Agree or Disagree?
 

Agree or Disagree? I have owned many boats over the years (typically more than 10+ years old), and one thing is certain if you dig deep enough you will find

A. Rot
B. Wet wood that is going to rot

I am always find it odd that everyone shocked that the transom is wet, their foot went though floor, screws wont bite, etc... If I bough new I would definitely buy one with a fiberglass stringer system.

Disagree.

boats not left in water and garage kept and ones sealed correctly should be dry...and there are some out there...

disagree,some builders had transom sealing issues but most boats are dry.

Ditto. I've had occasion to drill into the usual suspect areas on my PQ and it has no moisture or rot.

I do agree to some point... My motto is boats are made to be in the water, not hold water...

Disagree.
My Corsa is a 1984 and has NO rot or soft wood anywhere.

It's just kind of a math question. I would say that the older the boat becomes, mathematically the more chances it has for something to go wrong and screw up a transom or stringer. It's not that they are prone to failure because of an antiquated design, I think they are prone to failure by neglect. I love old boats! You just have to look really really close at them before you buy them!!!

edit: I disagree -- subject to the above caveat! :D

Boat covers need to be water proof.

Kids constantly being in water, out of water, drenching on back of boat, etc/etc gets things wet fast !

I've dealt with rot, and have the kid thing. I learned to supply towels before climbing into and onto boat.

Treat your boat more like a car and you'll enjoy more years out of it.

Just like walking across a boat with shoes or what have you - would you do that to your car ?

Oh, if you have boat shrink wrapped, making freakin sure they don't uncover it in the rain and then put the wrap on with any wetness in the boat...Same theme, make sure it is fully dry before you have it put away. Same thing with your covers during the boating season at all possible.

If a boat cannot sit in the water and exposed to weather for a few days I don't think it should be called a boat. Maybe it should be called an overpriced blinged out propulsion unit that needs to be on land and dry.