Article by Capt. Steve Katz
Always On Watch: Remote Boat Monitoring Comes of Age
Welcome back Coastal Fisherman readers! As we set our sights on a promising 2025 season—filled with tight lines and calm seas—we begin not with celebration, but with a cautionary tale. Just weeks ago, a boat quietly slipped beneath the waterline while docked in its slip. The full story remains a mystery to us, but it serves as a stark reminder: disasters can strike when no one is watching. In this issue, we’ll explore the onboard systems that can serve as your eyes and ears—alerting captains and owners to danger before it’s too late.
As the conclusion of the off-season in the mid-Atlantic region approaches and preparations for relaunching vessels are underway, it is an opportune moment to consider potential vulnerabilities. A recent unfortunate incident involving the sinking of a sportfishing boat shortly after its return to its seasonal berth serves as a poignant reminder of these risks. While the precise cause remains under investigation, initial indications suggest an unforeseen ingress of seawater or dock water overnight, exceeding the operational capacity of the installed bilge pumps.
In a recent personal experience in Florida, a comparable situation arose while I was engaged in work on a vessel that had been serviced on land during the week and returned to the water on a Friday afternoon. Following the departure of the regular crew members for the weekend, I happened to observe a significant and constant accumulation of water in the bilge. Upon further investigation, it was discovered that the clamps on the 2” air conditioning seawater pump discharge hose had been inadvertently omitted, resulting in a continuous leak. This oversight could have easily led to the complete detachment of the hose from the pump. Given that this occurred on a Friday evening preceding a weekend, the leak might have gone undetected, and even if the bilge alarm were functional, it might not have been noticed until a hazardous volume of water had accumulated.
NOTE: Test your boats’ high-water alarm. All boats with an enclosed accommodation compartment shall have an audible alarm to indicate bilge water is approaching the maximum bilge water level. (ABYC standard ABYC H-22.7.3)
Both of the aforementioned incidents could have been promptly communicated to the owner, captain and crew through the implementation of a remote monitoring system. Such a system need not involve excessive expenditure or undue complexity. I would suggest a standalone system that is straightforward to operate and evaluate, providing dependable and accurate reports.
In a related context, it is important to understand that conventional bilge pump systems are designed to evacuate limited quantities of water resulting from minor issues such as shaft seal leaks, plumbing inconsistencies, or rainwater accumulation. The advertised capacities of these bilge pumps is often extremely overrated compared to the real world scenarios. These standard bilge pump systems are not engineered to maintain a vessel's buoyancy in the event of a substantial breach. In contrast, emergency "crash pumps," which are exceptionally high-volume pumping systems, are specifically intended to assist in preserving a boat's flotation during critical situations. These systems often utilize an engine raw water pump or another high-capacity system to rapidly discharge considerable amounts of water, ideally keeping pace with the ingress until a temporary or permanent repair can be effected. To illustrate this capability, a single Caterpillar C32B engine, for example, possesses the capacity to pump in excess of 8,000 gallons of seawater per hour. By creating a plumbing system that can optionally allow the engine to draw water from within the boats bilge, the engine can greatly help remove water in the event of a catastrophic problem.
The majority of contemporary boat monitoring systems comprise a central processing unit and an array of sensors strategically positioned throughout the vessel. The most fundamental yet highly effective systems incorporate high-water alarms and shore power monitoring capabilities. Certain systems can also monitor the operational status of existing bilge pumps by tracking their activation frequency. Furthermore, some advanced systems offer the ability to monitor environmental temperatures and battery voltage levels.
Most of these monitoring systems are designed to communicate via cellular networks. Consequently, provided that cellular data service is accessible at the vessel's location, the system can effectively monitor the boat and transmit alerts in the event of any anomalous conditions.
While internet-connected vessels undoubtedly permit a wide range of remote monitoring possibilities, it appears that the most practical and user-friendly solutions are often the simpler systems specifically engineered for marine applications.
Popular monitoring systems are available from well-known companies such as:
GOST
Garmin OnDeck
Yamaha Siren and several smaller specialized firms including:
BoatCommand
LOC Marine
Barnacle
Sensar
Zigboat
Most of these systems are available for hardware costs under $1000 and often involve a monthly monitoring subscription fee starting at around $20. The installation of these systems typically requires labor and materials for routing the necessary wiring to the sensors; however, once the installation is complete, the systems are generally reliable, with the exception of periodic battery replacements if wireless sensors are used.
The reassurance that these systems can provide to the captain and crew is considerable. I recall working with a captain who made it a routine practice to visit the marina and check on the vessel each evening before retiring for the night. Even after the installation of a monitoring system, it took a year for him to develop complete confidence in its accuracy in assuring the proper functioning of the boat’s critical systems. The system featured an online dashboard that allowed him to view the status of critical systems, temperature readings, confirmation of shore power connection, bilge pump cycling activity, and, crucially, high water alerts.
These systems are certainly not intended as a replacement for regular engine room and hull inspections; rather, they serve as a valuable supplement to visual checks, particularly when it is not feasible to be physically present on the boat, such as overnight or during periods away from the vessel.
As is widely known, many sportfishing boats are berthed in remote locations, and crew members may not always be readily available due to the seasonal nature of fishing activities. Instead of solely relying on dock staff and entry-level crew to monitor the vessel, a remote system can promptly alert the captain to any irregularity, enabling them to direct or address the issue as it arises.
Once captains and crew get past the initial learning curve, the value and usefulness of these remote monitoring tools make them a welcome upgrade for nearly any boat.
