Calling All Idiots!

[Obi Wan]

I am a firm believer in doing things oneself...if one is capable. Working on your own boat saves money, is immensely satisfying, and generally enjoyable, if not time consuming. I personally don't like paying someone else to do something I can do myself. If I don't know how, I do research and learn or get help (and this forum is a great resource!). The key is - if you are going to do it yourself, you still have to know what you're doing!

So... I want all the idiots out there who work on their own boats without learning or getting help (or just using some common sense) to STOP - or if you must work on your boat without knowing what you're doing or getting help, then please don't sell your boat to someone else - just - when you retire it, or yourself, from sailing - please use your boat to create an artificial reef somewhere (with all the required permits of course).

Why do I bring this up? I bought an older boat, (because I can't afford a new one) that at some point in it's history, had an idiot work on it - a lot. I have had many problems. Electrical, engine, fuel... because someone obviously didn't know what they were doing.

My latest - and perfect - example: The fuel gauge didn't work when I bought it (always read empty). The previous owner (who didn't work on the boat and hadn't owned it long) said it had always been like that. I finally got around to fixing it. Checked the sender first - it worked, had the proper ohms range. OK, tested the gauge according to the manufacturer's flow chart. Everything checked out OK. What the..? Oh well, let's try a new gauge anyway. Same problem! OK, let's try something else - pull the sender out - again - and hook everything up and power it up. Full is empty and empty is full! Someone had installed the sender float mechanism upside down! What the...? Who would take that apart, then put it back together the wrong way and not even notice that the gauge no longer worked?

Simple fix, but so much time and money wasted... Yes, if I would have paid more attention when measuring the resistance of the sending unit, I would have caught that the low and highs were on the wrong ends, but I never even imagined...and shouldn't have had to! And this was harmless...we've all heard the stories of swimmers getting electrocuted because someone screwed up their boat's wiring.

Anyone else have similar stories?

[sailorboy1]

Owners are the worst thing that happens to boats. That's the real reason most newer boats are better, less owners!

[Fence Man]

This is a boat that I bought brand new and was rigged by the dealer. I took it back a few times for some pretty basic rigging mistakes. The carbon canister was below the top of the fuel tank, fuel tank vent was plumbed into splash well, other blood thirsty chit like that. These pictures took the cake for me. Hole saw right through the console and the aluminum side panel for the wiring harness WITHOUT any kind of grommet or protection for the wiring. The totally broken wire was just the tach, which was intermittent in it's final days as well as sending a little noise through the radio speakers. The frayed wire that was merely arcing on the hull and blowing fuses just so happened to be the ignition wire for the Yamaha outboard. It just so happened that we were on Lake Erie at about 3:00 AM in a 25knot SW breeze. Re wiring in a 21' aluminum jon boat in steady 5's is a ton of fun, especially in the dark with 700 pounds of fish on the floor with you.
We bought a production boat so our family would have something nice to use in a timely fashion. (I sometimes take longer to finish a project than they'd like) The way it was rigged is embarrassing, and the fit and finish of the hull isn't much better. Sometimes, even the professionals screw it up. Yes, I understand your frustration with the fuel gauge. lol

[TheThunderbird]

Obi Wan

True, but... Please decide what comes first. Boat or your liver?

Can you reef your level of discontent? Idiots are everywhere, ..mostly in marinas and in the maritime service industry.

Time is gone, by when Mr Herreshoff personally inspected any works done before leaving office

[SV Bacchus]

I recently toured/inspected a used cat that the salesman, wasn't the actual broker, just one of his guys, was touting as having a brand new LiFePro battery bank installed. Some very heavy wires came through a hole in a sub-panel going to these new batteries. I rubbed my finger on the hole saw openings roughness, pointed out the wires were against the edge of the opening and asked the salesman about it. His reply "Hmmmm, I think if this were my boat I would want a grommet in that opening." I then asked "Wasn't your company the one that put these batteries in?" "Yes" with no further comment.

Because they are a big company doesn't mean they hire the best workers and obviously nobody inspects the work when completed.

[double u]

... & let him, who never did an idiotic thing on his boat throw the first stone...

[atoll]

Originally Posted by double u

... & let him, who never did an idiotic thing on his boat throw the first stone...

or left the dock forgetting to disconnect the shore power cable

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by Obi Wan

I am a firm believer in doing things oneself...if one is capable. Working on your own boat saves money, is immensely satisfying, and generally enjoyable, if not time consuming. ey is - if you are going to do it yourself, you still have to know what you're doing!

Why do I bring this up? I bought an older boat, (because I can't afford a new one) that at some point in it's history, had an idiot work on it - a lot. I have had many problems. Electrical, engine, fuel... because someone obviously didn't know what they were doing.

These 2 paragraphs seem to be mutually exclusive in terms of philosophy and attitude.

You enjoy fixing things but dislike the problems caused by the works of idiots who came before you on your boat.

Perhaps your lack of a detailed survey to identify those problems could bear a "little" responsibility?

[Obi Wan]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

These 2 paragraphs seem to be mutually exclusive in terms of philosophy and attitude.

You enjoy fixing things but dislike the problems caused by the works of idiots who came before you on your boat.

Perhaps you didn't read my post carefully. Notice I didn't say I enjoy fixing the work of idiots. I said I enjoy working on my own boat. I wasn't aware of ANY boat that doesn't require work. And notice my definition of what an idiot is in this post - someone who does work on a boat without learning the proper way to do it first.

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Perhaps your lack of a detailed survey to identify those problems could bear a "little" responsibility?

Yes, of course, all surveys should include removing the fuel gauge sender unit to see if it's been mounted upside down. Did yours?

The point of my post was a bit tongue-in-cheek to point out the perils of and annoyances of the people doing things to boats beyond their abilities, and to ask for others to put forth their similar examples. It is not targeted at a specific poster or forum member and in reality anyone who would benefit from reading this probably wouldn't self-identify anyway. But there always seems to be someone on these forums who enjoys attacking the poster. I didn't say I was perfect (even admitting my own mistake) and freely admit most everyone does SOME dumb thing or mistake. We are, after all, human.

[Pelagic]

Sorry my post was a bit of a reaction to recreational complaining... given all the real problems people are facing today.

My tongue is in check.! [emoji16]

[CatNewBee]

I think, you underestimate the DIY-Guy,
I'll bet, the boat was capsized when the sensor was mounted - so everything was perfect in the first place. You just use the boat the wrong way .

[double u]

"...someone who does work on a boat without learning the proper way to do it first...."
1. there were times when information was considerably harder to come by than in these days of the internet
2. sometimes work has to be done under stress-of-the-moment with suboptimal results

(I seem to have my mellow day today...)

[rwidman]

And yet, if a poster has demonstrated clearly that he/she doesn't know what he is doing and I suggest calling in a pro, I get flamed.

Sometimes you just have to let the person go ahead and burn his boat down or electrocute his family before he understands.

[Sea Life]

You need permits (aka qualifications) to work on a house. Sometimes I think, it wouldn't be a horrible requirement for boats, as much as I hate government oversight.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by Sea Life

You need permits (aka qualifications) to work on a house. Sometimes I think, it wouldn't be a horrible requirement for boats, as much as I hate government oversight.

That is true for some work on some houses. Many people ignore the requirements unless the work can be seen from the street. It's better than nothing but far from a real solution.

As for boats, I don't see it happening anytime soon.