Boat and Marine Repairs

Nine times out of ten it is fuel or the battery rather than the engine itself, and both are ordinary repairs rather than expensive ones.

Petrol degrades within months, and modern fuel containing ethanol absorbs water which drops out and sits in the bottom of the tank, exactly where the pickup is. Diesel picks up water and grows contamination at the same boundary. The other half is a battery that has been left flat all winter and has sulphated. Neither is a reason to talk about an engine rebuild. We check fuel, battery, charging and cooling before anything is stripped — see marine batteries.

Draining or protecting the cooling system to the right antifreeze concentration, treating or managing the fuel, changing the oil and filter so acidic used oil is not left sitting in the engine, and taking the battery off to keep it charged.

Grease goes where it needs grease, and the drive and gearbox oil is checked for water, because water in the leg oil means a seal has gone and finding that in October is far better than in April. Done in autumn it is a couple of hours of routine work. The thing it prevents is a cracked block or manifold from water freezing inside an engine, which is a replacement rather than a repair. Book it in autumn — tell us when suits.

Yes, both. Outboards on the transom and inboard petrol and diesel units - servicing, fault-finding and repair on oils and filters, cooling, belts and the fuel system.

Inboards usually take longer for the same job simply because of access; an engine wedged under a cockpit floor with the exhaust in the way is a different afternoon to an outboard you can walk around. The faults themselves are much the same, and on long-standing engines the fuel system is where most of the trouble is. Tell us the make and model when you ring and we will tell you what is realistic. See plant and equipment work for the rest of what we handle.

Yes. Charging faults, corroded connections, damp-damaged wiring and instrument problems are a good share of the marine work that comes in, and salt air is unkind to every connector on a boat.

The usual pattern is a boat that runs fine but will not hold charge, which turns out to be a connection that has corroded under its insulation rather than an alternator. Testing the circuit as a system is the only way to tell those apart, and it is the same discipline as any auto-electrical fault-finding. We will tell you what we found rather than simply fitting a new part and hoping.

Yes, starting and leisure batteries, specified for the job rather than whatever happens to fit the tray. Those are two different types of battery doing two very different jobs.

A starting battery delivers a big current briefly and dislikes being run down. A leisure battery is built to be discharged slowly and recharged repeatedly. Fitting the wrong one is the common mistake and it shortens the life of the battery considerably. We will ask what the boat actually does before recommending one. Full details on marine battery supply and fitting, or ring 01744 808586.

Yes - bearings, lights, brakes and couplings. The trailer is the part most likely to stop a boat reaching the water, and it gets neglected in a way people would never neglect a car.

A trailer that has been reversed into salt water every summer takes a beating that is invisible until a bearing seizes on the motorway. Bearings want checking and repacking far more often than owners expect, and trailer lights corrode at the connector rather than the bulb. If the trailer is not roadworthy, tell us when you ring and we will deal with that first — there is no point servicing the engine if the boat cannot get home. Trailers sit alongside our plant and equipment work.

It depends on whether it is a scheduled service or a fault, how accessible the engine is, and how long the boat has stood. A service is a known quantity; a fault is diagnosis first.

A straightforward outboard service covers plugs, filters, oils, gearbox oil and the impeller. An inboard takes longer for the same work because of access. An engine that has sat three years usually needs the fuel system cleaning out properly and sometimes the carburettors off, which is real extra work. You get a price before anything is ordered rather than after. Larger bills can be spread using Payment Assist.

Generally every couple of seasons regardless of how it looks, and immediately if the engine has ever been run dry. It is one of the cheapest parts on a marine engine and the one that prevents the most expensive failure.

The impeller is a rubber pump that pushes cooling water through the engine, and it is designed to wear. Run dry even briefly and the vanes tear. Run with a tired one and flow falls away until the engine overheats, and on many outboards there is no temperature gauge to warn you. An impeller that looks perfectly serviceable can still have taken a set from sitting compressed all winter, which is why the interval is by time rather than by appearance. Ring 01744 808586 or ask us if you are unsure when yours was last done.

Yes, though those live on their own page alongside quads, ATVs and golf carts. The engines and the problems are closely related to marine work, particularly after a winter standing.

Jet skis suffer the same stale-fuel and flat-battery pattern as boats, with the added complication that they take on water in ways a boat does not. If you have a jet ski and a boat, they can be booked in together rather than as two visits. Details are on the quad, ATV and jet ski repairs page, or just ring and describe what you have got.

Ethanol attracts water, and on a boat there is water everywhere. Once enough is absorbed it separates out and sinks to the bottom of the tank, which is precisely where the fuel pickup sits.

That is why a boat can start perfectly on the last outing of the season and refuse to run the following spring. Ethanol is also harder on older rubber fuel lines and seals than the fuel those engines were designed around, so hoses on an older boat are worth looking at rather than assuming. Treating the fuel before lay-up and not leaving a tank half full over winter both help. If yours has stood with untreated fuel, say so when you book — get in touch.

The boat comes to the workshop on Boundary Road on its trailer, because that is where the tooling, the lighting and the lifting equipment are. Marine work is not something to do properly on a driveway.

If the trailer itself is not roadworthy, tell us when you ring and we will look at that first rather than have you tow something unsafe. We would far rather sort bearings and lights before the journey than deal with the consequences afterwards. For anything genuinely immovable, ring and describe the situation and we will tell you honestly whether we can help or whether you need a marine engineer who works afloat — get in touch.

Usually yes, because the block generally outlasts everything attached to it. Most outboards that will not run need fuel system work, an impeller, a battery or ignition parts rather than anything internal.

Where it stops being worth it is a seized powerhead from overheating, or an engine so old that parts have to be hunted rather than ordered. We will tell you which of those you have before you spend anything, and we would rather say the honest thing than take the work. Parts availability is worth asking about at the start — common outboards are well supported, less usual ones can leave a boat sitting for weeks. The same honesty applies to every repair we take on.

A starting battery gives a large current for a few seconds and dislikes being run down. A leisure battery is built to be discharged slowly and recharged over and over. Fitting one where the other belongs shortens its life considerably.

Most boats want both, doing separate jobs, and the charging arrangement has to suit. The other half of it is that a battery left flat all winter sulphates, which is what actually ends most marine batteries rather than age. Taking it off and keeping it charged over the cold months costs nothing and makes a real difference. We size and fit both types — see marine battery supply and fitting.

Both. The service items differ - two-strokes have oil injection and different plugs and carburation, four-strokes have a sump, an oil filter and valve clearances - but the fuel and cooling problems that bring them in are much the same.

Older two-strokes are often the ones that have stood longest and need the most fuel system attention. Four-strokes hold up well but genuinely need their oil changing annually regardless of hours, because used oil goes acidic sitting still. Tell us which you have and roughly the year when you ring, and we will tell you what the service covers and what it is likely to involve. Jet skis are on the leisure vehicle page.

A straightforward outboard service is usually a day. Fault-finding depends entirely on what the fault turns out to be, and an engine that has stood for years needs longer than one laid up for a single winter.

The honest answer is that we will tell you once we have looked, rather than promise a time we cannot keep. Parts are the other variable: common engines are well supported and unusual ones are not. Booking in autumn for winterisation rather than spring for a no-start is the single best way to keep the boat available when you actually want it — tell us what suits.

Yes. On an older engine, or where the cost of parts approaches what the boat is worth, we will say so plainly before you commit rather than after the work is done.

It is the same approach we take to every job that comes through the workshop. An honest no costs us one repair and keeps a customer; a bill that gets somebody nowhere does the opposite. Where a repair is marginal we will lay out what it would cost, what it would buy you and what the likely next failure is, and let you decide. More about how we work is on our about us page.

We can winterise the engine and cooling system and prepare it for lay-up, and the battery is part of that - taken off, charged and kept in condition rather than left to go flat on the boat.

Storage of the boat itself is a different question and depends on space, so ring and ask rather than assume. The winterisation work is the part that matters most: it is what stops water freezing inside an engine and cracking a block, and it is a fraction of what that repair costs. Booking it in autumn is routine; discovering the problem in April rarely is. Batteries are covered on marine battery supply and fitting. Ring 01744 808586.

We service and repair inboard marine diesels, which covers a good share of canal boat installations, provided the boat can reach the workshop or the engine can come to us.

The limitation is practical rather than technical: a narrowboat cannot come up on a trailer, so unless the engine can be removed and brought in, you need an engineer who works afloat. Ring and describe the installation and we will give you a straight answer about whether it is something we can take on. If it is not, we will say so rather than waste your time — get in touch and describe what you have.

Boats come to Boundary Road in St Helens from across the North West - Merseyside, Cheshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester - which is a short tow from the Mersey, the Wirral coast and the marinas along the ship canal.

Because the work is done at the workshop rather than at the water, the practical limit is how far you are willing to tow rather than any boundary we set. Plenty of boats come further than you would expect for a proper job. If you are not sure whether the trip is worth it, ring and describe what the engine needs — we will tell you honestly if it is something any local marine engineer could handle. See plant and equipment repairs too.