A free Word template for a sea trial report: conditions and load, checks before departure, engine readings at each speed, systems tested under way, the engine room after the run, and example findings.
Download the Word template.DOCXA sea trial report records how a boat and its machinery performed under way: the conditions, the readings at each engine speed, how the steering, gears and systems worked, and what showed in the engine room straight after the run. It's usually part of a pre-purchase survey, and it's often where engine problems first show.
Download the template in Word, or read on for what goes in each section.
The boat, the client and who was on board. A sea trial is usually part of a pre-purchase survey, so give the survey it belongs to.
The conditions and load the readings were taken in. Speed and full-throttle RPM change with wind, sea, fuel, water and a fouled bottom, so record them.
Solent, wind SW 12 kn, slight sea, 1 hour 10 minutes. Fuel 75 percent, water 50 percent, 5 people on board. Hull and propellers cleaned and antifouled in April 2026.
What you checked before casting off, and the cold start. A cold start shows things a warm engine hides.
The readings at each engine speed, one table per engine, from idle to full throttle. The key figure is whether each engine reaches its rated RPM at full throttle.
Port engine: 600 RPM idle, 5.5 kn; 1,500 RPM, 9 kn; 2,500 RPM, 21 kn, coolant 82 °C, oil 4.2 bar; full throttle 3,480 RPM against a rated 3,500, 29 kn, coolant 86 °C, oil 4.0 bar, charging 28.1 V.
How the boat handled and how each system worked under way. Test what can only be tested at sea.
What you found in the engine room straight after the run, while everything is hot and under pressure. This is where many leaks show.
A short view of how the boat and its machinery performed, and anything that needs investigating.
Your statement, name, accreditation and signature.
Each finding says what the system is, where it is, what was found and what should be done, with a grade for how urgent it is. These are written the way Axsail writes them from what the surveyor says on board.
About a quarter turn of free play at the wheel before the rudder responds. Fluid reservoir low.
Recommendation: Top up and bleed the system, and find the leak before the vessel is next underway.
Reached 3,320 RPM at full throttle against a rated 3,500, with light grey smoke. Port engine reached 3,480 RPM.
Recommendation: Engine survey to find the cause, starting with the air filter, turbocharger and propeller.
Drips at about one a second at speed. Seal hot to the touch, 68 °C by infrared thermometer.
Recommendation: Adjust or replace the shaft seal to the maker's instructions.
Holds course in calm water but wanders by 15 to 20 degrees in following seas.
Recommendation: Recalibrate the autopilot and check the rudder feedback unit.
Readings are easiest to compare in a table per engine, one row per engine speed. On twin engines, a difference between the two often matters more than any single figure. Axsail builds these tables from what the surveyor dictates under way, one per engine, with only the readings that were taken.
Sometimes there's no sea trial: the boat is ashore, the weather is wrong or the engine won't start. Say so in the report, give the reason, and say whether a trial is to follow. A buyer reading a report without a trial needs to know it was missing on purpose, and what it leaves unknown.
For how the sea trial fits into a purchase, see pre-purchase yacht survey.
The surveyor checks the engine room, watches a cold start, then takes the boat out to run the engines at several speeds up to full throttle while recording readings. Steering, gears and the boat's systems are tested under way, and the engine room is checked again straight after the run, while everything is hot.
For a boat of 10 to 20 metres, usually one to two hours. Long enough for the engines to reach full temperature and run at full load for several minutes, and to test the systems under way.
RPM, speed, coolant temperature, oil pressure and charging voltage at several engine speeds from idle to full throttle, one table per engine, plus boost and exhaust temperature where gauges are fitted. Compare full-throttle RPM with the engine's rated figure.
Yes. Download it, add your logo and terms, and use it for your own sea trials. No sign-up.
Dictate as you inspect. Axsail builds the findings and the report for your signature
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