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BOAT RENOVATIONS A TERM THAT IS NEW AND A HOT TOPIC TODAY
AS A MARINE TECHNICIAN THIS IS ONE AREA OF BOAT REPAIR I WOULD STAY AWAY FROM WITHOUT IN PUT FROM A MARINE ENGINEER (BOAT NUT is not talking about canal barges)
What are the reasons for renovating your Production Boat, and does this help in the creation of "SUNK VALUE"? If you choose to up grade your boats interior for your own reasons that's great. Do not think of this money spent as an investment that will fetch a return. You upgrade for your own personal reasons not to boost the value of your vessel. Do not let ideas and your wallet ruin the operational performance of your boat.
When it come to production vessels the Boat Value Book only allows value percentage increases for the following:
Condition Factors: On a 100,000 plus value you are allowed to add 1.5 %
Salt Water Factors: Minus percentages based on Fresh Water Cooling and the conditions of the slat water environment
Provincial Factors
Exchange Rates
Engine Price Adjustment: This makes allowances for the different power packages available
Accessory Price Guide: Unfortunately new counter tops, hardwood floors, new upholstery and a whole host of other factors that can take place in a upgrade renovation are not allowed for. You can however increase the value based on a new TV, go figure.
Production Boats like cars have a fixed value attached to them. I am sure that there is always someone who will pay up for renovations ( As the saying goes There Is An Ass For Every Seat). However if the bank or another lending institution is financing the boat it would take more than some fancy foot work to have any renovations considered added value. Larger Yachts are a different breed of vessel. They are generally built custom for an owners wishes, which creates a whole different way of determining valuing.
So what is "Sunk Value"? This is when an owner has invested more money in their boat, than can be asked for and received at the time of sale. Renovations could easily place you in this predicament. However a well cared for, clean, modestly up graded boat will probably be the first to sell. But it will only achieve high market value (Determined By The Boat Value Standards). You renovate because you love your boat, plan to keep it and don't care about the return on investment!
Lets talk renovations and what you need to know. Boats are highly engineered for load distribution and controlled center of gravity. I bring this up all the time because there is a complete lack of respect for how easy it is to throw these two factors out of bounds. This will destroy the ride of the boat and toss all of the statistics and expectations of fuel burn, safe load, and flotation right out the window!
A boat manufacturer must comply with a set of perameters to allow a vessel onto the market, every time changes are made to a boat the permeters change. This can create an unsafe boat, it can sink to fast, make the boat unstable and change the turning rate. Not including the fact that the motors may be pushed beyond there limit to provide expected performance.
I can give you an example of a renovated bot can go wrong:
Last season I was asked to deliver a 1989 Sea Ray 340 Sundancer. A great boat, a real tank. These boats were not fast but they were very consistent in performance Sea Ray built hundreds of them, and truly a great boat to own and update. Here is a list of what the previous owner had done to this boat:
*Totally redid the entire cabin: Every thing up graded and new. Quite posh! With lots of really nice materials, custom mattress's ,cork finishes, all in white. I mean this boat was perhaps the nicest 340 of the era I have ever experienced.
*Stainless steel radar arch: Complete with rocket launchers and all electronics hardware moved up to the top.
*New aft upholstery done, in upgraded materials, To go along with this the boat had a nice gel coat restoration done with the old graphics removed
*New camper back canvas, all with thick wall stainless frame. Complete with hatch covers and every other cover you can imagine.
*Up graded to D batteries ( why I am not sure) on port and starboard sides. Up graded charger system
This boat was a show stopper, and that is were the praise ends. To be honest with you I wondered why sell the boat? The work had not even been complete for a season yet. It did not take long to realize he had destroyed the drivability of the boat. If you never left the dock this boat was still full of issues that the renovation or boat repair contactor should have caught way ahead of time! All these modifications had weighed this boat down to death. Here is what this upgrade work did to the boat:
*The shift in weight aft behind the center line of the boat had created a situation were the exhaust tunnels were under water. This creates back pressure on the motors when at an idle. The motors have to fight to stay running at an idle Both the motors could have and did hydraulic (this is when the exhaust water flow over whelms the dry exhaust pressure and fills the cylinders with water) when the boat was backing up.
*Putting the boat into gear and waiting for some type of movement was like waiting for paint to dry, and the draw (depth of water to float) that the boat had was increased by a good 10 inches.
*Spare props mounted in the engine compartment
* END RESULT: When you got moving even standing on a step ladder at the helm with the trim tabs all the way down you couldn't see over the front deck at all , the boat wouldn't get on plane at all
The lady who bought this boat then proceeded to load up with an enormous amount of personal items. I felt so bad for her it was her first boat (the salesman should have told her to buy another boat). The new owner wanted to cruise not sit at the dock. This boat had been ruined as far as being a boat you actually use. When a boat is modified you must consider the design and weight load at every turn. Everything removed should be weighed and location marked down, new materials should be weighed before reinstalled and notes on load shifts noted and allowances made for these differences. Large changes should be approved by an engineer before you start. For a simple answer you can contact the builder of the boat and ask for an opinion but you will rarely get one from them (liability reasons). Do not assume that the technician or salesman who takes your money knows anything about boat design at all. I can generally tell if a renovation or change to a vessel will destroy the boats handling. This is do to volumes of experience with boat construction, prototype work and disassembly and reassembly over the years.
You cannot just rip up a boat and put it back together with new products willy nilly. These projects take time planning and most of all a person who understands boat design. Without this boat renovation should be left alone, do not even go there. If you really want something new, look around and trade for a boat that better suits your taste and needs. If you are looking at a boat that has been modified and you like it. Test two or three identical boats on the water and see if the performance of the modified boat has been upset. If you notice a difference I would NOT buy that boat!
End result of a bad handling boat!
A boat can be brought up to date in simple tasteful ways that doe not break the bank or the boat, there are examples of this every were look around. Talk to other boat owners who have created something you like and ask about how they did it and who did the work. Boaters love to talk about their boats!
Author BW
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