Boating and Sailing.pdf - Moja ladja

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Part 6: Boating Maintenance
If you don’t carry a Swiss Army knife, at least make sure to carry a quality lock-back
pocket knife with a blade that’s three to four inches long. And keep a sharpening tool
aboard—the diamond-edged hones are most effective.
Tool Quality
There are two theories on boat tool quality. One says buy the best tools you can afford,
take good care of them, and keep them for life. The other says buy the cheapest tools that
will do the job, don’t worry about them, and toss them away when they break and get
others.
Which theory is best for you? That depends on whether you like to mess with tools. Both
wind up costing about the same over your boating life, because you’ll likely buy three sets
of junkers to make up for that one quality set—but you won’t feel nearly as bad when a $1
screwdriver goes over the side as when a $10 screwdriver goes over the side.
Tool Care
Tools and water don’t mix. Even if you never get your tools wet, water and salt mist will
find a way to reach them, rust and corrode them, and eventually make them useless unless
you take special care.
The best way to keep tools bright is to wipe them down after every use with an oiled rag.
My favorite corrosion-resisting oil is a thin blue liquid called Corrosion-X, but there are
many good ones, including Bo-Shield and others. All are available at boating supply stores
and many hardware stores.
It’s also a good idea to store your tools inside a watertight box, and put that box inside a
dry-storage box aboard. Also, take a tip from professional mechanics: Always put your
tools back into the box in the same exact slot you took them from. You’ll save endless
time sorting through the mess looking for a particular wrench or driver this way, and
you’ll know immediately if you left your favorite 5 /8" boxend wrench under the oil pan.
Current Events—Marine Batteries
There are two types of batteries used for boats:
◆ The basic starting battery, which is much like the battery in your car, is designed to
provide a lot of power for short periods of time. Starting batteries don’t do well if
drawn below 50 percent of their amp capacity repeatedly. (The amp capacity is a
way of measuring the available electrical energy of a battery.)