offer on boat that has taken on water. your opinions please...

[Lakegirl]

We are interested in a boat at our marina, a 2001 Carver, bridge boat. Heres the story.

freshwater lake.

Owner was out boating and high water alarm goes off. He opens the engine room hatch and a water line has popped off. He goes to turn the seacock off and the handle breaks(still broken off). He panics and races back to the marina short distance away. Gets tied up and starts the water removal process. Water gets to the top of the transmissions but not to the engines. Insurance pays for the work at our marina. Transmissions get serviced and new carpet in the salon. new fridge that they say is unrelated to the water damage. you can actually see on the wall where the water came to according to the wood stain.
obviously a full survey is warranted but I wanted your opinions on the wiring in the bilge. any damage to the wiring that might not rear its head till later? anything else to consider? I feel pretty certain since it was an insurance job my marina took full advantage of fixing anything possible. they even got the insurance company to pay for a full buff and wax.

Stephanie
Off the Radar

 

[vernh59]

I dont think I would be too quick to pass on this boat because it was in fresh water and it ran back to the dock. Unless the water sat in the bilge it is probably ok from a structural standpoint. As far as the electrical part goes it's hard to say. It's possible that something shorted out while submerged and you haven't found it...yet.
Does the asking price reflect the possible hidden problems? What water line popped off? If this owner allowed a seacock to get to the point that the handle broke off what else has he failed to maintain?
If this is really a deal based on what you can find out hire a reputable surveyor and make him aware of the situation and see what he comes up with. Remember, when it comes to boats, it's a buyers market.

 

[RollerCoastr]

I agree on all points.

As a matter of reference, the watermaker supply line snapped on my friend's Silverton AC while she was unattended and connected to shore water. She took on enough water to damage the generator and both main starters along with other misc electrical equip. It was repaired that season (about 8 years ago) and no symptoms have shown up since.

 

[Lakegirl]

I.m not sure which line came off but I want to say it was an engine line????? Don't hold me to it though.
Our marina said they would offer around 56-57 if they were to buy it and we can get in it for around 62. It is about 20k below what they sell for around here due to the water history.
I have complete faith that my salesman would not let me offer on the boat if it wasnt a good boat.
I have complete faith in the surveyor we.ll use, he has tons of experience and never heard a bad thing about his work.
Thats reaasuring to hear RollerCoastr, thanks.


Then again, its a boat.....

 

[Lakegirl]

I forgot to add that this happened almost a year ago. The boat has maybe 10 hours on it since then. Just driving it from the marina he was at where they serviced the transmissions , and then it was brought to our marina for the cosmetic repairs and buffing/waxing where it has been for a few months.

 

[RollerCoastr]

That's good - it's more likely that the water and corrosion damage is already done, but don't forget Vern's point about maintenance. Frozen seacocks and loose hoses shouldn't be found on a well-maintained vessel.

 

[vernh59]

If you REALLY like the boat, get your dealer and the surveyor on it and be cautiously optomistic. Always be ready to walk away and again, it's a buyers market.

Best of luck

 

[carterchapman]

Lakegirl,

You can only buy it if you promise to stay on CSR!

 

[fwebster]

A damage history affects both the current sale price as well as future depreciation. Be sure you buy the boat cheap enough to cover your additional depreciation cost as the boat ages. I have no idea what that is because you will soften that blow as you replace starter motors, pumps, switches, relays etc. that were affected by the partial submersion. But……you only get one shot at recovering the depreciation loss and that is when you buy the boat, so trade hard.

 

[quality time]

$20k savings is not enough for me to risk buying a partially sunk boat. You could run through that savings pretty quickly with unforeseen repairs. Not to mention the future resale value like Frank said.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Lakegirl]

good point on future resale. we.ve already addressed that with our salesman, who knows a bigger boat is yet again in our future as we get spare houses sold, one off insurance, etc.
I am anxious to see the insurance file to see photos of the damage and a list of what was actually repaired.
I am 50/50 on the boat right now. I can go either way and be happy.

Lakegirl

 

[Gofirstclass]

Frank,

For my own information and edumacation, I have a question for you that is directly related to this boat and to your comments. Since boats don't have branded titles and there's no "Carfax" for boats, how would a future buyer know if this boat had a prior problem like the one Lakegirl has described? Let's assume for a moment that the boat was offered for sale at some distant market where the people in that area might not be familiar with what happened to this boat?

Just curious.