Know Your Boat : The Guide to Everything That Makes Your Boat Work [Paperback]

David Kroenke (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2, 2002

Know Your Boat is here to rescue the millions of boaters who have always been afraid to peer into their boat’s innards for fear of what they’ll find. Here at last is the humorous, user-friendly guide that will give a timid skipper the courage to grab a wrench and tame the savage beast in the bilge (or at least make its acquaintance). Assuming no mechanical aptitude, David Kroenke provides readers with an easy-to-read introduction to the use and maintenance of the many systems found on today’s typical power or sail boat, including: engine, electricity, electronics, plumbing, refrigeration, windlasses, pumps, and steering system. (20010122)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Know Your Boat is here to rescue thousands of Rhode Island boat owners who have always hesitated to peer into their boat's innards for fear of what they'll find. (Rhode Island Boating )

From the Back Cover

The owner's manual for the mechanically impaired sailor or powerboater

The simplest, least threatening guide to boat maintenance and repair ever written, Know Your Boat is dedicated to these propositions:

• that simply praying that nothing breaks on your boat doesn't prevent it from happening
• that things don't often break when you're at the dock and help is convenient
• that the things that go wrong are most often things you can solve
• that you don't have to be a mechanical wizard to solve them
• that solving problems yourself will give you more confidence in your seamanship and more satisfaction from your boating
• that self-sufficiency is addictive
• and that reading about all of this ought to be fun!

So take this tour of basic troubleshooting and repair procedures for your engine, electrical, plumbing, refrigeration, and steering systems, then grab your wrench and prepare to tame the savage beasts behind your boat's electrical panel and engine hatches--or at least make their acquaintance.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (May 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071361340
• ISBN-13: 978-0071361347
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #871,942 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very important for first time boat owners, June 9, 2002

By 

Pablo R. Vitaver (Ft Lauderdale, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Know Your Boat : The Guide to Everything That Makes Your Boat Work (Paperback)

Very clear with plenty of easy to follow drawings and schematics, this book sheds light on very confusing aspects of boat ownership, chartering, surveying or just 'using'. Now, when I lift a floorboard or the engine room I know what every piece is and is supposed to do. David cruised extensively and he gives us the benefit of all his mistakes. I strongly suggest buying this book and keepint it on board.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Have Book for Every Boat Owner, February 5, 2010

By 

Ken Douglas (Landlocked in Reno) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Know Your Boat : The Guide to Everything That Makes Your Boat Work (Paperback)

Mr. Sollers covers the systems that make a boat work with a considerable amount of humor. For example, he calls boat owning a disease, an addiction. He says there should be organizations to help. I've gotten a lot of laughs out of this volume, some darned good advice too. It's a must have book, especially for someone who is new to boats and has never had a wrench in his hand.

12 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Maybe it's good for cruising sailboat owners..., March 5, 2005

By 

Sheila Lagrand (Trabuco Canyon, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Know Your Boat : The Guide to Everything That Makes Your Boat Work (Paperback)

As a new owner of a 25 foot powerboat, I was eager to delve into this book and learn about the systems on my boat. The description here led me to believe that this book would be pertinent.

I did not find it helpful. The author excludes outboard motors from discussion. Six of the ten chapters don't pertain at all to boats like mine: Engine Basics (because outboards are excluded), Freshwater Plumbing, Marine Toilets, Stoves, Sinks, and Refrigeration, Sailboat Rigging, and Getting Ready for the Big Trip.

Relatively few new boat owners begin with a boat of a size that typically includes such features. If the description had more accurately described what one would find inside, I would have saved my money.