amplifier to your boat stereo and, may I recommend my own Spotify playlist, Boatmusic.
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