See full version: How much does a boat survey
Survey day is here…what should you expect? The process typically begins with either the sea-trial phase or an out of water inspection. For out of water, the surveyor will typically moisture meter the hull, make note of any structural issues or dings, and write down any issues they notice on the hull/prop/lower unit area. Many surveyors will also test safe out of water systems such as stereo, VHF, and other basic electronics. [links]
When the time comes to hire a boat surveyor, there are a few questions you should ask before agreeing to hire. These include: [links]
You have found the perfect used boat but want to be sure you are making an informed purchase. After all, there are a lot of mechanical and structural components to a vessel and you want to be confident before buying. A boat surveyor fills this role and can offer you, and your bank, an extra layer of protection before buying a used boat. Let’s dig into how boat surveyors work.
Purchasing a vessel is a large financial decision and hiring a surveyor can give you peace of mind before moving forward. While you may be mechanically inclined, surveyors utilize specials tools such as moisture meters to examine more than just the on/off mechanics of the vessel. If you plan on financing your boat, many lenders require a certified survey before they will release funds.
The easiest way to find a boat surveyor is to head over to the SAMS (Society of Accredited Marine Surveyors) and type in your zip code. From there, you will be offered a list of certified surveyors in your area. Be sure to have your boat information ready as well as the questions mentioned above.
The MTA (Maritime Training Academy) Diploma will provide the key basic under pinning knowledge required by someone intending to become a Surveyor.
The course is structured to cover all the areas of expertise a new Surveyor will need in order to establish himself / herself in business to perform satisfactory surveys. more
The Diplomas will stand you in good stead. Knowledge, work based competence and understanding are the main elements to success.
Condition of gasoline fuel tanks, particularly foamed in place aluminum tanks, should be reported. If tanks are not accessible, that should be so stated in the report.
A good survey report is one that indicates that all systems of major importance were either inspected and the condition noted, or it indicates that the system, or parts thereof, were not accessible for inspection. The surveyor lets the reader know what he has done, or was not able to accomplish. It does not reflect poorly on the surveyor to state that something wasn't, or couldn't be inspected or tested. On the contrary, to do so is a sign of integrity and thoroughness in reporting. more
It is also acceptable for the surveyor to make recommendations or "suggestions" that are not mandatory. These can include such things as installing a bilge high water alarm or better locks on a door or hatch where there is no standard or mandate that the owner do so, but where the surveyor believes it is a reasonable precaution.
Construction: A general statement describing the hull construction and superstructure is generally all that is necessary for most production built vessels, unless the nature of the construction or design is unusual or unique. It is important for underwriters to know if a vessel is built of exotic, unusual or experimental designs or materials, or whether it is an unusual or experimental design. It is generally not necessary to describe in great detail the scantlings of the hull such as dimensions and spacing of frames and stringers, etc. It is sufficient to state that the hull is lightly, moderately or heavily built without going into great detail, unless there is a real need to do so.
The meter is most reliable in the hands of a person who experiments with it and carefully considers what he’s doing. It is least reliable in the hands of a person who thinks that it always produces infallible results. The reason that it does not is because we subject the instrument to limitless varying conditions for which there are no absolute answers. In other words, it takes part science and part skill.
Based on its historical performance, balsa has many admirable properties but it should not used unless in conjunction with vacuum bagging. Labor costs today are so high that it cannot be used reliably with normal hand lay up operations, plus there are too many people designing boats today who are utterly ignorant of proper design and lay up techniques. A fairly large number of yachts have been built of vacuum bagged balsa core (mainly custom or semi custom boats) that it can be reliably stated that vacuum bagging in conjunction with proper design will preclude the severe problems that have occurred of late. However, a new generation of foams may ultimately render balsa obsolete and not the best choice of materials.
This leaves us the question of what is the location of the water that our meters are reading? Is it in the gel coat, the CSM layer, the structural laminates, the core or all of theses? Clearly, when working on a boat hull, there is no way of knowing. What with the reintroduction of cored boat bottoms, the most critical question that the surveyor wants to answer is whether water has gotten into the core because this can be fatal to boat hulls.
Our tests also show that the meter can even work on some non skid deck surfaces such as the leveled diamond pattern, although clearly the reliability of such readings is going to be somewhat reduced.
The idea that high moisture readings are a precursor to blistering needs to be laid to rest. The correct way to state the matter is that high moisture may result in blistering. It’s been known for decades that boats built with good quality material have little tendency to blister, so just because we get high readings on a hull doesn’t mean that it will blister. Low quality resin combined with excessive use of CSM is the primary cause of blistering. here
False readings can be produced by a number of conditions that include excessive amounts of CSM on the outer surface, the use of absorptive fairing materials, ablative bottom paints and paints containing metals and oxides of metals, with copper topping the list of metals. Be careful and skeptical of readings taken around keels, struts, rudders and other areas that may contain fairing. here