12 Tips For Restoring an Old Boat: Costs, Time, And Expert Advice
Looking at restoring an old boat? Chris McCall shares his expert advice.
So, you’re thinking of buying an old boat and bringing her back to her former glory? Awesome! Get ready for hard work and frustration culminating in an ultra-rewarding experience.
Buying and refitting an old sailboat is totally worth it! You won’t build a ton of equity in the boat, but you will know every square inch of that vessel, and the skills you gain will be invaluable.
My wife and I just finished the three-year refit of our 1972 Nauticat 38, Drifter, and now live aboard in Portland Oregon. As soon as the weather cooperates, we plan to take him (Yep, Drifter’s a fella) south and begin cruising full-time.
Feel free to check out our progress along the way and the results of our labor; you can find us on YouTube at YouTube.com/SailingAdrift
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. We also earn from other affiliate programs. This means we may receive a small commission on products purchased through our links at no extra cost to you.
Here are my top tips to help with your refit. Most I followed; some I wish I would have.
During The Buying Process
Get one of the best knives for sailing
Before you buy your perfect renovation project boat, here are a few tips to follow so you don’t fall short at the first hurdle.
#1 Know what you’re getting into
Refitting a boat is not an easy undertaking, and the single biggest thing keeping you from success is your tenacity to see it through. There are so many boats for sale, half-finished, because the undertaking was a lot more than their owners predicted. So….
#2 Plan, Plan, Plan.
This post is a great place to start. Start taking notes and tour as many boats as you can to gather ideas.
Talk to people that know. Read books. Read articles. Watch YouTube refit videos. Join social media groups focusing on refits, interior design, electrical systems, electronics, and boat makes you’re interested in.
I know the excitement is high but take a beat and make sure you make a logic driven decision based on research. There will be time to fall in love later.
#3 Make a core list of what you want from restoring an old boat
List the makes, lengths, characteristics, and price range and stick to it.
Then make a list of “nice to haves” and look for boats that have as many as you can find. If you go in with a clear understanding of what you want, and the deal breakers associated, it’s much easier to make a smart decision.
#4 Let someone else take the depreciation if you can
If you’re going to be refitting, you’ll be taking on plenty of depreciation as soon as you start installing your new electronics, appliances, and equipment, so minimize it by finding a boat where the previous owner has installed as much of this stuff as possible.
New engine? Awesome! Just upgraded all the navigation equipment? Great. New refrigeration unit? That helps. Let the last guy take the hit for 50 cents on the dollar.
Wondering how much sailboats cost? Get a rough idea here.
#5 Buy cheap and pay cash if you can
Boats are not like houses. There isn’t nearly as much competition for boats that need a fair bit of work, because you won’t build a bunch of equity refitting like you would flipping a home.
Don’t expect to save tons of money refitting the boat yourself. You may save yourself a little but the real value is in the knowledge of the vessel and the skills you’ll gain.
So be ready to offer significantly less than asking, and don’t be surprised if they take it.
#6 Include a survey contingency and evaluate your prospective project from top to bottom
Do you have to hire a surveyor? No. But if you don’t, get ready to learn all you can about the process, and go over every square inch.
Know someone super knowledgeable you can ask to help? DO IT! Do not be afraid to walk away. Getting attached leads to bad decisions.
Now That You’ve Got Your Boat Restoration Project
So you’ve found your dream boat (to be!) Here are the next steps in restoring an old boat.
#7 Create a conservative budget
Take your number and pad it by 30%. It is all too easy to let costs get out of hand. Do your homework. The more knowledge that goes into that budget, the less costs will surprise you. Front end work pays huge dividends.
#8 Come up with an educated guess at the timeline in total work hours
And then multiply it by 4 (If you know someone who does this work a lot, take their estimate and double it; they are faster than you)!
Then break it down into phases to make the overall project less daunting. Tracking your working
time in hours keeps focus and doesn’t punish you for life getting in the way.
I made a game of it by tracking my active work-on-the-boat time in hours with an app called Toggl. If you’re at all competitive, this really pushes you to keep getting out there to beat your weekly and monthly bests. Celebrate the small victories; don’t punish the shortcomings.
#9 Build in expandability, especially in your electoral system (think battery space)
Make sure you have spare breakers on your panel and room in your conduits. Always install pull strings. No one in the 70s could have imagined the electrical needs of the modern boat, so don’t make the same mistake.
Future you will thank you.
If you’re reinstalling batteries then check out the best lithium marine batteries. Aim for a slightly bigger bank than you think you’ll need!
⚡ We highly recommend BattleBorn LiFePO4 batteries ⚡
#10 Experiment with clever ideas for maximizing your space
Keep what works. Tweak what needs adjusting. And scrap the flops. This is your opportunity to get creative. Test your original ideas.
Copy what others have done on their boats and modify what you find when researching tiny living
and RV sources. Sometimes building a custom solution is the right way to go, but they often don’t
work as expected.
If a production solution is available, it may cost slightly more but will save you more in time and headache.
As an example, we built our own propane alarm and on/off solenoid because the commercially available one seemed so expensive (and I thought it was ugly).
Finding all the components took hours and hours, and when I had collected them all, I’d only saved
about 25%. Installing everything, and getting the sniffer, switches, and solenoid to all work together, was a huge headache. If I could do it all again, I’d just buy that ugly thing.
#11 Stick with it
The paradox of a major boat refit is that with little exception, every job sucks. Some suck a lot. You’ll have your head below your ass, sanding for hours, crammed in a tiny locker, but the satisfaction you’ll feel at the end of the day makes it all worthwhile.
Over the weeks and months of our old sailboat restoration, I experienced periods of high motivation where working on the boat was the only thing I wanted to do.
Things like eating, sleeping, and my day job just got in the way.
Other times, making myself get out there was like getting a 6-year-old to eat peas: damn near impossible. Motivational ebb and flow is a natural part of any long undertaking, but you have to push through it and keep going.
Don’t be another person selling a partially refitted boat. STICK WITH IT!
#12 Use perfection as the unachievable goal that it is
Instead, focus on safety and functionality. The goal is to get out there and enjoy your hard work, not worry away over every imperfection. You’re the only one that will notice anyway.
You’re never going to actually finish the boat refit; there will always be items on the to-do list. Once she’s fully functional and safe, go enjoy her. You can work on the never-ending list as you go.
Refitting Drifter was one of the single most rewarding undertakings I’ve ever done.
We live aboard, so every day I’m surrounded by the fruits of our labor. While there are flaws, the good far exceeds the bad. I know every system, and every nook and cranny. Get out there and find your opportunity. In the end, you’ll be so glad that you did!
Conclusion: Tips For Restoring an Old Boat
If you’re lucky enough to find an old boat that’s still in good shape, then you’re well on your way to having a great time out on the water. With just a little bit of elbow grease and know-how, you can have your boat sailing like new again.
Thanks for reading and we hope these tips helped!
Wondering what it’s like to live on a boat on land in a boatyard? Give this article a read to prepare you!
Author Bio
Chris and his wife Kelly bought their 1972 Nauticat 38 in April of 2017, and in May of 2019 went full
steam ahead with an extensive refit in the driveway of their home in Portland OR.
They splashed and christened Drifter in the summer of 2022 and moved aboard full-time that September.
They are awaiting a weather window to tackle the wild west coast of the United States and begin cruising full-time starting with Mexico and Central America with the intent of continuing west.
Find their whole refit adventure documented along the way at YouTube.com/SailingAdrift. Feel free to contact them directly with any thoughts and questions through their website: www.SailingAdrift.com or by emailing Hello@SailingAdrift.com
Should be able to pay moorage before launching and make the rest of us look like vagrants with 3 kids