s/v Pacifico in summer storage mode
22 October 2014 | Barra de Navidad
Dave, clear, sunny, hot!
The last two weeks of April were getting pretty warm, actually hot with humidity building it was getting uncomfortable. I had the end of season "leave the boat" list from Mike and Julie of s/v Slacker as well as ideas from a few others and my own, but pretty well stuck to Mike and Julies list. I'd been working on the list for almost three weeks before leaving. I arranged with Pancho, one of the local boat workers to oversee the boat in the off season, to include periodic wash downs, bottom cleaning, run engine 2X monthly for half hour, check batteries, recheck dock lines and adjust as needed.
This is my list with their ideas and a few others all mixed in and I'm sure there are as many more ideas as there are boaters out there, but this is what I did to leave the boat in the tropics in hurricane season:
Pull and store all small electronics in oven and lower lockers with batteries removed.
Clean out refrigerator, ice locker and portable freezer, dry and prop open.
Put out buckets of dehumidifier, spares for periodic refills.
Wipe all surfaces with vinegar.
Clean and oil cabin sole (Pacifico has a natural teak and holly sole)
Fill and bleach water tanks.
Fill fuel tank and treat with biocide.
Empty and clean all deck jerry jugs, tether with cable and lock into cockpit.
Service outboard engine, chain lower case oil, lube oil in cylinder, drain carborrator and clean, dump (give away) any remaining gasoline.
Same for Honda Generator.
Remove all clothing, bag and close tightly.
Remove all food items, give away anything perishable. Bag remaining food stuffs.
Remove sails, clean, dry, fold and put below.
Remove all halyards and control lines threading with messenger lines, wash, dry and put below.
Remove all canvas, wash, dry and store below.
Clean and treat dinghy with 303 or similar, roll up and store on deck under tarps.
Clean all stainless steel.
Clean radar, cover with old t-shirt.
Remove BBQ, clean and store below.
Remove two of three solar panels, clean and store below.
Pickle water maker, drain lines.
Place all clothes, bedding and towels in vacuum bags for storage.
Spray with wd-40 and wipe down winches, cover.
Turn off gas.
Plug haus pipes, engine intakes.
Rig tarps to cover boat, tightly.
Bug traps.
Clean anchor chain and rode, dry and store, seal locker.
Lightly spray engine with wd-40, wipe down
All this and I had time for the pool in the afternoons too, of course it was getting to hot to do any more work, and I just finished in time to fly home April 30, 2014 from Manzanillo.
End of Season, to be continued!