Equipment, hours and parts.

How to · 5 November 2026

The equipment screen is where a boat's engines, generators, thrusters and toys live, with their serial numbers, hours and parts. It is also what keeps the checklist honest. This guide covers adding and removing equipment, logging engine and generator hours, and recording parts. How service intervals and the dash QR code work is in the QR code and maintenance log article.

Open the equipment screen

Open the boat, tap Menu, and under the boat's tools tap Equipment. The screen says what the boat carries. At the top it counts systems, toys and parts. A viewer can look at it but cannot change anything.

There are three sections:

• Systems decide which checkpoints appear on the boat's checklist. Engines, generators, thrusters and air conditioning go here.
• Hidden aboard is for things that are located but never checked, such as tanks, strainers and seacocks. It records what it is and where, so a new crew member does not have to phone someone.
• Toys and tenders do not add checklist questions, but they are serviced and insured like anything else, so their serial numbers live here.

Add a unit

1. In the section you want, find the box that says Type what it is, eg generator. Start typing and matching kinds appear as buttons. Tap yours.
2. If it is not listed, tap + Add with what you typed. Say whether it is "A unit, with a make, model and serial" or "A wear item, just when it was last done," then tap Add it.
3. Fill in the make, model and serial number. If the boat's company has already recorded that model on another boat, Pick a model from your library fills the make and model in one tap, and the service schedule comes with it.
4. For engines and generators, use the buttons to say which one it is, and optionally add the year, a name and where it is aboard.
5. Tap Add.

When you first add a boat, the form also lists what a boat of that make and model usually carries, so you can tick it and have the checklist fit from the start. That is covered in setting up your first boat.

Each unit can also hold a Warranty: when it expires, who to call, the policy or registration number and what it covers. The expiry shows on the unit's row.

If the boat does not have something, you do nothing. Equipment the boat does not carry never turns into a question. There is no N/A answer, because the equipment list is how a boat says what it has.

Change, replace or remove a unit

Each row has buttons on the right.

• Edit changes any of the details.
• Service opens that unit's service schedule and log.
• Replace is for when a unit comes off and a new one goes on. Confirm with Replace equipment. The old unit moves under Replaced with the date, so the boat's history keeps what came off.
• Remove archives the unit. It is not deleted, and its checklist questions stop appearing. Use it when the boat really no longer carries the thing.

Log engine and generator hours

Each engine and each generator keeps its own hours. A twin boat has two meters and a generator has a third, because they do not run the same amount. There are three places to put a reading in.

1. During a check. When the checklist asks for engine hours, it shows one box per engine and generator, labelled the way you named them. Type the number from the meter. Decimals are fine.
2. When you log a service. On the unit's Service screen, tap Log a service, say what was done, and type the Hours if you read the meter today. The screen shows the last reading underneath. If you leave the box blank, no reading is saved, so an old number never gets stamped with today's date by mistake.
3. During setup. Setup asks for Engine hours (optional) and a Photo of the hour meter. YachtGrade reads the number off the photo and tells you to check it before you save. If it cannot read the meter it says so, and you type the hours.

Hours matter because services come due by hours or by months, whichever comes first. The Maintenance screen shows "{hours} hrs on {date}" next to what is due. The article on maintenance by hours and months goes through that.

Record a part

The Parts section, which Find parts in the Menu jumps straight to, records things like filters, belts and batteries. Recording a part never changes the checklist.

1. Tap Scan a part and take one photo of the label, or of a number stamped into the part. Tap Take the photo.
2. The photo is saved on the phone and read when it uploads. You are never held up. With signal, the confirm screen opens when the reading is back. Without it, the part waits under Parts to confirm.
3. Check the brand, model, serial number and part number, say where it is and when it was installed, then tap Save part.

No label? Tap No label? Add it by hand. If a photo does not say when it was taken, you are asked what day it was, and that is recorded as the day the part was first seen. On a recorded part, Find it online looks up to three stores, cheapest first, and each result has a Buy link. It is hidden from viewers.

Common questions

Where do I find the equipment screen?
Open the boat, tap Menu, then Equipment under the boat's tools. Find parts in the same Menu goes straight to the Parts section.

How do I stop asking about equipment the boat no longer has?
Tap Remove on its row. The unit is archived, not deleted, and its checklist questions stop appearing. If it was swapped for a new one, use Replace so the old one stays in the boat's history.

Do engine hours update on their own?
No. You type them during a check or when you log a service, or read them from a photo of the meter and check the number. The Hours box on Log a service left blank saves no reading.

Why do twin engines have separate hours?
Each engine and generator has its own meter and its own duty cycle. YachtGrade records them separately, so service comes due on each one's own hours.

Does adding a part change the checklist?
No. Parts are a record of what is aboard. The checklist is built from the Systems on the equipment list.

I cannot add or change anything.
A viewer account can look at the equipment screen but not change it. Crew roles can add and edit.

If you have not walked the boat yet, start with walking the boat during setup, which builds most of this list for you. For the dates side of the boat's paperwork, see documents and renewals.

More how-to guides

• Getting started with YachtGrade
• Put YachtGrade on your home screen
• Trouble signing in
• Join your company from an invite
• Settings and language
• Add a boat and build its equipment profile
• Set up a boat by walking it
• Documents and renewals
• Photos and the cover photo
• Set up a boat inspection checklist
• Run a boat inspection on your phone
• Photos and answers with no signal
• How the boat health score works
• Show boat owners what changed
• QR codes and maintenance by engine hours
• Findings and the to-do list
• Finish a check and send the report
• Answer checks by voice
• Photos not uploading
• Make a fire and safety plan
• Maintenance schedules
• Add techs and set permissions
• Teams and assigning work
• Schedule visits on the calendar
• Send owners a list to approve
• Give boat owners access
• Vendors and estimates
• Customize checklist templates
• Your logo and email on reports
• Fleet trends and reviews
• Export your data and billing
• Remove or archive a boat
• Common questions and fixes

YachtGrade was designed by a USCG 100-ton captain who spent five years managing, detailing, running and selling boats in South Florida, after four years building IT systems for businesses. Who built it →