The Wire
Stories from across the boating world.
Walkthroughs, boat show coverage, and the guides that make owning a boat easier, reported by the Nautical Network team.
Prefer them organized by boat system? Browse the guide library
Buying GuidesNovember 6, 2026
Marine First Aid Kits: Ready When Help Is Hours Away
Offshore, the nearest clinic is measured in hours. How to size a first aid kit to your crew and range, and the one tool fishing boats always forget.
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Buying GuidesNovember 5, 2026
Flares and Distress Signals: Making Sure Rescuers Can Find You
Rescuers can be a mile away and still miss you. The day and night signals that close the gap, and the expiration date most boaters forget to check.
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Buying GuidesNovember 4, 2026
Marine Fire Extinguishers: Required Gear That Saves Lives
A fire on the water leaves you no exit. What the ratings mean, how many extinguishers your boat needs, and where to mount them so you can actually reach one.
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Buying GuidesNovember 3, 2026
The Best Life Jacket Is the One You'll Actually Wear
Most drownings happen with a life jacket still on the boat. How to match PFD type to the activity and get a fit that stays put in the water.
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Buying GuidesNovember 2, 2026
Dock Bumpers and Piling Guards: Protect the Hull From the Dock Itself
Fenders only work when you remember them. Dock bumpers and piling guards protect the hull on every landing, including the ugly ones.
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Buying GuidesNovember 1, 2026
Washdown Pumps: The Upgrade You'll Use Every Single Trip
The bucket rinse never really worked. Pressure, flow, and plumbing specs for a washdown pump you will use on every single trip.
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Buying GuidesOctober 31, 2026
Holding Tanks: Size, Fit, and Keeping the Smell Away
Your nose knows before your guests do. How to size a holding tank, fit it into an odd space, and keep the whole system smelling like nothing at all.
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Buying GuidesOctober 30, 2026
Marine Toilets: Manual vs. Electric and How to Choose
Manual or electric, raw water or fresh: the head you pick decides how many afternoons you spend fixing it. How to choose one everyone aboard can live with.
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Buying GuidesOctober 29, 2026
Hot Showers Aboard: A Marine Water Heater Guide
Hot water underway is free once your heater has an engine loop. Tank sizes, heating sources, and what to measure before you order one.
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Buying GuidesOctober 28, 2026
Freshwater Pumps: Real Water Pressure on Your Boat
A sputtering shower or a pump that clicks all night is your freshwater system asking for help. GPM ratings, pressure switches, and accumulator tanks, explained in plain English.
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Buying GuidesOctober 27, 2026
Macerator Pumps: What They Do and Why They Burn Out
A macerator has one unglamorous job and one very common way to die. Flow ratings, run-dry protection, and the plumbing details that keep it grinding for years.
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Buying GuidesOctober 26, 2026
Why Your Anchor Drags (and How to Pick One That Won't)
Most anchors that drag were fighting the wrong bottom from the start. How to match anchor style to the seabed, size up with confidence, and build a rode that actually holds.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Hull Cleaners: Getting Rid of the Waterline Stain
Boat soap won't touch the waterline mustache. Which hull cleaner actually dissolves it, and how to use the strong stuff without wrecking your wax.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Vinyl Care: Seats That Don't Crack or Mildew
Sunscreen is quietly eating your boat seats. The cleaner, the protectant, and the five-minute routine that keeps marine vinyl from cracking.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Metal Polish: Keeping Stainless Bright in Salt Air
Stainless really means stains less, especially in salt air. How to match polish to metal, erase tea staining, and keep the rust bloom from coming back.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Dock Lines 101: Size, Length, and the Lines Most Boaters Forget
Bow and stern lines are the easy part. Line diameter, length, and the spring lines most boaters never rig, explained by boat size.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Trailer Bearings: The Number One Reason Boats Don't Make It to the Ramp
That trailer on the shoulder with a wheel off? Usually a bearing. How hubs work, why launch ramps kill them, and the spares that save the trip.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Trailer Maintenance: Keep Your Boat Off the Side of the Highway
Your boat logs more miles on asphalt than on water, and the trailer only gets noticed when it quits. Bearings, straps, bunks, and lights: how to keep all four from ending your day on the shoulder.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Battery Boxes and Trays: Keep Your Battery Locked Down
A loose battery in a chop is a projectile, a short circuit, and an acid leak waiting to happen. How to match a box or tray to your battery group and lock it down properly.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Galvanic Isolators: Stop the Dock From Eating Your Boat
If your anodes vanish at the marina but last on the mooring, the dock is the suspect. What a galvanic isolator actually does, and how to size one without giving up your safety ground.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Shore Power Safety: What Every Boater Plugging In Should Know
A warm shore power plug is a failing one. Matching amperage, choosing cord length, and the ten-second habits that keep tired connections from becoming dock fires.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Chartplotter and Fishfinder Combos: What Actually Matters on the Water
Screen size, sonar type, and the transducer under the hull matter more than the badge on the box. How to buy a combo you can read in full sun and won't outgrow in two seasons.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Fishfinders and Transducers: Seeing What's Really Down There
The screen gets the glory, but the transducer decides what you actually see. Frequency, power, and mounting, explained by what shows up on the water.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Your Phone Is Not a Safety Plan: The Case for a Marine VHF Radio
Your phone can't call the boat a mile away, and offshore it can't call anyone. What a VHF does that a cell signal never will, and how to pick one.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Why Your VHF Range Is Disappointing (It's Probably the Antenna)
The radio was never the problem. Height, dB gain, and the corroded connector quietly eating your VHF range.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Radar for Recreational Boaters: Seeing Through Fog and Dark
Fog doesn't ask if you're ready. How a modern radome sees boats, buoys, and squalls your eyes can't, and what actually matters when you buy one.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
AIS for Boaters: See the Ships Before They're On Top of You
A ship that takes a mile to stop may never see your boat. AIS puts you on its bridge display, and puts every ship around you on your chart.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Autopilots: Let the Boat Steer While You Watch the Water
The control head is the easy part. The drive unit behind your steering is where autopilots get mismatched, and where the money goes right or wrong.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
NMEA 2000 Made Simple: Getting Your Electronics to Talk
One backbone, two terminators, no exceptions. The simple rules that finally get a boat's electronics talking to each other.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Why Every Boat Still Needs a Magnetic Compass
Every screen at the helm can go dark at once. A good magnetic compass cannot, if you size it, mount it, and swing it right.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Gauges: Know Your Engine's Health at a Glance
A gauge wired to the wrong sender moves convincingly while reading fiction. How to build a panel that tells the truth about your engine.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Trolling Motors Explained: Thrust, Shaft Length, and Holding Your Spot
Thrust, shaft length, and voltage are three numbers that decide whether you hold the spot or drift off it. Here is how to get all three right the first time.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
The Right Prop Changes Everything About How Your Boat Runs
One inch of pitch moves your engine roughly 150 to 200 RPM. How to read prop numbers, pick your material, and dial in wide-open throttle.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Building a Boat Sound System That Survives Salt and Sun
Car audio on a boat ends in corrosion, usually by the second season. How to build a marine system that plays over wind and engine noise and survives the salt.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Underwater Lights: The Glow That Draws Fish and Turns Heads
The glow at the transom is not just for looks. How lumens, color, and mounting style decide whether your underwater lights draw a crowd of bait or just drain a battery.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Navigation Lights: Be Seen and Stay Legal After Dark
Your nav lights are a sentence other boaters read in the dark. What the rules require for your boat length, and why LED is the easy upgrade.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Boat Seats That Save Your Back in a Chop
On flat water any seat works. How vinyl, closed-cell foam, and the pedestal under it all decide whether a rough ride home is a ride or a beating.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Engine Controls: The Throttle and Shift That Command Your Boat
That mushy shift lever is trying to tell you something. How to match a control to your engine, pick single or dual lever, and measure cables right the first time.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Hydraulic vs. Cable Steering: Which One Your Boat Needs
A wheel that fights you at speed is a warning, not a quirk. When cable steering is plenty, when hydraulic is mandatory, and how to tell your system is wearing out.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Jack Plates: More Speed, Better Hole Shot, Skinnier Water
Engine height is the tuning knob most boats never get to touch. What setback actually does, when hydraulic beats manual, and how to dial in a jack plate without starving your water pump.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Tilt and Trim Trouble: What to Replace and How to Tell
A trim motor that clicks and quits is usually not the trim motor. Diagnose the relay, fluid, and pump before you buy, and match the exact part when you do.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Trim Tabs: Get on Plane Faster and Ride Smoother
Bow in the sky, boat leaning toward the heavy side, spray over the beam. Trim tabs fix all three, if you size them to your boat and learn to tap instead of hold.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Boat Windshield Wipers: Clear Vision in Spray and Rain
The weather that smears your windshield is exactly the weather where you most need to see. How to match wiper motor, arm, and blade to your boat.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Boat Horns: Required Gear and Your Voice on the Water
Your horn is required gear, and in fog it is the only way other boats know you exist. Electric vs. air, loudness and tone, mounting, and the signals worth knowing.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
T-Top Accessories: Make the Most of Your Overhead Space
Rod holders, spreader lights, radio pods, outriggers: your T-top can carry far more than shade. Getting it right starts with one caliper measurement.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Boat Flooring: Better Grip, More Comfort, Fresh Look
A slippery, tired deck is one weekend away from grippy and new. EVA foam, vinyl, or carpet, and how to template a fit that looks factory.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Cup Holders and Organizers: Small Upgrades, Big Difference
Loose drinks and sliding gear make every trip messier than it needs to be. Which cup holders actually drain, which organizers hold on in chop, and how to mount both for good.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Grab Handles: Steady Footing in a Moving Boat
A hand shoots out the moment the boat lurches. What it finds decides whether anything happens next. Materials, placement, and mounting for grab handles that actually hold.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Latches and Deck Hardware: Keep Hatches Secure and Dry
A latch is a forgettable part until a hatch flies open in a chop. Compression, slam, cam, and locking latches, and how to match each one to the hatch it guards.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Deck Plates and Access Hatches: Easy Access, Dry Compartments
Behind every sealed-off compartment is a pump, a tank, or a wire run you will need to reach someday. How to pick deck plates that open when you want and stay dry when you don't.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Windlasses: Save Your Back and Anchor Anywhere
A windlass turns anchoring from a back workout into a button press, which means you anchor more and drag less. How to size pulling power, pick a layout, and match the gypsy to your rode.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Anchor Rode and Chain: The Half of Your Anchor System Nobody Talks About
The anchor gets the credit, but the rode does the work. Chain length, scope math, and nylon stretch: the unglamorous half of the system that decides whether you stay put.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Boat Cleats: Small Hardware, Huge Loads
A cleat spends its whole life doing nothing until a storm asks it to hold your entire boat. How to size one to your dock lines, and why the mounting matters more than the metal.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Bottom Paint: Stop Growth Before It Slows You Down
Barnacles do not care what you paid for your boat. How to choose between ablative and hard bottom paint, and what your home water is trying to tell you.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Sacrificial Anodes: The Cheapest Way to Protect Your Engine
The cheapest part on your boat exists to be destroyed. Picking the right anode metal for your water is the difference between quiet protection and an expensive surprise at haul-out.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Impellers: The Cheap Wear Part That Overheats Engines
Your engine's cooling system depends on a small rubber wheel that wears out quietly. How to buy the exact right impeller and catch it lying before the alarm goes off.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Fuel Filters and Water Separators: Stop Bad Fuel Before It Stops You
Water in the fuel stops more boats than any storm. Micron ratings, flow capacity, and why a clear bowl with a drain is the best early warning system aboard.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Raw Water Strainers: The Simple Part That Prevents Overheating
A plastic bag can overheat your engine faster than any mechanical failure. How to size, mount, and actually clean a raw water strainer.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
The Bilge Pump Most Boaters Never Think About (Until They Need It)
Your bilge pump's rated GPH is not what it delivers. Capacity by boat length, automatic versus manual, and the wiring that keeps it alive.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Thru-Hull Fittings: The Holes in Your Boat You Can't Ignore
Every fitting below the waterline is a hole in your boat. Materials, sizing, and the seacock habit that prevents sinkings.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Marine Hose: The Right Hose for Every Job on Board
That head smell you cannot scrub away is probably the hose itself. How to match marine hose to fuel, sanitation, bilge, and freshwater jobs.
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Buying GuidesOctober 19, 2026
Bilge Blowers: Four Minutes That Can Save Your Life
Gasoline fumes sink into the bilge and wait for a spark. Four minutes of blower time, sized to your engine compartment, is the cheapest insurance on board.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Starting vs. Deep Cycle: The Battery Mistake That Strands Boaters
Starting, deep cycle, or dual purpose, and flooded, AGM, or lithium. How to pick the battery type that will not leave you stranded.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
The Onboard Charger: Cheap Insurance for Expensive Batteries
Batteries die young when they sit half-charged. How to size an onboard charger by amps, banks, and chemistry.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Battery Switches and Isolators: Never Get Stranded by a Dead Battery
The switch and isolator setup that keeps your starting battery ready while the house bank runs your gear.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Marine Inverters: Home Power on Battery
Home power on battery: sizing an inverter by watts, choosing pure sine, and wiring it safely.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Marine Wiring Done Right: The End of Electrical Gremlins
Tinned wire, heat-shrink terminals, and proper crimps: the end of flickering gauges and electrical gremlins.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Fuses and Breakers: The Boring Parts That Prevent Fires
Fuses and breakers are the boring parts that prevent fires. How circuit protection works, how to size it to the wire, and where to put it.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Fuel Additives: Protecting Fuel That Sits Between Trips
Ethanol, water, and fuel that sits between trips: which additives actually protect your engine, and the habits that make them work.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Boat Wax and Polish: Keep Your Gelcoat Looking New
Compound, polish, and wax in the right order: how to take oxidation off, protect gelcoat from the sun, and keep it looking new.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Boat Cleaning Tools: Wash Faster Without Scratching
Soft, medium, or stiff: the right brush for every surface, so you wash faster without scratching.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Fender Sizing: Stop Scuffing Your Hull at the Dock
Most hull scrapes happen at the dock. Fender size, count, and type by boat length.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Biminis and Boat Covers: Shade Underway, Protection at Rest
The four measurements that make a bimini fit, and which cover survives trailering versus storage.
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Buying GuidesOctober 18, 2026
Marine Solar: Free Power While You Sit at Anchor
Free power at anchor: sizing panels in watts and pairing them with the right MPPT charge controller.
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