Budget 3–5% of the boat's value a year for maintenance and repairs — a 45 ft sailing yacht worth €400,000 should expect roughly €12,000–20,000 — and hang the whole calendar off two clocks: engine hours, and one haul-out every 12–24 months. Everything else on this checklist is either an hours-based service, a season-boundary job, or a certification date. Here is the schedule, with 2026 yard rates so you can see which lines actually cost money.
What a Year of Maintenance Actually Costs
Two numbers get quoted and they are not the same thing. The famous 10% rule covers everything: crew, berth, insurance, fuel and a refit reserve. Maintenance and repairs on their own usually land at 3–5% of the boat's value a year — €12,000–20,000 on a €400,000 sailing yacht, €27,000–45,000 on a €900,000 motor yacht. Budget 10% for maintenance and then pay berthing and insurance on top, and you are double-counting the same money.
Where does it go? Below roughly 80 ft, the haul-out and everything attached to it dominates. The table is modelled from published 2026 US yard rates — per-foot haul charges, shop labour at $80–150 an hour — not from quotes. Your yard will differ; the ratios usually hold.
| Line item | 12 m / 40 ft sailing yacht | 15 m / 50 ft motor yacht | Basis (2026 yard rates) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haul-out, block, relaunch | $560–1,000 | $700–1,250 | $14–25 per foot, round trip |
| Pressure wash and prep | $120–240 | $150–300 | $3–6 per foot |
| Antifouling, labour plus one coat | $1,100–1,700 | $1,400–2,100 | $27–31 per foot; a strip-and-barrier job runs $3,500–6,000 on a 40 ft hull |
| Yard labour, other work | $80–150/hr | $80–150/hr | published 2026 shop rates, US coast |
| Winter storage ashore, 5–6 months | $2,000–4,500 | $2,500–5,500 | $50–65 per foot, storage-and-launch package |
| Annual engine service | $600–1,200 | $900–1,800 | 4–8 labour hours plus oil, filters, impeller |
| Rigging inspection | $300–700 | — | rigger, half a day |
| Safety gear recertification | $400–1,500 | $400–1,500 | liferaft service, extinguishers, flares |
Add the 12 m column up and the yard-side year lands near $5,100–10,800 before anything breaks — and before the refit reserve: another 1–2% of value set aside annually for the major work due every 5–7 years. Owners who skip the reserve pay it all in one invoice.
The Annual Rhythm, Month by Month
| When | On board | At the yard | Who |
|---|---|---|---|
| Every trip | Engine oil and coolant levels, belt glance, bilge float test, sea strainer check | — | Owner, 20 minutes |
| Monthly in season | Anode condition (diver), seacock exercise, battery voltage under load, rig chafe check | — | Owner / diver |
| Every 200 engine hours | Oil and filter, impeller inspection, primary fuel filter | — | Owner or yard |
| Spring commissioning | Full system run-up under load; check liferaft, EPIRB, extinguisher and flare dates | Antifouling, anodes, cutless bearing, prop, through-hulls | Mixed |
| Mid-season | Diver: running gear, anodes, prop cleanliness | — | Diver |
| Autumn lay-up | Engine and freshwater winterizing, tanks full, dehumidify | Optional haul for shaft seals | Mixed |
| Every 2 years | Coolant change, hose and clamp survey | Full below-waterline inspection | Yard |
| Every 5–10 years | Standing rigging, gas hose replacement, battery bank | Barrier coat, osmosis check | Yard |
The rows owners lose are the last two. Nobody forgets the annual oil change; everybody forgets the four-year-old coolant and the eleven-year-old rig until a surveyor finds them.
Engine Hours Drive the Schedule, Not the Calendar
Manufacturer intervals for a recreational marine diesel settle into a narrow band: oil and filter every 200–250 hours or annually, whichever comes first (outboards: about 100 hours). If your engine rarely runs more than 30 minutes at a time, halve it — 50–75 hours — because short runs never burn off water and soot in the oil.
The rest of the hour clock, for a typical Yanmar-class diesel: raw water impeller every 200 hours or annually, sooner in sandy water, and keep the old one as a labelled spare; primary fuel filter with every oil change, secondary every second one; coolant every 2 years; belts inspected at each service and replaced at first glazing; valve clearance at 500–1,000 hours depending on model — a yard job. The generator runs on the same logic and deserves a monthly run under real load, even in winter. When the bigger questions start — a top end, a major rebuild or a repower — the engine hours and overhaul costs guide prices each milestone against its hour threshold.
Smoke is the cheapest diagnostic you own: black means fuel or air, white-grey means water or coolant in the combustion chamber, blue means oil. Pair those with hard starting, new vibration or drifting oil pressure and you have most early warnings. Our diesel engine guide walks the fault-finding in detail.
The Haul-Out: Four Items Decide the Bill
Antifouling sets the cycle — ablative paints generally want a coat every 12–18 months, hard paints can stretch to two seasons with a mid-season scrub. Anodes come next: replace at 50% wasted, not when they are gone, and check the bonding wire while you are there. Third, the cutless bearing (more than a few millimetres of play on the shaft means replace) and the shaft seal — a conventional stuffing box drips slowly while running, a dripless face seal should not drip at all. Fourth, every through-hull and seacock gets exercised; a seacock that will not turn is not a maintenance item, it is an emergency waiting for a date.
The propeller rides along free: log dings and cupping, because vibration you feel at cruise is usually a bent blade or a fouled hub, not an engine fault — the propeller strike guide covers what to check before you restart and what repairs cost. Heads and sanitation systems share the same seacocks and hoses — the marine head guide covers the layout, and engine and freshwater winterization is what keeps both from becoming the expensive line in spring.
Rigging and Deck: The Ten-Year Clock
Insurers and surveyors treat stainless standing rigging as a ten-year item, regardless of how it looks — fatigue and crevice corrosion develop inside terminals where nobody can see them. Coastal boats with dated inspection records often run 12–15 years; offshore loads shorten the clock. Book a professional rig inspection every 2–3 years and a visual walk-through annually: rust staining running down from a swage, a cracked terminal or broken strands are replacement triggers, not watch items.
Deck hardware keeps a shorter, cheaper rhythm: winches get stripped and greased once a year — the highest-value hour on deck — and the windlass gets the same treatment with the chain gypsy checked for wear against the link size. Steering cables and autopilot rams want an annual inspection and grease at the fittings; stiffness reported in spring is cheaper than a jam discovered underway, and the autopilot guide lists what to check before trusting it offshore.
Certification Dates Most Owners Lose Track Of
Four dates run the safety budget. A recreational ISO 9650 liferaft needs a service-station inspection every 3 years (SOLAS and charter rafts: annually — your flag state decides, so check). An EPIRB battery lasts 5 years and its hydrostatic release just 2; registration also needs updating when the boat changes hands. Extinguishers follow NFPA 10 in the US: annual maintenance, a 6-year service and a 12-year hydrostatic test — other flag states differ slightly. Flares expire on the printed date, full stop. Put the four dates on one log page with phone reminders; an expired liferaft service discovered at the dock on departure day is a ransom note, not a checklist item. The safety gear checklist prices the whole kit for 2026.
What to Keep In-House and What to Pay For
Keep in-house: washing and waxing, interior, oil and filter changes, impellers, strainers, anode swaps you can reach, and above all the log — dated entries with engine hours, parts and who did the work. Pay for: rigging, injection pumps, hydraulics, electrical fault-finding, antifouling preparation, and anything with a certification stamp.
The honest way to decide is to price your weekend. Eight yard hours at $80–150 is $640–1,200; if the job would take you two frustrated weekends and risk a comeback, the yard is cheaper. The reverse is true for washing, waxing and the monthly walk-through — those are money if you pay for them and free if you don't.
FAQ: The Four Questions Owners Ask First
Can I stretch the haul-out to every two years? Often, yes — if the antifouling is rated for it and a diver inspects anodes, running gear and the prop mid-season. The underwater inspection itself should not stretch: eyes on the hull at least once a year, every year.
How much should I set aside each month? Annual figure divided by twelve: 3–5% of value for maintenance and repairs plus 1–2% into the refit reserve. On a €400,000 boat that is roughly €1,300–1,750 a month before berthing, insurance and fuel.
What fails first on a neglected boat? In order: anodes, the raw water impeller, cooling hoses and clamps, batteries, then seacocks. Every one of them is cheap on schedule and expensive unscheduled.
Does a maintenance log really matter at resale? Surveyors read it and offers track the survey. Documented hours, invoices and rig reports move a buyer from "unknown condition" discounting toward "documented ownership" pricing — often worth more than the last cosmetic upgrade.