Repair & maintenance guides

How to Size, Rig and Inspect Dock Lines and Fenders

Pick the right dock line diameter and fender size for your boat, set up bow, stern and spring lines in a slip, add chafe gear, inspect for wear and UV damage, and double everything up before a storm.

How to Test and Clean Your Bilge Pump and Float Switch

Make sure your bilge pump actually moves water overboard, both on the manual switch and automatically through the float switch. A working bilge pump is one of the most important safety systems on any boat that stays in the water.

How to Test and Fix Your Boat's Navigation Lights

Learn which navigation lights your boat must show and when, then test them and fix the usual culprits such as corroded sockets, loose pole-light plugs and blown bulbs. Working lights are legally required at night and in poor visibility and are how other boats see which way you are heading.

How to Upgrade Your Boat's Lighting to LED (and Keep Your Nav Lights Legal)

Switch cabin, cockpit and courtesy lights to LED to cut battery drain and bulb changes, choose navigation lights that are actually USCG-certified (not just LED bulbs), check voltage range and dimmers, seal every connection, and run the Coast Guard's simple VHF test to make sure the new lights aren't deafening your radio or AIS.

How to Use a Pump-Out Station: Finding One, Hooking Up and Rinsing the Tank

Find a pump-out near you with state maps and free apps, hook up to the deck fitting without spills, rinse the holding tank, leave the station clean for the next boat and know the rules for no-discharge zones and mobile pump-out boats.

How to Winterize (and Recommission) Your Boat's Freshwater System

Protect the tank, pump, water heater, faucets and showers from freeze damage with non-toxic antifreeze, then flush and sanitize everything in the spring so the water is clean again. A cracked pump or split fitting is a common, avoidable winter repair bill.

How to Winterize a Sailboat: Rig, Sails, Engine, Plumbing and Storage

A sailboat-specific winter layup plan, from deciding whether the mast comes down to getting sails, running rigging and canvas off, protecting the diesel or saildrive, plumbing and head, and leaving the boat well supported, covered and ventilated. Each engine and water job links to its detailed BoatMend guide.

How to Wire a Bilge Pump Correctly (Automatic Float, Panel Switch and Fuse)

Wire your bilge pump so the automatic float works even with the battery switch off, the helm switch gives you a manual override, and every circuit has the right fuse, wire size and connections kept above the bilge water. A pump that is wired wrong can leave the boat unprotected exactly when nobody is aboard.

How to Wire a Marine Stereo, Speakers and Amplifier Safely

Install or fix a boat stereo the way that keeps it working and keeps your battery alive: marine-rated gear, a fused feed from the panel, a solid ground, a plan for the always-on memory wire, UV-proof speakers, and an amplifier fused right at the battery. Plus how to stop the stereo from messing with your VHF and compass.

Hull Blisters (Osmosis): How to Tell Cosmetic Pimples From Serious Pox

Learn what osmotic blisters are, how to inspect a fiberglass bottom at haul-out, which blisters you can fix yourself with epoxy, what moisture meter readings can and can't tell you, and when to hire an independent surveyor.

Impressed Current Corrosion Protection on Yachts: How It Works and How to Keep an Eye on It

Larger aluminum and steel yachts often use an impressed current system instead of, or alongside, sacrificial anodes. Learn what the control panel, anodes and reference electrodes do, how to log and double-check the readings with a portable reference cell, why over-protection can strip paint and attack aluminum, what to do at haul-out, and when to call a corrosion specialist.

Inflatable Boat and Dinghy Care: Cleaning, UV Protection, Leaks and Storage

Keep your inflatable or RIB tender holding air for years. Rinse and clean it the right way, protect the tubes from sun, check pressure with a gauge, find slow leaks with soapy water, service the valves, patch small holes with the correct glue for PVC or Hypalon, and store it clean and dry.

Inflatable Life Jacket Care: Inspect, Test and Rearm

An inflatable life jacket only saves a life if the cylinder is full, the inflator is armed and the bladder holds air. Learn the quick check before every trip, the overnight leak test, how to read replacement dates and how to rearm it after it fires.

Inheriting a Boat: Title Transfer, Coast Guard Documentation, Insurance, Taxes and Keep-or-Sell

What to do when a boat comes to you from a relative's estate: secure it and keep it insured, find out how ownership passes (joint owner, transfer-on-death, probate or a small-estate affidavit), transfer a state title or a Coast Guard documented vessel, deal with the trailer, liens and taxes, and decide whether to keep or sell. General information, not legal or tax advice.

Internet Near Shore: Cellular Routers, Signal Boosters and Marina Wi-Fi Extenders

For boats that stay within sight of land, a cellular router, a legal signal booster or a marina Wi-Fi extender can be a cheaper alternative to satellite. Learn which one fits how you boat, why antenna placement and cable length matter, the FCC rules for boosters, how much power they use and how to test that it actually works.

Is My Vehicle Rated to Tow This Boat? Towing Capacity, GCWR and Tongue Weight Explained

The towing number in the ad is only one of several limits. Learn which ratings matter (towing capacity, GCWR, GVWR, axle and tongue limits, hitch class and ball rating), how to weigh your real rig at a truck scale, and when you need trailer brakes and towing mirrors.

Isolation Transformer vs. Galvanic Isolator: Which Does Your Boat Need?

Understand how a galvanic isolator and an isolation transformer each protect a boat on shore power, when the heavier, pricier transformer is worth it (stray-current marinas, aluminum boats, liveaboards), and what to ask the ABYC-certified electrician who installs it.

Jacklines and Tethers: How to Rig Them and Use Them So You Stay Aboard

Jacklines and a good tether keep you attached to the boat when you work on deck at night or in rough weather. Learn which jackline material to pick, where to run it and what to anchor it to, how to choose a double tether with safe hooks, and the clip-in habits that make the system work.

Jet Outboard Care: Grease, Intake Grate, Impeller Clearance and Shallow-River Habits

A jet outboard trades the propeller and gearcase for a pump, so it needs different care. Learn how mounting height works, why the pump bearing needs frequent grease, how gravel and a worn impeller steal thrust, how to clear the intake safely, and when an adjustment is a shop job.

Keeping Chartplotter Charts and Software Current (Garmin, Raymarine, Simrad, Lowrance, Navionics, NOAA)

Old charts can show buoys that moved and shoals that grew. Learn how chart subscriptions and updates work across the big brands, where NOAA's free charts fit in, how to handle SD cards safely, how to back up your waypoints and routes before anything goes wrong, and a simple yearly routine.

Lake Engine Restrictions: Two-Stroke Bans, Horsepower Limits, Electric-Only and No-Wake Lakes

Some lakes ban older two-stroke outboards, cap horsepower, allow only electric motors, or make the whole lake no-wake. Learn the common types of rules (with dated real examples like Lake Tahoe and Ohio's lake list), how to tell what kind of engine you have, and how to check before you tow the boat three hours to a ramp you can't use.

Launch Day and Haul-Out Checklist for Trailer Boats

A step-by-step checklist for getting your boat off the trailer and back on again safely and quickly, from the drain plug and tie-downs to the blower and ramp etiquette. Following it in order prevents the classic mistakes that sink boats and back up the ramp.

Life Raft Care: Service Intervals, Hydrostatic Releases, Mounting and the Grab Bag

A life raft you can't launch or that won't inflate is worse than none, because it gives false confidence. Learn how often rafts need professional service, how to pick a service station, when to replace the hydrostatic release, where to mount a canister or stow a valise, the checks you can do yourself, and what belongs in the grab bag instead of the raft.

Lightning and Your Boat: Protection, Storm Safety and After-Strike Inspection

How lightning damages boats, what a professionally installed protection system (ABYC and NFPA 780 guidance) can and cannot do, what to do when a storm catches you on the water, and a step-by-step inspection checklist after a strike, including the haul-out, compass, electronics, through-hulls and the insurance claim.