Immaculate boat, use it hard or compromise?

[Searush]

Hey, Brendan, why not a poll?

I have an old boat (couldn't afford a new one this size & would be frightened of breaking it) simply because I want to use & enjoy it. I want to own the boat rather than have the boat own me.

This thread wouldn't have been inspired by a bav34 one by any chance would it?

[jhr]

During the season we tend to use her, rather than keep her pristine with the result that I'm usually playing catch-up in the winter. With a swinging mooring it's difficult to keep her immaculate but I try not to let things go downhill too much. The tonneau cover's looking a bit dodgy at the moment, as Epervier demonstrated photographically, a few weeks back

[rafiki_]

Use it and maintain it. As other have said, there are things that will have to wait until she coms out at the end of the month, but I generally maitain and keep her clean as we go. She is then a pleasure to use.

[fireball]

If I ding/bust/break my boat then that's my fault.
If someone else bashes it and doesn't appear to attempt to appologise then that's when I get cross.

[MapisM]

As with most things in life, 3 of course.

[TamT]

Use it but dont ABUSE it.

[BrendanS]

Hey, Brendan, why not a poll?

I have an old boat (couldn't afford a new one this size & would be frightened of breaking it) simply because I want to use & enjoy it. I want to own the boat rather than have the boat own me.

This thread wouldn't have been inspired by a bav34 one by any chance would it?

It started off as a poll, but I lost my connection as I posted it, and couldn't be bothered to do it all again.

No, not inspired by any other posts, just a fleeting thought about general usage. Some boats you see, seem to be kept in pristine condition, but not much used. Others are heavily used and show it. Some are kept near pristine, and used as well.

[U4]

There is no reason why you can use your boat and keep it in great condition at the same time.....!!

[BrendanS]

There are many reasons why a boat which is used a lot will not be as immaculate as one which is not used but kept pristine. Just using it causes wear and tear, and the inevitable bumps and scrapes, and mechanical issues which require time and money, and sometimes removing from the water. So in fact, there are lots of reasons, and your statement doesn't really make a huge amount of sense from any point of view, unless you live very close to the boat, have lots of money, and have lots of time?

[FlowerPower]

Using a boat causes one set of problems e.g.
- Wear and tear on seats, carpets, people dropping coffee cups and glasses of wine
- Fibreglass dings, outdrives that wear out etc.

Not using a boat causes an entirely different set of problems:
- Musty carpets and interiors, unless dehumidified
- Sea cocks and other hardware seizes up
- Turbos get sticky, belts and impellors harden
- Plus the things that would be noticed on a boat in regular use get ignored

Having said that, keeping a boat in regular use in "smart" condition is a lot of work. Deep pockets is less of an issue than living 5 mins walk away which helps massively, as does being able to DIY most things, and knowing who to ask when your own abilities expire.

dv.