At Boatbreakers our aim it to be able to dispose of any boat of any size in a responsible way. We are also always trying to keep the process cost effective.
Until there is sufficient funding in place across the boating world to dispose of end of life vessels, it is the boat’s final owner who has to foot the bill.
We often get enquiries sent in to scrap large boats. Whilst we have the space and facilities to do that in our breakers yard here in Portsmouth we still do face problems.
The main problem is always getting the boat back here to Portsmouth. It could still be in the water, but have a problem with the engine. Or maybe it’s in the water and the nearest lift out or slip way is miles away. Sometimes the boats are in a farmer’s field so to get transport and a crane there is not only difficult but instantly expensive.
One alternative we offer is to send a team of boat breakers up to the site and chop the boat where she lays. Some boat yards won’t allow this due to the disturbance to other boats in the yard and any temporary mess it may cause. However this again is added cost as we have to pay those guys for what usually takes a couple of days work and then on top, the price of having the waste material collected.
To add to the challenges many haulage companies would rather not be transporting boats that are deemed to be scrap. And waste removal companies regularly refuses to collect or inflate prices because the waste is GRP (Fibreglass).
When you begin to consider disposing of a large boat there are measures you can take to make the process easier:
- Clear the space around the boat to improve access for lorries and cranes.
- Cut away any plants that have grown on or around the boat.
- Remove any excess weight from inside the hull, including draining any water.
- Make you have the permission of the land owner to move or dispose of the boat on site.
- Get the exact measurements of the boat.
- Find out the exact weight of the boat.
- If you can organise the boat to be delivered to us, even better! (Boats can be delivered by road or water to our yard)
