Leaving your boat for the winter: checklist and finding a boat-sitter

Go round the boat once with a notebook. Whatever you write down is what you can ask a boat-sitter to keep an eye on.

• Mooring lines and fenders: renew what is worn and add spare lines for bad weather.
• Bilge and pumps: check that they work and that the float switch is free.
• Batteries and shore power: charge, check the connections and note how the charger behaves.
• Engine: service it as usual and say whether it should be run while you are away.
• Gas, water and seacocks: close what should be closed and label what must stay open.
• Food and rubbish: take away anything that spoils.
• Deck: stow loose gear, sails and canvas, and tie down what the wind could take.
• Damp: leave the boat able to breathe, and say how to air it.
• Papers and valuables: decide what stays aboard and what comes with you.

Boat-sitting means a member looks after the boat while you are away. It comes in two shapes.

• Visits: someone who lives nearby checks the boat now and then, on the days you agree.
• Living aboard: someone stays on the boat. This only works where the marina allows people to live aboard, so ask the marina first.

A clear boat-sit gets better applications. Say what you need and how the stay is arranged.

• Pick the duties that matter from the checklist, and add a note for anything particular to your boat.
• Choose the arrangement: a free stay, shared costs such as electricity and berth fees, or a fee agreed privately between you.
• Say whether the boat-sitter lives aboard, and confirm that the marina allows it.
• Give the real dates, and say whether they can move.
• Insurance is your matter. Ask your insurer what your policy says about someone staying aboard, and agree with the boat-sitter what you have found out.

Each application shows the signs worth reading first, above the sailing CV.

• ID verification: whether the member has verified their identity.
• References and reviews from people who have worked or sailed with them.
• Boat-sits they have completed before.
• Their message: does it say how they would look after the boat and how reachable they will be?
• A call or a video chat before you decide, and a visit to the boat together if you can.

After you accept, you both read and agree a short summary. Then use the handover checklist.

• Keys and access: who holds them and what to do if one is lost.
• The marina office: tell them who will be aboard.
• Emergency contacts: share yours and a second person's in the chat, and say who to call first.
• Storm warnings: what to do to the lines, the deck and the bilge, and when to call you.
• Agree how often you will be in touch, and what counts as an emergency.
• When the stay ends, walk through the boat together or by video, and leave a review for each other.

• How boat-sitting works, and the questions people ask
• Costs and crew agreements
• How we vet members and passages