Wooden Yacht Pre-Purchase Survey: Hull Checklist & Haul-Out

On this page

Why does a wooden hull need its own survey scope?
What belongs on the checklist: sounding, spiking, fastenings, keel bolts and caulking?
Where should you look for rot, teredo and gribble in warm water?
What can only be seen with the boat out of the water?
What should a wooden yacht survey report contain?
What moves the survey and haul-out quote?
How do you choose a surveyor from IIMS, SAMS or NAMS?
How do you write the survey into the contract?
What do buyers ask about surveying a wooden boat?
Which sources support this page?
How do I send a buyer brief to the desk?

By Wooden Yacht For Sale Editorial Desk

A wooden yacht pre-purchase survey must sound the hull for dull spots, spike suspect timber, pull sample fastenings and at least one keel bolt, open bilge and ceiling panels for rot, and inspect below the waterline after haul-out. A moisture meter alone proves nothing. Published 2026 guides put older wooden boats at the top of the per-foot range.

This checklist tells you what to ask for, so you can compare surveyors and read their reports critically. It does not make you a surveyor. On a wooden hull, a professional's experience with that construction matters more than any list.

Why does a wooden hull need its own survey scope?

A fibreglass survey concentrates on laminate, core and bonding. On wood the structure is hundreds of separate parts held together by fastenings, and each can fail on its own. Timber can be sound while the bolt inside it has wasted, or the reverse.

IIMS warns surveyors not to be hasty, since wooden boats can have many hidden defects that take time to discover. It suggests a thirty-foot traditionally built yacht in reasonable condition may take up to two days for a full condition survey of hull, deck and rig, possibly with a return visit. A larger boat takes longer.

If a surveyor quotes a morning for a 30 m wooden hull, ask what is being left out.

What belongs on the checklist: sounding, spiking, fastenings, keel bolts and caulking?

What belongs on the checklist: sounding, spiking, fastenings, keel bolts and caulking?
Check	How it is done	What it can reveal
Sounding	Tapping planks, frames and plank ends with a soft-faced mallet	Sound timber rings. A dull thud or bouncing plank suggests rot or corroded fastenings.
Spiking	Pushing a fine spike or bradawl into doubtful timber, inside and out	Easy penetration suggests decay
Plank ends	Sounding hood ends at stem and transom, and at the horn timber on a counter stern	Corroded fastenings or rot, per IIMS
Sample fastenings	Pulling several screws or bolts where practical and agreed with the owner	Whether they are bronze or galvanised, and their condition
Keel bolts	Asking when they were last inspected; withdrawing bolts if no record exists	Corrosion that can become a serious structural failure
Frames and floors	Inspecting around the bilge, deep floors and engine beds	Cracks, breakages and rot
Garboards	Inspecting the planks next to the keel, and their fastenings	Rot, open seams and wasted fastenings
Caulking and seams	Checking that seams are uniform and tight, and probing doubtful ones	Open seams, hard fillers, plank-edge damage, weeping
Decks and joints	Checking deck joints, fittings and where water may travel	The source of leaks that rot timber below

On keel bolts, sources differ on detail. Boatmere says at least one bolt should be pulled where possible on a ballasted boat. IIMS goes further when records are missing, and recommends two or more, depending on the vessel's size. Cast-iron keels typically have wrought-iron or stainless bolts, and lead keels more often have bronze, IIMS says.

Watch for iron sickness too. A rusting iron fastening expands and can split the wood around it, so a fastening that looks sound from outside may have lost its grip. And a sister frame added to a weak member can hide decay in the gap between the two.

Moisture meters have limited value here. Hull timber can legitimately carry a high moisture content, so a report based only on meter readings tells you very little.

Where should you look for rot, teredo and gribble in warm water?

Warm salt water raises the stakes. Cali Coast Marine Services notes that teredo and gribble can damage unprotected wood in warm salt water, even within a single season if bottom paint fails. Rot generally starts from trapped moisture and poor ventilation.

Around leaking deck fittings and chainplates.
Behind ceiling boards, which is why panels must come off.
In the bilge and at the turn of the bilge.
At the mast step, stem, sternpost and deadwood.
Under areas where bottom paint has failed.

A boat that has been ashore for days may show no live borers. That does not prove the timber is undamaged, so look for exit holes and galleries. Our guide to signs of rot in a wooden hull goes through what you can spot on a first viewing.

What can only be seen with the boat out of the water?

Bottom paint, fastenings, garboards and lower seams cannot be properly judged while the boat is afloat, so a haul-out should be a condition of final acceptance. Timing has two risks.

Too short. IIMS recommends that the boat be hauled, pressure-washed and chocked up in a boatyard for at least a week, to leave flexibility.

Too long. Planks shrink as they dry, and seams open. A hull left ashore in sun and wind can look worse than it is, and may leak when relaunched. One restoration guide says a traditional hull may need about 7 to 14 days afloat to swell shut.

Before relaunching, agree who is responsible for the boat, who pays for the yard and how long it may stay out. A remote port may also lack a slip for a large hull, so ask where the haul-out will happen before you sign.

What should a wooden yacht survey report contain?

A wooden boat pre-purchase survey ends in a document you will use three times: to decide, to negotiate and to show your insurer. If a report cannot do those jobs, ask for more before you pay the final fee.

Scope and limits. What was inspected, what was not, and why.
Conditions on the day. Date, location, time ashore, and whether the hull was afloat or on the slip.
Method. Where sounding and spiking were done, and which fastenings were drawn.
Findings by area. Keel, stem, sternpost, planking, frames, floors, deck, rig and machinery.
Photographs. Tied to specific findings and locations.
Priorities. Safety items first, then structural, then cosmetic.
Recommendations. What needs repair before use, and what can wait.

Ask whether a seller's old report can be relied on. Usually it cannot stand in for your own, because it was written for someone else and may be out of date. It can still be useful as history, and differences between two reports are worth a question.

Use this wooden yacht survey checklist as a starting point, then let the surveyor add what this particular boat needs. A marine survey of a wooden hull has no fixed template, and no list replaces judgement.

What moves the survey and haul-out quote?

We publish no figure on this page, because we have no verified quote for Indonesia. Global Yacht Guide prices surveys per foot in its 2026 guide, notes that older boats can cost more, and adds haul-out separately. Our survey cost note goes further.

Length and access. Longer boats take more time. Fixed interiors mean more panels to lift.
Location. Travel to a remote island adds cost and time.
Scope. Drawing keel bolts, adding rig, engine or systems specialists.
Yard. Slip availability, boat weight, cleaning and blocking.
Purpose. An insurance survey is a different job from a pre-purchase survey, with its own requirements.

How do you choose a surveyor from IIMS, SAMS or NAMS?

The published bodies include IIMS in the UK, and SAMS and NAMSGlobal in the US. We could not verify individual membership for people working in Indonesia, so check credentials directly with the body. Membership alone does not show wooden-hull experience.

Ask each candidate:

How many wooden boats have you surveyed, in what construction, in the last few years?
Will you sound, spike, pull fastenings and withdraw keel bolts?
Will you open bilge and ceiling panels?
Who pays for and repairs any opening-up?
Do you cover rig, engine and systems, or will I need specialists?
May I see a redacted report on a similar hull?
Do you have any connection to the seller or the broker?

A surveyor recommended by the seller may be perfectly competent, but you need to know about the relationship. Pick and pay your own.

How do you write the survey into the contract?

Survey rights exist only if the contract gives them to you. Include these clauses, then have a lawyer check them against the governing law.

How do you write the survey into the contract?
Clause	What it should state
Scope	Named checks, including haul-out, sample fastenings and keel bolts
Access	Seller allows panels opened and fastenings drawn, and who reinstates them
Timing	Dates for survey, sea trial and your decision
Deposit	Held by a named stakeholder before the sea trial or condition survey, consistent with MYBA's 2021 form
Outcome	Right to accept, renegotiate or withdraw, with deposit refund terms
Costs	Who pays for survey, haul-out, and damage from testing

Then follow the sequence in our how-to guide for buying in Indonesia. Boatmere lists a refusal of haul-out or sea trial, deposit pressure without escrow, and a contract with no acceptance condition as red flags.

What do buyers ask about surveying a wooden boat?

These answers focus on what to require from the surveyor, in plain terms.

What should a wooden boat survey include?

Sounding, spiking suspect timber, sample fastenings, keel bolts, frames, floors, seams, decks, bilge and ceiling inspection, all after a haul-out. Ask for rig, engine and systems coverage in writing, or hire specialists for those.

Is a moisture meter enough to survey a wooden hull?

No. Hull timber can carry high moisture and still be sound, so meter readings alone mislead. They may support other tests, but a surveyor should also sound, spike and open up the boat.

How many keel bolts should be pulled?

Boatmere says at least one where possible. IIMS recommends two or more when inspection records are missing, depending on vessel size. Get the number agreed in writing, because the owner must allow it.

How long should a wooden boat be out of the water for survey?

IIMS recommends hauling and chocking the boat up for at least a week to allow flexibility. Do not leave it out for long periods, since planks shrink and seams open as they dry.

Who pays for the survey?

Buyers usually pay for their own survey and haul-out, and the contract should say so. You keep the report, and you choose the surveyor, which protects you if the seller has a preferred name.

Which sources support this page?

These are the sources behind the facts above. Where a source is a commercial consultant, a snippet or a third-party guide, the text says so.

Written and checked by the Wooden Yacht For Sale Editorial Desk.

How do I send a buyer brief to the desk?

Once you know the survey scope you want, send a buyer brief with your length range and region. Reach us on WhatsApp 6281139414563 or at bd@juaraholding.com.

The site names no surveyor and is not a survey provider. Every boat discussed is subject to third-party survey, haul-out and document check.

Looking at a wooden yacht?

Send the desk your brief: boat type, length, region, and timing.

Ask the desk on WhatsApp bd@juaraholding.com

Wooden Yacht Pre-Purchase Survey — Hull Checklist, Haul-Out and What Drives the Quote