Article by Pat Schrawder
UPGRADE, REPAIR OR REPLACE- WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
Inevitably, the day will come when one or more of your items of marine electronics will stop functioning correctly. When that happens, you are faced with a decision. Should you get it fixed or just get a new one? And it isn’t just a matter of the money. Your old equipment such as your GPS/plotter may have waypoints stored that are not easily transferred. Besides that, you know how to use the equipment you now have and may not look forward to having to struggle with a new method of operation. In some cases, however, you may have no choice when you find out that there are no longer any parts available for your equipment. So let’s consider the options and take a logical approach to the problem.
YOUR EQUIPMENT STOPS WORKING!
First, make sure it is a problem with the equipment and not your boat or your boat’s wiring. Check all connections for corrosion. Take note whether anything else stopped working at the same time. It is highly unlikely that two things will go bad at the same time unless you had a lightning strike. Did you recently make any changes on your boat such as changing a battery or alternator? Often times that will result in a temporary “spike” in voltage that could cause a fuse to “blow” or a circuit breaker to trip. Once you have narrowed the problem to the equipment itself, the next decision is whether or not to have it repaired.
SHOULD I GET IT REPAIRED OR REPLACE IT WITH A NEW UNIT?
When deciding whether or not to attempt to have the item repaired, it is wise to consider a few things. How old is the item? If it is 10 years old or more, the answer is simple. Do not get it fixed. Even if the parts are available, you will be “putting good money after bad”, as the saying goes, because the next part to go bad may not be available.
If it is newer than 10 years old, it is worth considering but still may not be the best solution. Is the manufacturer still in business? Is there a local repair shop that will take the item in for repair or do you have to send it to the factory? If you have to send it away, is the repair under a flat rate or on a case by case basis. If it is a flat rate, what is it and how long does it take? Keep in mind that, if you have to send it away, the manufacturer may reserve the right to replace it with another unit. In the case of a GPS/Plotter, you may then lose all of your waypoints. Will the repair shop take the equipment in for repair with a request to provide an estimate before proceeding? Once you have the price for the repair in hand, my suggestion is not to proceed if the cost is one third or more of the cost of a comparable replacement.
This brings up an obvious next consideration. If your equipment is old but still works, should you replace it anyway? I guess the answer to that rests largely on whether or not you want to spend the money. Strictly speaking, the equipment you currently have is only obsolete if it no longer does what you purchased it to do. Beyond that, certain advances in technology have improved equipment in many ways. Screen displays are easier to see in bright sunlight. Operation of equipment has been simplified. Newer case designs have made items waterproof or highly water resistant. Many new features have been added. Current drain has been reduced as well as physical size. Prices have also come down giving you more “bang for your buck”. So the choice is yours. If you can afford to buy new equipment and you don’t mind learning how to use new things, I would upgrade every 3 to 4 years.
Pat and her husband, Larry are owners of L&L Marine Electronics on Golf Course Road in West Ocean City, MD.
