Owning your first boat can be an incredible experience, especially during the hottest days of the year. But it’s important to remember that a boat is a financial investment that requires regular upkeep and maintenance. The boat you buy needs to be not only right for your finances but also right for your long-term goals.

That being said, if you’re in the market for a boat, here are a few essential things you need to know first before you make your purchase.

  1. You’ll need a license and registration. It isn’t enough to know how to drive and operate a boat. You’ll also need to get a boater’s license and become registered before you can get out on the water officially. If you already know what type of boat you’ll get getting, do some research to figure out what license you’ll need to drive it. You may need a different license if you plan to get a boat for rivers and canals versus if you plan to sail in lakes or on the ocean.
  2. You’ll need to ensure your vessel. If you’re completely new to boating, it may come as a surprise that you’ll need boat insurance when you purchase a watercraft. Just like a car, a boat needs to be protected against potential damage and other claims. Boat insurance typically covers physical damage to the boat itself, damage to other vessels, loss or damage to the property on board the vessel, and injuries that happen on the boat.
  3. You’ll need clean and safe power for boats. The U.S. electrical grid is the largest interconnected machine on Earth with over 200,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines and 5.5 million miles of local distribution lines. Electric shock drowning (ESD) can happen when an alternating current gets into freshwater because of faulty wiring. Fortunately, you can install a marine isolation transformer onto your boat. Marine isolation transformers create onboard power for boats, converting your marina’s unpredictable 120VAC shore power into clean power. This improves your safety on your boat and the safety of others nearby.

Looking for an isolation transformer for your new boat? We’ve got you covered. Bridgeport Magnetics offers its family of Marine Puck UL Marine certified toroidal transformers that are hermetically encapsulated in flame rated non-metallic compact enclosures. To learn more about our Marine Isolation transformers and other products related to power for boats, contact Bridgeport Magnetics today.