The Way Of The Boatyard

Scheduling the Boatyard
by Michael A. Smith

Dockside Magazine

When young (and old) men's fancies turn to thoughts of ... the boatyard. For many skippers, a trip to the boatyard is like a trip to the dentist, but more expensive and without the free toothbrush afterwards. On the other hand, smart boat owners know the yard is a necessary evil, and take steps to ensure a successful and relatively painless experience. It doesn't take an Einstein to do this; just plan ahead, understand the yard manager's needs along with your own, and relax your grip on your checkbook.

First, plan ahead. Boatyards are wacky places during the spring & summer seasons. Every owner wants his boat launched during the same two-week window, so if you stroll in at the last minute with a long list of jobs, but still want your boat next weekend, you might not get the cheerful reception you expected. It's better to draw up work orders over the winter, so the yard boss can schedule them according to weather, worker availability, and so forth. I schedule my work in the fall, when things are quieter. I get better work, faster service and a slightly smaller bill.

Second, choose your boatyard carefully. Don't ask a yard specializing in racing sailboats to replace rotten planks on your classic Chris-Craft commuter. Look for a boatyard full of boats very much like yours, even if it means moving to the next harbor. This is especially true if you have a wooden boat, or have major woodworking projects: Expert ship's carpenters and joiners naturally gravitate towards yards with lots of wooden boats.

Third, understand the boatyard manager is always on the hot seat. He's got customers yelling at him all day, demanding the impossible; workers calling in "sick," especially around holiday weekends; bosses haranguing him for not making enough money; the EPA snooping around for environmental violations; boat owners giving work to independent, usually uninsured, contractors on the sly ... you get the picture. Be the guy who treats him like a fellow human being, and you might be surprised how your boatyard experience improves.

Fourth, learn the concept of "time and materials."  Yards charge for workers' actual hours and necessary supplies to do the job, and everything takes longer than you think it will. (Isn't that one of Newton's Laws?)The clock starts as soon as the worker gets the job order, and ends when he's put all his tools away; if, for example, he's forced to spend an hour moving stuff out of the cabin before he can start the job, you pay for that. And you might pay again once he's finished, since he'll spend another hour putting everything back. But give the guy who does the job a nice, clear area to work in, and you'll save a couple of hours on your bill.

Fifth, make up your mind ahead of time. Don't decide to change this or that once a job's started, or tack more onto a job. Nine times out of ten, the extra you add could've been done easier and faster if the worker had known about it before he started. And make sure the yard manager knows exactly what you want accomplished, and how. Don't say, for example, "I need a couple of fans in the cabin." Instead, take him aboard and point out where you want him to mount two 12-volt fans. The guy's not a mind reader. And if you decide later on you really want three fans, installing the third fan will cost almost as much as the first two if the job's already been done: It takes just as long to lug tools, ladders, droplights, etc., to install one fan as two, or three.

Finally, when you get your bill, pay it. Most boatyards live on very valuable waterfront property, and if the yard doesn't make a profit, there's always an investor ready to buy the land and build condos. Honestly, I don't know why so many boatyards are still around, given the aggravation of operating one, the high taxes, the low profits and the millions of bucks the owners could get for their properties. So when you find a good yard, do what you can to keep it going -- give them your business and send a check when it's over. That way, with luck they'll be around for a while longer.

Fitting-Out Checklist

Don't forget these common boatyard chores. This is a partial list; in reality, there are 1,000 things to do before starting the new season.

1. Paint the bottom. Need I say more? But if you've used multi-season paint in the past, maybe you can get away with just a touch-up. If the hull is weed-stained above the paint, consider raising the waterline.

2. Renew the zinc anodes. Another no-brainer, but remember to replace the pencil zincs in your heat exchanger,too. If last year's zincs were totally eaten away, you'll want to inspect the underwater metal for corrosion.

3. Check your trim tabs for loose fittings, leaking cylinders, corrosion and damage. Clean off the barnacles and add hydraulic fluid if necessary.

4. Check the rudder bearings and prop shafts for excess play by wiggling them side-to-side. If anything moves, have the yard check it out. Often, the glands simply need repacking.

5. If the prop has major nicks or dings, have it removed and checked by a prop shop. Ditto if last year you had vibration problems.

6. Whack each through-hull fitting with a hard-rubber mallet to ensure they're not loose, cracked or corroded. Clean out any barnacles inside the fittings. Replace external strainers that have gotten lost or damaged.

7. Have your engines tuned and their fluids replaced? Install a new raw-water impeller.

8. Have the yard check your batteries under load. There's a gadget for doing this; it's a lot more accurate that simply taking specific gravity or voltage readings.

9. Make sure all the running lights are working, and replace bulbs in hard-to-reach masthead and steaming lights.

10. Replace frayed docklines. Every couple of years, replace all docklines, and save the old ones for transient use, or to pass along to those cheapskates who refuse to buy proper lines.