• 1

  Condition and oxidation

  Gelcoat that still shines needs a clean and a wax. Gelcoat that has gone chalky has to be cut back first — a compound stage, then a polish, then a wax. That is the single biggest swing in any quote, and it is why a neglected boat can cost twice what its neighbour does. See boat cut and polish in Sydney.

• 2

  Surface area, not just length

  A 45ft flybridge cruiser has a hardtop, an upper helm, a boarding platform and a tender to work around. A 45ft sailing yacht has none of that but has a rig, a deck full of hardware and a coachroof. Freeboard matters too — the taller the topsides, the more staging and reach. It is the same reason we price antifouling by the hull, not the brochure length.

• 3

  Teak and timber

  Synthetic decking cleans up quickly. Natural teak that has gone silver–grey is a separate job again — cleaning, brightening and, where the boat needs it, oiling. Brightwork and timber trim add hours by hand that no machine can shortcut — see teak and timber care under our boat services.

• 4

  Interior volume and how it has been used

  Two cabins and a head is a different afternoon to four cabins, two heads and a galley. Add a wet Sydney winter under covers and you are into mould treatment, steam cleaning and upholstery work rather than a vacuum and a wipe down. Boats we look after under vessel management rarely get that far.

• 5

  Where the boat is kept

  A marina berth with power and fresh water alongside is the cheapest place to detail a boat. A swing mooring means everything — people, machines, water — goes out by tender. Hardstand, a pen up–harbour, or a berth well outside Sydney all change the day. We are based at Fergusons Marina in Mosman — see where to find us.

• 6

  What the detail is for

  A seasonal tidy–up and a pre–sale presentation are not the same scope. If the boat is going on the market we go harder at the things a buyer notices first — stainless, gelcoat gloss, teak and the smell of the cabin. See sales preparation and sell my boat.

• 

  Oxidised gelcoat

  Chalky, flat topsides cut back, polished and waxed. This is the stage that turns a tired boat back into a shiny one.

• 

  Topside panels

  Weathering, staining and water marks lifted out, then sealed so the finish holds through the season.

• 

  Natural teak decking

  Grey, dried–out teak cleaned, brightened and oiled back to colour. A specialist job, quoted on its own — see our services.

• 

  Synthetic decking

  Ground–in dirt pulled out of the grain and the caulking lines brought back to black.

• 

  Stainless steel

  Rust bleed and salt haze removed, then polished. Stainless is the first thing a buyer touches and the first thing to give a boat away — which is why it is step one of sales preparation.

• 

  The finish we are aiming for

  Deep, even gloss with clean reflections — not a wet look that disappears after the first wash.

More of our work: recent boat sales · boats for sale · Duchy Motor Launches · articles and guides

1. Tell us the boat and the berth

   Make, model, length and where she is kept. If you can, add a photo or two of the topsides and the deck — the form below takes them. Photos of the worst bit are more useful than photos of the best bit. Prefer to talk it through? Contact us.

2. We quote, or we come and look

   For most boats the photos and the length are enough for a firm number. For a heavy cut and polish or a teak restoration we would rather see it in person before we commit to a price.

3. Fixed price, then we start

   You get the scope and the number in writing before any work begins. If we find something underneath that changes the job, we stop and call you rather than adding it to the invoice. The same way we work on brokerage and management.