Logs

Inquiry --** Do you keep a ships log?* Do you keep a maintenance log?******** Do you keep them separate, or integrated?********* KJ**************

I keep both and keep them separate. I also keep an informal narrative of all our adventures which include visitors on board, food, etc.

I have three separate logs. One is navigational and event log. In that one I make entries of events along the route, who is on* board, where we are,etc. In that log I enter engine and generator run times for the day. I am an old sailor*and got in the habit of making hourly position and heading *entries when offshore..mostly because it broke the monotony. That has carried over and I find myself making frequent position entries even on the rivers..

Secondly I have an engine log that records maintenance, oil and filter changes,*repairs, parts replacement, filters etc with both engines and both generators, racors, etc.

Third log is a maintenance lo gthat entails anything else on the boat. If I see something that needs tending to, if I cant tend to it immediately I note it in the maintenance log and when its completed I check if off. `

I keep a maintenance log, and a separate ships log which I keep in a Diary. One per year, in it I enter a narrative of each day's events on the trip,weather, fuel purchases, miles traveled per day, major expenses and any other general information I find using a Diary with the day and date printed on each page helps me keep everything in order. I keep the diary in the bag I bing up to the Flyingbridge here I usually drive from.
Steve W

We bought a purpose-designed trip log and a maintenance/repair log when we bought the boat. I also made up an engine log based on the engine/flight hour log form we use for the airplanes.

We put entries in the maintenance/repair log when we remember to, which is most of the time. But after the first few entries we didn't bother with the trip log anymore. Our engine log form has a big space for comments and we found we were entering our trip information--- what we saw or did or what was interesting--- in that space at the same time we wrote down the engine hours and time-to-oil change and so on rather than get the separate trip log out. So we tossed the trip log and just use the engine log for everything other than maintenance and repair information.

In the 13 years we have owned the boat we have never once gone back and read any of our trip entries even though my wife in particular is very good about writing down the basic events of each trip. We are almost at the end of our first printing of the engine logs, so when it's time to print more I'm going to modify the form and greatly reduce the size of the comment box and we'll not bother with writing down trip information anymore since we never read it after we've written it anyway.

Have a single log/journal.* Record each trip identifying date(s),*crew, destination(s), as well as engine hours and fuel consumption.* Make maintenance, fuel purchase, etcetera*notes at the for-that-purpose*bottom of the day's log entry.

Bear in mind that I'm still in the honeymoon phase of my relationship with Gray Hawk.* That being said, I keep an engine log where I record*hours, tank levels &*lube levels.* When we travel all day I make periodic interim entries during the trip which include RPM and speed.* I also keep a Weems & Plath trip log where I record more narrative detail about the trip, guests onboard, sea state, etc.* For maintenance I have a multi-tab spreadsheet where I record all maintenance activities.* One of the tabs on that spreadsheet is a work in progress record of part numbers and important serial numbers.* Another tab is a spares inventory.* Given that I do something similar for our converted bus which is now in its 9th year of ownership I expect that I will continue to maintain the 3 systems.

I don't keep a log on anything. Car, boat, trips, etc. Nothing. I do, however, have a receipt on everything that was ever done on the boat and they are in a file in my office.

I keep a ships log in which I record all voyages, start and stop times positions, fuel on board , used etc.
Positions are recorded hourly at night but more infrequently during the day.
I also keep a sepearte maintenance log on my vessel computer, spread sheet with separate pages for , main engine, gen set ,haul outs , general
So far I am on my 4 th volume of ships log.

SeaHorse II wrote:
I don't keep a log on anything. Car, boat, trips, etc. Nothing. I do, however, have a receipt on everything that was ever done on the boat and they are in a file in my office.

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*I'm like Walt.* My wife sure keeps a log of all work done and paid for...and reminds me of it often.* When we sell, we'll be able to show all the important expenditure, and what and when it was done.* I guess living aboard and doing that himself is what gives rise to (Tidahapa) Benn's signature comment.

Sometimes I regret not keeping a cruising log, but then again, like Marin says, I doubt we would look at it.* Maybe years later when the boat is only a memory one might...?* I think the reason I have a sort of aversion to recording all that is that in my workaday job as a Family Dr, I have to record everything meticulously in the computer electronic record, so when it comes to my recreation I just don't want to have to do it there as well.

I guess I differ from Whistledoc in that as well.* I certainly would not build a boat either.* Different strokes eh?

Peter B wrote:

Sometimes I regret not keeping a cruising log, but then again, like Marin says, I doubt we would look at it.* Maybe years later when the boat is only a memory one might...?

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Our attitude is that we're interested in what we're doing and we're interested in what we're going to do, but what we've done is done and we don't think about it much.* We don't spend any time talking about the past, but we do remind each other of something neat that we did if something jogs our minds into thinking about it.* But those things are strongly imbedded in our memories so we don't need to go back to a notebook or diary to remember them.* The stuff we don't remember obviously didn't make that big of an impression on us.


-- Edited by Marin on Thursday 26th of January 2012 03:56:45 AM

Peter B
In my work I have to record every little detail that happens on board with every little piece of machinery and all that is done re repairs aetc.
I suppose it is that professionalism that carries over to my boat life and I want the next owner to know what happened where , when and why and how often all was maintained.
Yes never let the Big Boss know how much the play stuff costs, especially the fishing gear, that is why all fly rods look the same to the untrained eye.

We keep two logs; One for maintenance (upgrades, replacements, repairs, fluid changes, etc.) and a general one for everything else, including trips, guests, events, weather, engine hours between fueling/gph and other general observations. I keep the maintenance one and my wife keeps the other one. We actually do go back and read the general one once in a blue moon.

I find a past trip's "narrative" log a useful reference for trip planning, like: where did we stay or anchor, how deep was it, contacts, problem areas along the way etc.
Steve W

We keep a vessel log where we record the date, time, engine/generator hours, log, flow-scan and activities/comments, all on one line.* We fill this in everyday we move.* We have*covered some of the same ground that we did 10 years ago and it is interesting to go back and see where we stopped and anchored.

We also*keep a separate maintenance log for the engine, one for the*generator and a fuel log for the boat.

I made up my own in Word and had it spiral bound at FedEx Office. I keep everything in that one book. I never could find one pre-made that had what I wanted in it.

I come from a profession where the liability advisers say "If it's not written down, it didn't happen." I don't go that far in keeping my general log, but some habits die hard, so our activities are recorded. I also find it handy to have one central reference to keep contact information of fellow boaters (names, emails, boat cards, etc.), marinas, restaurants, et al.

I find my separate maintenance log invaluable as a reference. I keep all mechanical/electrical system info in the log including serial #s, specs, repair records, replacement part #s, hose sizes, shelf and cabinet sizes, window/hatch sizes, electrical/plumbing schematics, manufacturer contact info, mechanic's contact info, etc. Any time I head to the marine supply store, hardware store, boat shows or wherever there might be good deals, I have it with me so I know what size I need, how many of what gidgets I might need or when I might need to think of replacement/backups. It is a bit of a hassle keeping it current, but it's worth it.

dvd

I keep a log. Sort of. Engine hours, fuel, mainenance, additions, trips, etc.

Nothing about who was on board or anything specific like that.

The PO kept a log and I expected at least the maintenance part would come with the boat. It did not. I asked him for it later but got no response. It would have been a help to know what was done to the boat before I got it.

We have a hand written maintenance log in a binder (which we intend to redo using an excel document on the computer..). *We also have a separate removable section where we can record any trip data or general notes that we like to keep.

The previous owner kept a trip diary in which he wrote personal notes as well as maintenance notes. *Unfortunately, because the data was combined, the diary was not included when we purchased the boat. *He did give us his collections of bills, and warrenties etc, but a real maintenance log would have been a plus.

Maintenance log: all fuel, filter changes, oil changes, significant other items.
Computer tracking keeps a record of where we have been and when. This is sometimes interesting to look at. Photos kept on the computer record who we were with, significant events, great scenery. These get backed up on several computers.
We used to keep a more detailed trip log, but found no interest in reviewing it, so discontinued the practice.
My Dad (90), often reminds me of events, places, no of nights per yr, and other arcane things he finds in his old logs, which he kept in considerable detail in the days before computer logs.

rwidman wrote:

The PO kept a log and I expected at least the maintenance part would come with the boat. It did not.

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We did not get any logs or maintenance records other than the project description and final receipt for the new fuel tanks and plumbing the PO had had installed the year before we bought the boat. But one thing that has been very helpful is there is an owners or opertational manual on board for every single thing on the boat.* Elecronics, stove, even the shower discharge pump.* The boat also came with its original 1973 American Marine GB36 operators manual and the original engine operation, service, and parts manuals.* All have come in very handy over the years, and as we have upgraded systems and equipment we have continued the practice of keeping every manual---even if it's just a pamphlet--- on the boat in a set of 3-ring binders.


-- Edited by Marin on Thursday 26th of January 2012 01:06:33 PM

I keep a wish list and gotta-do list on a MS Word document that itemizes upcoming mods, upgrades, repairs, inspections due, etc.* The items are prioritized in groups.* This becomes my worklist of tasks and tinkering to complete when I'm in the mood.* When I head to the boat to work on it, I review the list to plan my day and make sure I have the tools, parts*and supplies I need.

I also keep a spiral bound notebook*to record all completed servicing (fuel, oil, coolant, battery, tranny and filters), scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, modifications, upgrades and repairs.* I record the date and hour meter readings with all items.* Fuel prices and quantities, hours since last refueling, and average efficiency (GPH) are also documented.*

When we take long trips, we keep a running progress report with start/stop times and key checkpoints enroute.* We keep the sheet until we return home, then discard the notes.* Any mechanical issues encountered during the trip get recorded on the Word list.

*

Marin wrote...

But one thing that has been very helpful is there is an owners or opertational manual on board for every single thing on the boat.* Elecronics, stove, even the shower discharge pump.* The boat also came with its original 1973 American Marine GB36 operators manual and the original engine operation, service, and parts manuals.

Yes, we got those with the boat, and I have found them very useful, especially as the only one we didn't get was the cassette/radio manual, and guess who blew it up trying to guess how to wire it for channel memory during power off.* Even more annoying when I later found I could have got the manual off the internet - if I had thought to look.* ( I was only one wire wrong, dammit)* Have a DVD/radio now anyway and it's better - who uses cassettes these days anyway...?* Won't be fooled again.* As to the daily log - I guess I must just be slack...

Just like the Navy , we keep both a rough and smooth log.

Has anyone tried putting*your maintenance/ships log on an iPad or tablet?* KJ

I keep a trip and maintenance log in different sections of the same book. all reciepts from trips, fuel, parts, etc get stapled in the book on the proper page. This habit all comes from my work life. Last year i got a nasty note from the IRS calling me in for an audit of my 2007 through 2009 returns. they wanted to nail me for business use of my car as well as meals, hotels, etc. i walked in with a notebook from each year showing start and stop milages each day, where I went, who I met with, etc. they looked at the first six months of 2007, flipped to December, looked at that and said I could leave without even looking at 2008 & 2009. They said they never saw record keeping so complete. I thought it was sloppy, but they liked that fact as they could see it was real and written in real time.
You never know when complete record keeping will get you out of a jam.
John
Dreamers Holiday
2003 MS 390

I finally developed a seperate book from the*trip log book,* The second book is my Information Book*(three ring binder) it's two parts:
<ul>[*]Boat registration, insurance binder,*Microfor Sanitation System Coast Guard certificate, State Boater Education Certificate, etc. all in plastic sheet liners.*[*]Maintenance and inspection logs divided into sections, General Maintenance,*Safety equipment inspections;*(Fire extinguishers,*flares and flare gun,*first aid*kit, and life preservers.)[/list]
When you need it, all documenation in one place.

Larry B


-- Edited by Edelweiss on Saturday 28th of January 2012 12:01:13 AM

We will be new to Trawler cruising in the USA later*this year but have kept logs for the 40 years on sailboats beforehand.* These started as simple navigational logs, in the days before such things as GPS, Decca or Loran and were pretty limited on general information.*

Then later we discovered how useful a narrative log was to keep.* Our narrative logs contain all the stuff that has gone on, where we were, what we did, what we might do next time, what restaurant we used (even kept the business cards and stuck the bills in the log, mind these were not your McDs but fine dining places in Europe).* We would also stick in pictures and tourist postcards, keeping one page of each duo for written word and the other for pictures etc.*

There was a third 'deck' log too which was the rough one used to write up the navigational log and which didn't matter too much if it got wet or ketchup dripped on it.* The current one I made up on a spreadsheet and print off when required, I've already modified the saily one layout*for the donk donk one.

Then I discovered OpenCPN program*and the latest version 2.6*has provision for an automatic logbook as an add-on.* There are two logbooks available, I have both but the 'Konni' one really is excellent.* It automatically completes at pre-chosen intervals depending on what data is fed to the laptop in addition to the GPS, so apart from all the GPS info (like SOG, COG,*BTW, DTW. etc) it can also pick up engine hours, depths, boatspeed, windspeeds etc if these instruments are linked.* It has separate sections for maintenance logs and crew lists.* The whole thing can be customised with your boat name, pictures, and the layout adjusted for personal preferences.* All this is a FREE download to the FREE OpenCPN!*

So we will start again on our new boat with the written*deck log, the navigational one will be delegated to Konni and OpenCPN and this will also be kept up as a maintenance log.* The narrative log will still be a ruled book as before, with one page kept of every pair for pictures and special notes, receipts etc.

The big question is do we bring all our old sailboat logs with us across the pond, give them to friends cruising our old areas or what!

They are priceless memories, but really important only to you, so store them in a safe place. Even I would keep that sort of log if I was sailing anywhere more exotic than round and round in the same, rather large bay, we at present frequent.

(Moreton Bay, Brisbane, Queensland Australia, seeing you are quite new - sorry. let me amend that to, 'an infrequent poster', as I see you joined in 2008).


-- Edited by Peter B on Sunday 29th of January 2012 01:23:39 AM