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Chapter 3

Sound vs. Seaworthiness


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Excerpt

The surveyor's worst nightmare is to one day find out that a boat he recently surveyed went down.

Every year many boats are lost at sea. Most of the passengers return to tell their story, but some don't.

Most of these boats are lost in deep water and are never found, yet the few that are recovered often reveal the cause of their misfortune.

Before we consider the basic elements of the hull survey, let's take a look at the two main terms that are often used to describe the fitness of a vessel for operation.

The causes of loss are many and varied, but chief among them are hull failures or other problems resulting from design and construction defects, as well as inferior design standards that rendered the vessel unfit for the use it was subjected.

Not only does this raise the specter of litigation, but also of casualties. Above all things, this we want to avoid. Yet it's hard not to be mindful that the more surveys a surveyor has under his belt, the greater the odds are that sooner or later it will happen. That's the bad news.

The good news is that while he cannot prevent people from doing foolish things with boats, there is a lot the surveyor can do to protect his clients against accidents and loss involving faulty engineering.

In fact, faulty design and construction is fairly easy to discover during the course of a typical pre-purchase survey if the surveyor has a good knowledge of the fundamentals of design and construction, knows what he's looking for and why.

That's why the emphasis throughout this book is on the discovery of defects and loss prevention, highlighted by many "what if?" scenarios.

Since the hull is the foundation upon which all else rests, surveying the hull is one of the most important aspects of the surveyor's work.

The purpose of the hull survey is to ensure that the hull is built in such a manner that, not only will it safely carry the occupants of the vessel over the waters and under the conditions in which it's likely to be used, but also that it does not pose a hazard to itself, or an economic hazard to the owner.

Obviously, this statement presupposes that we have some idea of what those conditions are likely to be. But before we get into that, let's take a look at the two terms that are most commonly used to describe the condition of a hull.

Copyright© 2004 David H. Pascoe
(Additional spaces are added for easy screen reading.)





Table of Contents: Chapter 3

3. Sound vs. Seaworthiness 59

Seaworthy -vs- Soundness 60
What is a Sound Hull? 62
Where You are Makes a Difference 63
A Case in Point 64
Don’t be Influenced by Reputation 66
Entry-Level Boats 67




surveying Fiberglass Power Boats Surveying Fiberglass Power Boats
- 2nd Edition

by
Soft Cover
480 pages
Publisher: D. H. Pascoe & Co., Inc.
Published: 2005
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0965649601
ISBN-13: 9780965649605

Price: $34.50
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David Pascoe - Biography

David Pascoe is a second generation marine surveyor in his family who began his surveying career at age 16 as an apprentice in 1965 as the era of wooden boats was drawing to a close.

Certified by the National Association of Marine Surveyors in 1972, he has conducted over 5,000 pre purchase surveys in addition to having conducted hundreds of boating accident investigations, including fires, sinkings, hull failures and machinery failure analysis.

Over forty years of knowledge and experience are brought to bear in following books. David Pascoe is the author of:

In addition to readers in the United States, boaters and boat industry professionals worldwide from over 70 countries have purchased David Pascoe's books, since introduction of his first book in 2001.

In 2012, David Pascoe has retired from marine surveying business at age 65.

On November 23rd, 2018, David Pascoe has passed away at age 71.

Biography - Long version

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