Marine survey results seem overwhelming

As part of the purchase process, I was able to buy the recently completed marine survey of the Nonsuch 26. Once I cracked that open, I saw a lot of colored ink and frankly, it felt pretty overwhelming. As I began to see all the problems with the boat, the thought immediately surfaced: why would I buy a boat with so many issues?

For example, an abbreviated list of important safety items includes:

• Cooling system hoses
• Exhaust hose clamps
• Engine fuel shutoff
• Clamps on dripless seal
• Fuel tank not grounded
• Fuel fill and vent hoses
• Remote propane cutoff
• Overcurrent protection on DC circuit
• Lack of fuses for high-draw items
• Battery cables
• AC main breakers
• Fire extinguisher
• Bilge pump switch
• CO and smoke detectors

Are surveys only about finding what’s wrong?

Surveys seem like they are all about identifying what doesn’t work or what doesn’t meet standards. That’s the first impression when you begin reading the survey and see highlight after highlight showing issues with the vessel.

But in reality, the survey documents what does work and the condition of things that are right, just as much as it documents the things that aren’t right.

This was the epiphany for me as I read through the survey for the fourth time: oh, a lot of things about this boat are good!

A whole lot is right about the boat

It was great to recognize that a lot about the boat is good and is documented in the survey. For example:

• Hull in good condition, hull to deck joint is secure, deck hardware is secure
• Deck in good condition
• Deckhouse in good condition
• Bulkheads and ceilings in good order
• No issues with mast and boom
• Running rigging in good order
• Winches function
• Sail in good condition

In fact, most of the findings about the boat are positive, not negative.

Is she worth saving? Yes!

This boat is uniquely classic. It was produced to a high level of quality and is no longer produced. It was manufactured in limited numbers.

This boat’s bones are very good. Many of the systems show their age, and after all, the boat is 40 years old. But the boat is fundamentally sound, and the unique character of this boat means she is worth fixing up and enjoying. She already catches the eye. With some additional work, she’ll also capture more hearts.

Triage, sequencing, scheduling

Next, I need to triage the issues identified in the survey, sequence resolving those issues, and set out a schedule to implement those fixes. That will be a future post.

Sometimes things that are not critical to safety can still rise to the top of the list. In this case, having a working marine head isn’t a safety issue but it certainly is a comfort issue! Fixing the head will be in the first group of issues to resolve.