Building your own boat is an absorbing pastime leading, hopefully, to an enjoyable result. Kayaks are about the simplest boats to make, and they give tremendous fun. There are plenty…
Practical Projects
Sarum 28 refit: How we completely overhauled this aluminium bilge keeler
Occasionally I’ve said that if someone were to look into one of my ears they’d see daylight out of the other. Owning one boat is questionable, owning two defies sense.…
Do I need boat insurance? Expert advice for project boat owners
Here’s my advice for people looking to buy older/project boats and asking themselves: ‘Do I need boat insurance?’ Before buying any boat, old or new, owners should engage the support…
How to fit a marine hot water system to your boat
Today most new yachts come with pressurised hot water, but that wasn’t the case 20 or 30 years ago. Many boat owners are happy to rough it with a kettle…
Make your own bilge pump alarm
A bilge alarm is an essential piece of kit on any boat. You can buy a bilge alarm on Amazon or at any chandlery or make your own using a…
How we designed and built a folding dinghy for under £350
A dinghy adds an enormous amount of fun to a cruising holiday, but on a small boat there is always the problem of where to stow it. Hang it on…
DIY anti-surf device for towing a dinghy
I’ve owned my dinghy for 30 years and the friend who sold it to me was killed in a motorcycle accident not long after. I’ve given my son sailing lessons…
A new build nesting dinghy for a newlywed couple
In the days before inflatable dinghies it was common to have a hard dinghy, to be left on the mooring or hoisted onto the foredeck of your yacht, or atop…
How to make a foldaway bottle rack out of neoprene for your boat
I live in Valencia, Spain, and discovered PBO in a UK airport 15 years ago. I asked the newspaper shop near my home to order it in for me, and…
How to make your own helmsman’s overmitten from old sailcloth
How often, when helming early in the season or on a night watch, have you had one warm hand in a pocket and one cold one on the tiller? Despite…
DIY danbuoy flag preservation trick that costs pennies
Like many offshore boats we have a danbuoy which is mounted outboard and attached to our rescue horseshoe lifebelt. Having had to replace the flag a few times, despite having…
How to build a Baby Tender – the miniature clinker boat baby cradle
I first saw a cradle boat at a wooden-boat show years ago, and thought to myself: ‘When I have kids, I’ll build one of these’. Fast forward a decade, and…
How to make a heavy duty boathook
As the owner of a Moody 29 with a swinging mooring on the River Cleddau, I sometimes found wind and tide tested my extending aluminium boat hook. Despite much searching…
Twin galley sink won’t drain – what do I do?
During our first season with the boat, domestic harmony was somewhat marred by a problem with the sink drain. We have a double sink and every time we pulled the…
Make your own impeller extractor – two DIY ideas that save money
John Cowan modified an automotive tool for his boat I had a problem removing my seawater impeller recently – the essential, delicate, flexible plastic paddlewheel that draws seawater up into…
Free download – how to check in to a marina when you don’t speak the language
My French is fairly profficient, but when I was in Italy recently (I don’t speak Italian), I started work on a document that would give the marina office all the information…
Restoring a Watson 41: The wrecked RNLI lifeboat they laughed at
It all began when my husband Rob’s work took him down to Southampton where, on his travels, he happened to spot an old boatyard. Of course he had to have…
Build your own heavy duty standing stowage
David Parker makes a simple shelf and installs strong webbing straps to stow a scuba tank securely in his boat’s cockpit
10 practical projects – crafty ideas to improve your summer cruise
The extra miles of sailing on a summer cruise, or days at anchor can highlight new issues on board or exacerbate existing problems. To aid your voyage this year –…
A labour of love: building and designing Thea
Tom and Lorraine Owen built their 30ft motor cruiser completely from scratch, working together with phenomenal dedication. Nick Burnham went to meet them