Owning a boat comes with the added responsibility of maintenance and upkeep. Practicing some preventive maintenance now can save you from having to shell out a lot of money later when your neglect catches up to you.

Casey Looking Over His Boat To See That's All's Well

Casey takes great care of his boat, motor and trailer, hey it's part of the family. There is always a double check before launching and again before leaving.

These are the top 5 tips to caring for your boat

1. Complete Basic Cleaning After Every Trip

Your boat will look and work its best if you do a few things every time you take it out. If you are a saltwater fisherman, you need to rinse your boat's motor with fresh water every time you bring it home from a fishing trip. Hose down the outside of the boat with fresh water. This will keep the salt from building up and getting caught in your motor or ruining your paint job. Wipe up any spills inside and put away your supplies, so your boat is tidy and ready for your next trip.

2. Clean The Fuel Tank

Although it is not the prettiest job, cleaning your boat's fuel tank periodically is important to prevent fuel clogs. Take out the fuel hose and put a clear hose of the same diameter into the hole. After removing the gas cap, position an air compressor in the opening and use it to drive all of the gas and gunk through your clear hose into a bucket. Pour three gallons of gas into the tank and repeat the process to make sure you flush everything out before putting your fuel hose back in and refilling the tank.

3. Perform Regular Visual Inspections

If you know how your boat is supposed to look when everything is working right, you will be able to notice any small problems just by performing quick visual inspections on a regular basis. Look through every part of your boat, keeping an eye out for chipped materials, fraying ropes, loose fittings, and anything else out of the ordinary that needs fixing.

4. Check Your Battery

If you rely on a battery to start your boat, check it regularly to ensure it is in good working condition. Charge the battery whenever you notice it is getting low, so you won’t get stuck out in the water if it dies. Check the fluid levels as well, and keep the battery clean and dry for top performance.

5. Clean Your Boat Thoroughly Before Winter

Although it seems counterproductive because you won't actually be using your boat for several months, it is important to clean your boat before you store it for the winter. This keeps the dirt and grime from settling onto the boat during the winter and allows you to just do a quick clean before taking it out for the first time next spring. In addition, fill your gas tank completely before storing it for the winter. After readying your boat, take it out of the water and store it in a climate-controlled environment for the winter.

By being proactive, your boat will last longer and be more likely to run smoothly when you take it out. In addition, if you are new to boat ownership and unsure about the mechanics, take your boat to a professional at least once a year for an inspection and to get recommendations on maintenance.

Maire hails from the Windy City, enjoys going fishing with her father in the summertime, and has two dogs – a Scottish terrier named Pete and a dachshund hound named Edgar.

I was sitting at home Sunday morning looking out into my backyard. Everything had a layer of ice on it from the rain we had the night before. Looked gorgeous with the sun glistening off everything. Almost blinding.

This is about the time of year I start feeling a bit of cabin fever so when Casey called to see if I was up for a drive to Shediac Bay to check out his ice fishing hut. I got pretty excited as I would likely have sat around watching TV and playing my guitar all day.

A Shot From Where We Parked The Vehicle.

Casey said he'd be at my house in less than an hour and all I needed to bring was some food and something to drink. As I was leaving the house my son Steve asked me if I wanted to take his flask with some Scotch to share with Casey. What a great son I have.

It's had been at least 30 yeas since I last did any ice fishing. That was when I was still living in Ontario, near Lake Simcoe. We would take our snowmobiles and head out about 2-5 miles to a huge ice fishing village.

As we were getting close I was thinking we would be going out on the ice with our vehicle which kind of concerned me, but I trust Casey to keep me safe so I didn't say anything at the time.

As you can see from the image above the fish huts weren't far from shore at all. We just parked and walked out to the hut. That was easy.

Casey lives about 40 minutes from Moncton at Hopewell Cape, such a beautiful spot with a great view from his backyard.

Jenny and I love driving this section and visiting all the scenic spots. Check out the day trip we took along this section of New Brunswick and where you'll find the Rocks on the Fundy Bay.

Casey and a friend hauled his fish hut out onto Shediac Bay, in about 6 sections, and assembled it right on the spot. It seems pretty efficient with four side panels that bolt to the floor and to two roof panels. Plenty of elbow room inside as well.

The floor boards opened opposite the door and there was a big hole to fish through. I looked into the hole expecting to see bottom but instead I saw tow huge chunks of ice at the bottom. Turns out they were huge homemade pillow cases filled with chains.

Sheets Sown Together With Chains

They are used to make the bottom a lighter colour so that it is easier to see any activity. Pretty cool idea.  I told him I was telling his wife he was stealing bed sheet. Then he told me she was the one who sowed it all together. What a great wife.

Getting There From Here

Once Casey picked me up we headed out of Moncton towards Dieppe and took the old highway 15 which is now Veterans Highway to Shediac.

Once at Shediac took highway 133 until we reached the Queens Warf turn off where the fishing hut is located. We may have taken highway 11 to get to highway 133, not sure as I was busy taking pictures of the scenery.

Queens Warf road was a short drive to the water, err I mean ice. As you can see from the picture at the top the huts weren't far off shore.

Casey and I checked the structure and tightened a few bolts and then chopped the ice that had formed in the hole since he was last there.

The tide was heading out when we arrived and we didn't see any fish but it was still a lot of fun and I can't wait to get back out there again.

I have ice fished, more than 30 years ago but Casey has a couple of spears which I have never tried as the water we fished in Lake Simcoe Ontario was about 40 feet deep. So I'll be getting some video the next time we're out there.

We had a clear, relatively calm and sunny day plus the temperature wasn’t bad at all, however that’s not always the case so it’s best to know how to dress for ice fishing on days that aren’t so pleasant.

Related articles

• Chill out at the Northwest Ice Fishing Festival near Oroville on Feb. 18 (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Ohio Outdoors-Ice Fishing Panfish-Fishing and Fun With JFick (datingrulez.com)
• Anyone up for a spot of ice fishing?? (rothieblog.net)
• Dressing Tips For Real Winter Fishing (thejoyofflyfishing.com)

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