Recently on our Houseboat forum page, a member was wondering what boat walkthrough questions to ask when you're eyeing a houseboat you're thinking about buying. Check out some of the advice our members shared with them below!

RonandBee: We have narrowed down our search to two Sumerset boats that are in freshwater in Texas and will be walking through them in a week or two. Are there any particular questions we should ask since we are fairly new to houseboats? Can an accurate marine survey be done with the boat in the water, or would it be advisable to pay the extra money to have it pulled? My big concern is galvanic corrosion.

OLD HOUSEBOATER: FOR SURE pull them. You’re going to spend serious money for a boat. If nothing else you will not have to wonder.

easttnboater: You can have an insurance-type survey done in the water. But if you are worried about thin spots in the aluminum due to galvanic corrosion, then you are going to have to have it pulled and the hull inspected. I would want to crawl through the hold and look for water spots in the decking and check out the plumbing and waste tanks. I would also want to spend a lot of time looking at the roof—specifically where the railings are screwed down. I would want to know when the outdrives were last serviced. 

Desimulacra: Couple of tricks that I would do regardless of the survey: take a water hose with a nozzle that shoots a good stream and "rinse" the walls of a boat. If there is damage from water running into the walls you can hear the difference EASY. When checking out the top, look for cracks or pulled screws, and as you are doing so walk over the complete top—if you feel a soft spot there is damage. The things that happen to a boat like Sumerset are storm damage or neglect to the integrity of the top/sides, causing major damage to the structure. As long as these boats are cared for, they will be okay.

Do you have more advice you want to add? Jump on our forum page at www.houseboatmagazine.com/forum and share your experience.