A free boat maintenance log in Word: work done with engine hours, recurring service items and when they're next due, fuel and hours, part numbers, haul-outs and safety gear dates. The record a buyer's surveyor asks to see.
Download the Word template.DOCXA maintenance log is the boat's memory: what was done, when, at how many engine hours, and by whom. It makes the next service easier to plan, and a buyer's surveyor will ask to see it.
Boating magazine puts it simply: write down anything you do to the boat, and the log will be money in the bank when it comes time to sell. Yamaha tells outboard owners to keep a log and a file of all work, for warranty claims and for resale.
Download the log in Word, or read on for what goes in each part.
Every job on the boat, big or small, with the date and the engine hours. Boating magazine's advice is to write down anything you do to the boat: service, routine maintenance, parts replaced and new gear added.
| DATE | ENGINE HOURS | WORK DONE AND PARTS FITTED | DONE BY | INVOICE NO. | COST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
12 May, 1,284 h. Engine oil and filter, fuel filters, raw water impeller replaced (old one had two cracked vanes). Owner. Parts invoice 4471.
The jobs that come round on a schedule, each with its interval, when it was last done and when it's next due. Take the interval from the engine or equipment manual: makers set them by hours or months, whichever comes first.
| ITEM | INTERVAL | LAST DONE (DATE AND HOURS) | NEXT DUE |
|---|---|---|---|
Outboard service. Interval: 100 hours or annually, after the first service at 20 hours (Yamaha). Last done: 3 April, 212 h. Next due: April, or 312 h.
Each fill-up with the engine hours. Boating suggests logging both: fuel used against hours run is a simple check on how the engine is doing.
| DATE | ENGINE HOURS | FUEL ADDED | WHERE |
|---|---|---|---|
The numbers you'll need again: filters, impellers, belts, bulbs, fuses and breakers. Boating suggests keeping them on a couple of pages at the back of the log.
| ITEM | PART NUMBER | RATING OR SIZE | WHERE FITTED |
|---|---|---|---|
Each time the boat comes out of the water, what was found and done, and any survey with its report reference.
| DATE | YARD | WORK AND FINDINGS | REPORT OR INVOICE |
|---|---|---|---|
The dates on the safety gear, so nothing expires unnoticed.
| ITEM | LOCATION | SERVICE OR EXPIRY DATE | LAST CHECKED |
|---|---|---|---|
The date tells you when. The engine hours tell you how much the engine has worked since. Service intervals are set in hours or months, whichever comes first, so a line without hours only answers half the question. Note the hours when the log starts, too, so the record holds up for the next owner.
A log written by the owner is only as good as the evidence behind it. Keep invoices, parts receipts and service certificates in a file with the log, in the same order. A surveyor or buyer can then match each line to a document.
On a pre-purchase survey, the surveyor reads the log against the boat. An impeller with no service record is treated as due. A dripless shaft seal without its scheduled service gets a note. Anodes that wasted fast between haul-outs point to a stray current problem. The log turns guesses into facts, and that changes what goes in the report.
When you're the surveyor, say what the owner tells you as you go. Axsail turns what you say on board into the report, so "impeller changed last spring, receipt in the file" lands next to your finding on the pump.
Every job with the date and engine hours, what was done, the parts fitted and who did it. Add a schedule of recurring items with when each is next due, fuel and hours, part numbers, haul-outs and the dates on the safety gear.
Boating magazine calls the log money in the bank when it comes time to sell, because a buyer can see the work was done. Yamaha says a log and file of the work also helps with warranty claims and can increase resale value.
Follow the maker's schedule. For new Yamaha outboards, Yamaha says a professional service after the first 20 hours, then every 100 hours or annually. Inboard diesels have their own intervals in the engine manual.
Yes. Download it, fill it in on screen or print it, and keep the invoices and certificates in a file behind it. No sign-up.
Dictate as you inspect. Axsail builds the findings and the report for your signature
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