How to Care for Your Saltwater Boat

Taking care of your boat is a necessary part of being an owner. However, there are situations that may cause you to question how to best take care of it. For example, if your boat has been sitting in saltwater, you may have questions about its maintenance.

How Does Saltwater Damage a Boat?

Letting your boat sit in salt water can cause damage to your engine. Saltwater will corrode and rust your metal engine if you allow it to constantly get in contact with your engine.

Saltwater corrodes metal ten times faster than freshwater. The metal hardware on your boat can also corrode. You also want to try to keep the electrical wiring dry as it can be vulnerable to saltwater damage. Saltwater can damage the hull. It can cause the hull's fiberglass to fade quicker and make scratches more obvious.

Maintenance for a Boat in Saltwater

As soon as you can, get your boat out of the salt water. Use soap and water to clean the whole surface. A pressure washer can help make the process faster. Once the boat has been rinsed off, you may notice that it looks slightly different from when you first purchased it. This is because the salt has caused small scratches in the paint job. In order to prevent damage, you want to clean it after every use.

Use fresh water to flush saltwater from the engine. As for moving metal parts, wash and apply a lubricant to them so they do not rust. You can do a maintenance routine on your engine during this time. Your owner's manual has instructions that can walk you through this. You can also ask a professional to do it for you.

It is important not to let your boat sit in saltwater for more than a week. However, if you find yourself in that scenario, clean the boat thoroughly with soap and water. You also want to repair any issues that may come up.

If you need a quality repair for your boat, be sure to visit our maintenance experts here at Chatlee Boat & Marine in Sanford, NC. We proudly serve the cities of Raleigh and Greensboro, NC, and look forward to assisting you with all of your boat’s maintenance needs!