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A sailing boat ashore under a fitted cover with a ridge pole, frost on the cradle

Magazine / Series

Laying up a boat for winter: from lift-out to spring

Laying up a boat for winter starts at the lift-out and only really ends in spring. In between are the months when nobody is aboard and plenty still goes wrong: a prop settles, a charger runs the wrong profile, mice find the cushions, the yard opens up the engine.

This series puts our articles in the order the season runs, from lift-out to spring. Each part stands on its own, and each one explains which questions decide a claim if something does go wrong.

10 articlesNAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH

Articles in this series

  1. A sailing boat ashore under a fitted cover with a ridge pole, frost on the cradle Part 1 of 10· 6 min Laying up: what actually matters in October The order to work in when laying a boat up, and the three omissions that turn out most expensive in spring.
  2. A sailing yacht hanging in the slings of a boatyard travel lift above the hardstanding, water dripping from the weed covered underwater hull, keel, rudder and propeller exposed. Part 2 of 10· 8 min Lifting out: the three minutes when the whole boat is visible Autumn lift out is the one hour when keel, rudder and shaft are exposed. What to read in a hull wording before the slings go on, and what to photograph.
  3. A well kept white motor cruiser with a small wheelhouse moored at a wooden waiting pontoon in front of a closed old stone lock, autumn leaves on the planks and the water, light mist and willows on the bank Part 3 of 10· 7 min The delivery trip to winter storage In October many boats make their own way to the yard for the winter. Which parts of a hull policy decide a loss on that trip: area, condition, lights, stops.
  4. An unstepped aluminium mast of a sailing yacht resting on wooden trestles in an autumn boatyard, with a hull on a steel cradle behind it and coiled shrouds and turnbuckles laid out on a tarpaulin. Part 4 of 10· 9 min Unstepping the mast An unstepped spar spends the winter beside the boat. What to look for in a hull wording about rigging ashore, theft of loose parts and wear.
  5. White sailing yacht ashore in autumn, seen from below: the keel rests on timber blocking, three steel stands with screw spindles hold the hull and are tied together with rope, wet gravel with leaves and puddles in front, two covered boats by a fence behind Part 5 of 10· 7 min Boat fallen off its stands A boat falls off its stands in winter storage. What hull wordings say about storm, accident, upkeep and seasonal cover, and what to record.
  6. View into the open floor hatch of a white electric boat on a trailer in a storage hall: a flat battery pack in an aluminium case on timber bearers with orange high voltage cables, a black charging cable running from a socket over the side, covered boats behind Part 6 of 10· 8 min Charging through the winter A lithium pack laid up for winter has to be charged, and charged properly. Which electric boat clauses decide a battery fire or deep discharge claim.
  7. Engine compartment of a well kept sailing yacht laid up ashore: a grey wiring loom beside the diesel engine, one cable gnawed down to the copper strands, a nest of shredded foam and fibres tucked behind it, daylight falling through an open hatch. Part 7 of 10· 7 min Mice and mould in winter storage Mice nest and mould grows under the winter cover. Why hull wordings usually exclude both, and where electric boats and fires can be treated differently.
  8. White motor cruiser with a cockpit cover at a wooden pontoon in winter: thin ice on dark water, the black hose of an air bubbler keeping a patch open beside the hull, frost on the planks and mooring lines, bare trees and covered boats behind Part 8 of 10· 7 min Leaving the boat afloat for winter Keeping the boat afloat over winter: where ice, frost, storms, long absences and seasonal contracts show up in a hull wording.
  9. Boatyard shed in autumn: a sailing yacht wrapped in plastic sheeting stands on steel stands and timber blocking, in front a workshop trolley with an angle grinder, a coiled orange extension cable and sanding discs, sanding dust on the concrete floor, a covered motor boat behind Part 9 of 10· 7 min Boat damaged at the yard during winter work A yard damages your boat during winter work. What hull wordings say, what the repair contract covers and what to record first.
  10. Winter storage shed with a concrete floor: a white cabin motor boat on a galvanised trailer with a large new grey outboard on its transom, in front on a wooden pallet the older outboard just removed, its propeller worn, with loose bolts, a tool case and a torque wrench Part 10 of 10· 7 min Refitting a boat over winter A new engine, battery bank or drive fitted over winter: when a refit increases the risk, what to tell the insurer first and what to check.

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