Most call-outs we attend in summer are not dramatic mechanical failures. They are blocked strainers, flat batteries, empty fuel filters full of water and outboards that weren’t flushed. The good news is that owners can prevent most of them with a few minutes of routine care.
Before every trip
Make this a habit, like checking your mirrors before pulling away in a car.
- Check the weather and sea state. The Levante and Poniente can turn a calm morning into a lumpy afternoon. Use AEMET’s coastal forecast.
- Check the fuel level and plan for a third out, a third back and a third in reserve.
- Check the engine oil on inboards and four-stroke outboards, and the two-stroke oil tank if you have one.
- Look in the bilge. A little water is normal. Oily water, fuel smell or more water than usual is not.
- Check the raw water strainer is clear and its lid is tight. In the Mar Menor, weed and algae can block it within a single afternoon.
- Test the bilge pump with the switch.
- Check the battery switch is on and the engine cranks strongly.
- Once started, check for cooling water. Outboards should show a steady telltale stream; inboards should have water coming out with the exhaust.
- Check your safety kit is aboard and accessible: lifejackets, VHF, anchor and line, flares.
After every trip
- Flush the engine with fresh water. Outboards and sterndrives with a flushing port should be flushed after every salt-water trip. It is the single best thing you can do to prolong engine life in the Mediterranean.
- Tilt the outboard up if the boat stays in the water, so that marine growth doesn’t settle on the leg.
- Rinse the boat, especially stainless steel, canopy frames, winches and seats. Salt crystals scratch, stain and corrode.
- Turn off the battery isolator unless a bilge pump or charger needs power.
- Close the seacocks if your boat has them and you’re leaving it for a while.
- Note the engine hours in a logbook, along with anything unusual: a vibration, an alarm, a temperature that ran higher than normal.
Monthly in the season
- Inspect the anodes on the outboard leg, sterndrive or shaft.
- Check fuel lines and the primer bulb for cracks and softness.
- Look at the propeller for dings and fishing line wrapped behind it.
- Clean and protect the battery terminals.
- Check the canopy, covers and cushions for mould and loose stitching.
- Run the engine to temperature if the boat hasn’t been used in a while.
Signs you should call a mechanic
- The temperature gauge or alarm creeps higher than usual.
- The telltale stream is weak or intermittent.
- The engine hesitates, surges or won’t reach its usual maximum RPM.
- The battery is flat after a few days without use.
- Oil in the bilge, fuel smell, or water in the gearbox oil.
- New vibrations or noises from the drive.
Catching these early usually turns a big bill into a small one.
Leave the rest to us
Owner checks don’t replace an annual service, but they make it cheaper and they keep you safe in between. If something doesn’t look right, send us a message with a photo or a short video and we’ll tell you honestly whether it needs attention. For the full annual service, see our boat servicing page.
