Preparing to Restore a Boat

Boat restoration is a popular pastime for avid mariners who are handy with tools. With the right preparation and forethought, you can successfully restore many broken-down vintage boats to make them usable for years to come. Boat repair is a complex process, but it can be done!

Andersen Boat in Burnt Hills, New York, is your local boat dealer. Here are some of the things you’ll want to consider when you’re readying yourself to restore a boat.

Is This a Worthwhile Endeavor?

First, ask yourself whether the boat you’re aiming to restore is even salvageable. The overall structure of the craft needs to be reasonably sound; if it’s too damaged and rotted through, then you may not be able to rehabilitate the vessel and should scrap it instead. 

Also, don’t restore a boat that doesn’t have good resale value; this is just a waste of money and time. You never want the cost of boat restoration to exceed the vessel’s market value, so do some research to determine whether this is a course you should realistically pursue.

Inspect The Craft

Once you’ve determined that your repair efforts won’t be wasted, you can then thoroughly inspect and prepare your boat for restoration. Figure out from the previous owner or from maintenance records whether a given craft has incurred any damage or had repairs made to it already. Don’t try to restore any boat that’s run through with rot, mold, electrical failure, critical engine issues or other major problems that you may not be able to fix. Stick to tasks that are within your skill level so that you’re not overburdening yourself.

Getting a secondary opinion from a professional can help you to figure out what needs restoring. If you have a friend or family member who’s well-versed in vintage vessels, have them take a look at your craft and get their opinion. Maybe they can even assist you in the restoration process!

Once you’ve gotten all the information you can, you’ll want to make a thorough list of what needs repairing and prioritize major repairs first. Don’t only focus on cosmetic fixes; the entire structure and internal systems on the craft should also be restored to make it fully functional. 

Create a Place To Work

Now you’ll need to figure out where you’ll be doing this restoration. If you live somewhere that’s got some pretty extreme weather, then keeping the boat outside is going to be highly impractical. For example, here in New York, we can see some pretty heavy winters with very cold temperatures, so you wouldn’t want to just trailer your boat in your driveway during your repairs. They could take months, so even if you start in summer, you might not be through before the first snows hit.

An enclosed workspace like a garage, shed or barn is a good place to set up your restoration project. You’ll probably want your workspace to be close to your home to facilitate regular repair sessions. You will also need a reliable source of power at either end of the craft, sufficient lighting, heating or air conditioning to keep you comfortable and a supply of water for cleaning. Don’t forget to outfit your workspace with the necessary tools, like goggles, gloves, nuts and bolts, clamps, pliers, screwdrivers, pipe fittings, sandpaper and so forth.

Remember, if you need any assistance with boat repair, you can always contact our service department to schedule a maintenance appointment with our team of professional mechanics. Let us take a look at your vessel to see what we can do for you. If you’re shopping instead, then you’ll want to pay a visit to our Burnt Hills showroom to investigate our full stock of new and used boats for sale. We have financing options to help you with your purchase, too. Andersen Boat proudly serves all of our New York State customers in the cities of Schenectady and Saratoga Springs.