Why I love working on my boat...

G

Georgia SeaDawg

New Member
Apr 30, 2009
613
Savannah, GA.
Boat Info
270 Dauntless
Engines
Twin 225 verado's
I spent today working on changing the oil on my mains and generator, as well as changing the anode and spark plugs on my 7.3 W Kohler generator. I had just as much enjoyment today as I would have had with the family on the water. While some may pay others to work on their boat, I would encourage you to spend the time and do the work yourself... You will get so much more satisfaction doing the work yourself, as save a dollar or two while doing it!
 
I'm the same way with mine. I think its just enjoyment from being on or around a boat!
 
Anything that I have the ability to do (short of internal Caterpillar work) I do. I wash, polish, service all mechanicals, etc. I know every inch of my boat by doing this. My wife tried to show me a very small ding on the starboard gunwhale but I have known about it since purchasing the boat. Boat maintenance is expensive and I hate spending money when I can do it myself (time permitting). There is nothing like doing it yourself and having the satisfaction of doing it and maybe more important, knowing how to do it when out on the water.
 
I agree, I do enjoying working on my boat as well, most of the time anyway. More than that I like being able to help my friends with their boats as well based on the knowledge I have gained here and by doing most of my own work. I tend to be a little OCD though. At one point I was thinking about having the engines pulled to I could paint the bilge. Kind of put that on hold until I have another need to do it but the guys still like picking on me about it.

You have a beautiful boat. I saw it tied up when I was down in Savannah/Tybee Island this past summer. Must take a lot of work to keep it looking that good in an uncovered slip and in salt. We stopped by your marina among others to check them out as it was the first time we had been to the area. I know all the guys at the "Flagship" Hall Marine including the owner and I am sure those guys are good to deal with if they are anything like they are here. Nice marinas in your area. It is amazing how huge that one repair shop is, I think it was Thunderbolt Marina. Looks like a beast of a building. Didn't have my Boston Whaler at the time so next time I may pull it down there and explore a bit. I don't have anything big enough to pull my 280.
 
I do the oil changes, zinc changes and impeller changes on our boat. Well, my Galley Wench does the impeller changes on the genset and the stbd engine because I can't get back in there as easily as she does. She also helps with flipping the switches on the oil change system for the same reason...she fits in the tiny space where SR put them easier than I do.

When I bought this boat I was totally unfamiliar with diesels and (here's my confession) I was intimidated by the diesels. I've been around gassers for years and always worked on them, but never been around diesels. Now I'm much more comfortable working on and around them.
 
Thanks to people like Jason78 I got very confident doing my own work on the 300DA. Now I have a diesel and its learn mode all over again.

Jason, I am just north of GA SeaDog now. So if you bring that Whaler down I will race you in my 175 Sport.

SeaDog, do i need to do anything with my boats water system for the low 20s temps on Mon and Tue nights? i was just going to turn on and set the heat in the boat to 55 for those two days.
 
I drained the fresh water tank and that is about it. We will only drop below freezing for a day or two, and will warm up during the daylight hours. We should be fine since salt water has a lower freezing point.

Jason, Thunderbolt marine is not a part of the Hall Marine family. The Hall Marine facility is Savannah Bend Marina. Wish I could have met you when you were in Savannah. Thunderbolt Marine is a very large marine service facility. They service large to mega yachts. I have seen some AMAZING vessels there. It's not unusual to see 15 yachts over 100 feet in service at a time.
 
I've had a great deal of help from members at CSR and near my boat as well. Everything I can do I do what I can't I have done and stay with the guys to learn how to do. This year I come out for cleaning and paint, I will be doing that myself as well as zinc and new props... The more I learn the more I want to do!
 
Good job Chris. I love working on these boats, when you do the work you understand what makes "her" run.
 
I know many on this site have said this many times over, but thank you so much to Jim at BOE for hosting this site. I can't tell you how much I have saved and gained, by being a member of this wonderful site. The nominal amount I pay per year, is a fraction of what I gain and or save!!!
 
Georgia SeaDawg said:
Jason, Thunderbolt marine is not a part of the Hall Marine family. The Hall Marine facility is Savannah Bend Marina. Wish I could have met you when you were in Savannah. Thunderbolt Marine is a very large marine service facility. They service large to mega yachts. I have seen some AMAZING vessels there. It's not unusual to see 15 yachts over 100 feet in service at a time.
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Yeah, I was aware of that just pointing out how much of a beast that particular one is compared to some of the others. I visited your marina as well if you are still at Savannah Bend. I think I have a picture of your boat somewhere that almost matches your profile picture but taken from the main dock. We also visited the Morningstar marina on the other side of the river and opposite side of the bridge from you. There was a severely neglected early 90's 50 something foot Sea Ray for sale. I felt bad for it. I will give you a shout next time we head down that way. A trip to Charleston is probably next on my list as soon as it warms up.
 
I do all my work on Old Skool even though she would be a dinghy on some of your boats. It gives me great satifaction knowing that if something happens on the water I don't need to panic. I can usually fix it and make it back to the dock. If not I know what not to do to make the matter worse and get towed in.

Either way the money saved and peace of mind is priceless!!
 
Georgia SeaDawg said:
I know many on this site have said this many times over, but thank you so much to Jim at BOE for hosting this site. I can't tell you how much I have saved and gained, by being a member of this wonderful site. The nominal amount I pay per year, is a fraction of what I gain and or save!!!
Click to expand...

+:thumbsup::thumbsup: Agree 200% we love to work on ours when we get the time and have received so much useful info from the members of CSR!
 
my wife and i ran the math on all the "little things" we have done ourselves over the years, compared to what it would have cost to pay someone and the the number was scary.
 
I saw a quote from a famous metal fab guy once on Facebook that said "Built not bought". To me, that says it all.
 
Georgia SeaDawg said:
I know many on this site have said this many times over, but thank you so much to Jim at BOE for hosting this site. I can't tell you how much I have saved and gained, by being a member of this wonderful site. The nominal amount I pay per year, is a fraction of what I gain and or save!!!
Click to expand...

+1 This site is invaluable to anyone with a Sea Ray boat. There is a wealth of knowlege here, and the folks that contribute selflessly every piece of info on their boats are truly a blessing when it comes to doing repairs or tracking down a difficult to find leak, or part. I think this site is going to keep Sea Ray boats on the water alot longer than if it didn't exist.
 
Georgia SeaDawg said:
I spent today working on changing the oil on my mains and generator, as well as changing the anode and spark plugs on my 7.3 W Kohler generator. I had just as much enjoyment today as I would have had with the family on the water. While some may pay others to work on their boat, I would encourage you to spend the time and do the work yourself... You will get so much more satisfaction doing the work yourself, as save a dollar or two while doing it!
Click to expand...

I agree and try and do most of the work on our boat. Getting ready to attempt to change the exhaust manifolds, which will be a big undertaking. BTW you mentioned you changed the anode on the Kohler generator. Did you have to remove the short 3-4" raw water hose to get to the anode?

Thanks and Happy New Year
 
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