Spring cleaning is a ritual, but when it comes to boats it’s often a necessity. Before you launch for the season is often the only and best opportunity to get a boat sparkling clean. But that kind o

Dear Boat Doctor, We stored our boat on the hard in Puerto Rico and launched after hurricane season. When we put the boat back in the water, I had a rigger help me re-install the sails. When I went t

Dear Boat Doctor, I recently upgraded the alternator on my Yanmar 4JH2DTE and things aren’t going smoothly. It is a Balmar 100A alternator with a Max Charge alternator. The alternator is working gr

Dear Boat Doctor, I installed a Frigoboat keel-cooled system a few years ago. The system worked amazingly well until last summer when I noticed that it would cool down very nicely if the icebox was w

Upgrading cockpit canvas Canvas can add a lot of creature comfort to a boat. It helps keep sailors warm and dry and provides relief from the beating sun. But that same canvas can be a real bother s

Dear Boat Doctor, Every couple days the shore power breaker on the dock blows when my boat is connected to it. This started happening when the marina replaced the power pedestals. How do I know if th

In about a decade, Dyneema (sometimes called Spectra, both are trade names for the same material) has gone from a gee whiz high-tech marvel to common place on many boats. It started out replacing wire

Dear Boat Doctor,I am having a problem with a black water smell in the bilge. Well at least I am pretty sure it’s a black water smell, I don’t really know. Do you some ideas how I can diagnose my

 How do I fix a failed fiberglass repair? Dear Boat Doctor, I need some advice on a failing fiberglass repair at my keel stub joint. There is a crack that appears to be the result of repair tha

Dear Boat Doctor, My winches desperately need to be lubricated, and it’s been more than a few years since I’ve done it. A friend told me to use wheel bearing grease but cautioned me not to use it

Dear Boat Doctor, I just bought a new-to-me Beneteau 40 with a PSS dripless prop shaft seal. I appreciate the dry bilge, but those little set screws holding the sealing collar in place make me nervou

I recently bought a Passport 47, and it’s in really good shape but a bit of the running rigging is tired. I need to replace the mainsheet and I have questions on the running backstays. First off, what type of line should I use for the mainsheet? It is just regular double braid now and the guy at the chandlery suggested Dyneema, so I am not sure what to use. Second, the boat has running backstays, do I need to use those all the time? They are made of wire and hard to handle, they tend to rub on my nice new mainsail too. Can you shed some light on this?

I’d like to install some USB ports to charge phones and tablets on my boat. I have a J/35 built in 1986, so the entire interior has exactly one 12-volt receptacle built into the electrical panel next to the starboard quarterberth. I’m OK with that, but my kids seem to run their iPods all the time, so I need a way to charge them without fighting over the single receptacle. My thought was to install two USB ports, one going forward to the V-berth and one over to the port quarter berth. How do I connect them to the electrical system?

Dear Boat Doctor, At the tail end of a recent cruise, I went to start the engine and heard the distinct thud of a dead battery. But when I checked the batteries, all was well. I tried the starter aga

Dear Boat Doctor, I am having a problem with a dock line. The distance between the cleat and the chock is about 4 feet, long enough that the elasticity in the dock line “works” enough at the choc

Dear Boat Doctor,I just got a new RIB, and I am looking for the best way to manage navigation lights on it. I’d like something mountable that won’t eat through batteries. Any ideas? Shane William

 My definition of “boat” entails three essential capabilities—flotation, propulsion and steering. If you lose one of these, things are going to get difficult. We all know about keeping the water out, the rig up, and engine working, but we tend to take steering for granted. I have had a wheel go loose in my hands, and I can attest to the helpless feeling that accompanies it.

Dear Boat Doctor,
I decided to upgrade my head to a new electric model. I chose a new model with the pump integrated into the base and it fits in the same spot as my old head. I followed the instructions to place a vented loop in the seawater inlet line to prevent the head from siphoning water and flooding the boat.