Worst Thing a Previous Owner Did to Your Boat ?

[gettinthere]

silicone caulk everywhere

alternator mount rigged so that it is loose and vibrates, putting out a lot of belt dust. changed the spacers, easy enough to do

left the new dryer for the refer laying next to the compressor

[anotherT34C]

When the old atomic4 was replaced with a diesel, the raw water strainer was installed right where the centerboard hardware (which had been removed) needed to be.

You NEVER change the configuration of a Sparkman and Stephens.

[Latitude42]

The PO owned the boat...that was enough. He did put EIGHT cup holders in the cockpit!!!!!!!!! Now I have 24 screw holes.

[Lancerbye]

Didn't quite finish all the upgrades before his wife got the boat in a devorce and sold it. The missing sani pipe between the Waste deck fitting and the holding tank provided me with an amusing moment when I went to dump the holding tank the first time. Luckily the holding tank had a ridgid PVC pipe attached at the bottom and going to a position above the tank.

[Hyprdrv]

Maybe what the site needs is a check list of items when purchasing a boat. Of course there are a ton of these "idiot" things but I'm talking more of the general things an inspector should be looking for that would be typical to all boats listed under major areas such as HULL, ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING, ENGINE, ect. Since I'll be looking at some boats this coming spring, it would be helpful to have a list to go by.
In addition I wonder if the boat inspectors out there develop there own check lists. In most cases having such a list reminds them to check things as well as rate them while their on the boat. Most reports I've seen are written somewhat as general statements with little detail. It may be very helpful to give a detailed list to an inspector so the two parties have a good understanding as to what is expected. There then can be a simple Good/Fair/Poor condition check box with a brief discription for "action" when in poor condition. This at least would give you an indication that he did look at an item.

Steve

[Lancerbye]

I think most good surveyors do use a very extensive checklist. at least the one that did mine did. He had a list that covered everything for every boat possible and just crossed out the things that didn't apply. A good surveyor will talk to the customer before he starts the survey to explain what he will be doing. He will also take a lot of pictures to support his final report which is compiled from the check lists and photos he took.

[clausont]

I think that the worst thing that the previous owner (or the builder in this case) did to this Ingrid was not use forethought and research. Maybe I am wrong here.
The cabin sole and all substructure of the cabin sole were of course made from wood (Mahogany it looks like for the substructure). The sole itself was made out of plywood and painted on top but it looks like nothing was used for protection underneath - in the bilge area.
Also, there have never (until now) been and cabin vents of any kind installed. No dorades, mushroom vents - nothing. The inside was pretty wet and musty when we got the boat and right now I am in the process of rebuilding the cabin sole. Not too bad of a job to do, just time consuming.
I have already added two dorades and one Nicro day night solar vent. I still need to add one more Nicro vent in the stern for decent air flow through the cabin.

[Gator81]

Got a great deal on it, as the PO immediately disclosed a "fried electrical system". He had, somehow but I can't imagine how unless he was drunk at the time, connected the 12v battery backwards. But wait, there's more. When the electric starter wouldn't turn over, he managed to get it started manually, somehow. With the battery pushing one way and the alt/gen pushing the other, things in between did not last long. Wires with the insulation melted off soon shorted out, and that stopped the motor. He was sure that the entire motor electrical system would have to be replaced. After the deal, I checked out the battery and generator, and both were fine. The voltage regulator was a melted mess, as were a few sections of wire. Replaced the regulator and the damaged wires, and she ran just fine... with the battery now properly connected to the two noticably different-sized cable clamps... you really have to try very hard to get the large clamp to grab the small post, and vice-versa... sold it a few years later when I needed money for school.

[starfish62]

Apparently my PO discovered a BIG sale on red wire. All of my wiring runs are red! All of them!

He also apparently really liked to cut holes in things--like bulkheads.

[blahman]

Own it.

'nough said.

Cheers,
Aaron N.

[Christian Van H]

OK, here's one for ya: our PO was an electrical engineer (God help us). He thought it best to install a large box on the mizzen mast with 20 toggle switches controlling most of the circuits on board from the cockpit. This is in addition to the circuit breaker panel in the pilothouse 4 steps down. These toggles controlled relays in the head and pilothouse. Removing this crap lowered our waterline an inch!

On a more serious note, they cut WAY too many holes in bulkheads to install stuff, and drilled WAY too many holes in the hull. The Pardeys are right... lash your new toys in place and use them for a while before drillin' and screwin'!

[The Mons]

How about:

Brown 16 gauge electrical extension cord between the engine starter and the battery.

Holes in the bottom of the battery box.

A box full of parts labeled "unknown Westerly parts"

I am still finding things after 7 years.

[nautical62]

First 26-monohull:

1. Biggest safety issue: Previous owner changed manual bilge pump from above the waterline to thru-hull but still used the old cheap accordian style bilge pump hose.

2. Biggest headache: Used hardware store parts, often not SS such as bolts and hose clamps to "save" money. I remember one bolt on the engine I could't get to with a grinder or even a full hack saw. I spent 1/2 hour every day with for a week, with a saw blade in my hand...

3. Most unpleasant: Added holding tank but did not use anti-siphon loops, and yes, I was on a cruise when I discovered that one...

4. Most annoying: Added anchor light without securing the wire inside the mast....

5. Misc: Typical sealant smeared everywhere instead of problem addressed. Electronics wired directly to battery with allegator clips.


Second pocket cruiser:

Wired a few new electronics directly from the battery switch plus and minus through the bilge with lamp wire, unfused. Since the wires attached to the back of the switch, not the battery, I didn't notice it until smoke started coming from the bilge.

The boat I didn't buy:

Owner had never updated through -hulls. The handle broke off of one when the surveyor tested it. The next failed completley. The fact that we were on the sea trial at the time and neither the manual or electric bilge pump worked made for an exciting day.

Another I didn't buy:

Owner was so proud of the west system repairs he did, that he wanted and extra 25% for the boat. The repairs were to fix the holes in the bulkhead that were present after he removed the depthsounder, and other instrument when they failed. I pointed out that while his work was good, the instruments could have been replaced for a fraction of the additional money he wanted, and that one of the first things I'd do was cut holes in his work to add needed instruments.

[skipmac]

Getting deeper into my refit and thought it a good time to revive this old thread with my list.

1. Silicone caulk everywhere. They must have put in their coffee for breakfast.

2. Wiring looks like an explosion in a spaghetti factory. Multiple splices on wires even running through the bilge.

3. Original Wilcox Crittendon seacocks were nice but anything new he installed with gate valves. At least they seem to be bronze instead of Home Depot brass.

4. No valves at all on through hulls above the water line even thought they are well underwater when heeled. Since this was original from the factory guess I can't really blame the PO.

5. Installed an A/C unit in a locker completely blocking access to one of the aforementioned through hulls. A 2" hole with no valve and requiring removal of the A/C unit to reach.

6. The worst. Changing oil and spilled about 6 quarts of old engine oil into the bilge and left it there. I cannot count the hours I have spent trying to clean up that mess, not to mention proper disposal of the waste.

7. Had a leak in the anti-siphon loop in the cooling water">engine cooling water line. The leak was over the engine so over the years it rusted away every part, fitting, nut, bolt, bracket and accessory on the back of the engine.

That's all I have the energy to complain about today. More to come.

[Jetexas]

I got my boat at a huge discount because the interior had been flooded. Bilge pumps were my first task, and I soon discovered the boat had flooded because the previous owner wired in the bilge pump with twist on wire nuts and a car fuse -- all of which were underwater in the bilge and all of which were completely corroded out.

I found a second bilge pump under the v-berth with a hose going nowhere.

The previous owner also removed the hazy plexiglass cover over the control panel because it was hard to see through -- not that he ever had the boat running in the ten years he owned it. This allowed the control panel to fill with water and froze up the ignition switch.

The battery selector switch had a red positive lead to the starter and red postive lead to the 1 position, but a black negative cable running from the 2 lead. There was no second red positive lead to be found running to anything.