Mending, repairing, installing new features - many boat owners enjoy working on their boats and keeping everything shipshape. But which tasks can you safely take care of yourself and which are better left to the professional experts?
Reliable advice, tips, tricks and practical instructions on yacht care and refit will be provided in workshops and presentations by expert boat builders and service technicans at the Refit Center in Hall 10 at boot Düsseldorf.
Hands-on Workshops in Yacht Maintenance
The Refit Center in Hall 10 at boot Düsseldorf has evolved with great success over the past few years and is now offering practical workshops alongside the numerous lectures on all aspects of yacht maintenance and yacht refit! Particularly the offer of "hands-on workshops" has been greatly extended. Learn from the professionals how to retain or even increase the value of your boat, how to execute a great variety of repairs, which tools to use for good results and many more useful tips and tricks. Bastian Hauck and Hinnerk Weiler, experienced experts in refit and boat building will guide visitors through the daily schedule of lectures, workshops and presentations.
Emergency sail repairs
Sailmaker Faber + Münker is offering a workshop for emergency sail repairs. Based on old sails, Ulrich Münker explains step by step, how to repair tears in the sail, how to properly apply adhesive tape and how to repair damage using a sailmaker's needle and yarn until a professional sailmaker can take care of a permanent repair. Know how every recreational sailor needs.
Refitting older yacht hulls
There are, of course, also workshops on classic topics of craftsmanship such as reprocessing aged hulls: In a workshop titled "Polish & Protect", Peter Wrede Yacht Refit demonstrates the often underestimated alternatives to a new coat of varnish: simple polishing can often restore old gelcoat to a shiny new appearance if applied correctly. This workshop at the Refit Center also explains how to preserve this new, shiny look for a long time and what is required to protect polished surfaces professionally.
More hands on activities
If you like to take home a little souvenir from the boat show, join the rope and splicing workshop to learn how to make a safe eye-splice in braided ropes. The Dutch company Premiumropes BV guides visitors step-by-step through the splicing of a soft shackle. Other workshops on schedule are focusing on wood works and laminating.