The 40-seat waka Nga Tukemata o Kahungunu that spends most of its time in the Clive River was removed on Monday for maintenance.
Jim Edwards built the waka for educational purposes in the early 1990s, and his wife Marie Edwards said it was taken out of the water about once every two years to be checked over and repaired.
"They deteriorate when they are sitting in water over time - when it's out at our yard in Clive it gets water blasted and sanded down and generally fixed up."
The waka was named after the vocational trust the Edwards ran, supporting people with a permanent disability and/or head injury, and she said clients of the trust were heavily involved in the repair work.
"They have all been involved in all aspects, and its changed some of those people completely, it's given them confidence."