Southern Marine Surveying

At first glance the area next to this anchor windlass might look fine. But upon closer inspection and percussion testing, it was discovered there is a 10"x10" soft spot just to the left of the windlass. Soft spots on the deck aren't always a deal breaker and are fairly common on older boats, but ...

Automatic fire extinguishing systems like the Fireboy Halon system seen here, can save your life (and vessel) in the event of an emergency, but only if it is periodically inspected and maintained. If you look closely you will see the inspection tag hanging on the top of the bottle. The bottle nee...

When looking for an older boat to buy, it is easy to overlook "small details" such as whether all the helm gauges and instruments work or not. Here at Southern Marine Surveying we test all the gauges and accessories to ensure proper operation as one of the many "small details" we take time to ins...

With the freezing temperatures approaching remember to either winterize your engine(s) or plug your bilge heater in! Always use a USCG approved, ignition protected bilge heater to prevent a fire. We recommend the Twin Hornet 550w bilge heater as seen in the picture. If you have a boat over 30 fee...

The out of water portion of the inspection is crucial on bigger vessels because it is vital that the running gear be in good operable condition. Can you spot what is wrong in the above picture? First of all the cotter pin is missing on the prop, there should always be a cotter pin installed on th...

The hull bottom (in the picture) was most likely damaged from running aground or hitting a submerged object. Luckily no one was injured in this case and the damage can be repaired, but it could of easily turned deadly had the boat sunk. Always be aware of your surroundings and purchase a chart fo...

Anything look suspicious about this HIN number? The HIN (Hull Identification Number) number on your boat is permanently etched or attached on the starboard aft corner and is required to be put there by all boat manufacturers to identify the boat. Often times when a boat is stolen, the thief will ...

A commercial mariners worst fear offshore is the danger of fire. Ensuring fire extinguishers are ready for use and accounted for, as well as other fire fighting and prevention devices is a top priority onboard commercial ships and boats around the world. The same principle should apply to your ow...

If you look closely at the picture, you will see there are hundreds of small blisters the size of a dime/ nickel. The only way to truly fix the blistering at this point is to peel the gelcoat and let the hull dry. There are other ways of fixing the blisters but chances are this will be a re-occur...