Storm and absence checklist for boats in slips

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• Sign up for weather alerts and check the forecast^[1]National Weather Service alerts and the Coast Guard's Local Notice to Mariners.
• Double up dock lines and add long spring lines^[2]Long springs keep the boat centered while it rises and falls with the water.
• No line on a ring or fitting that can jam on a piling at extreme high or low water^[2]Boats left unable to move with the tide get caught under the dock.
• Chafe gear wherever a line crosses a chock, edge or another line
• Fenders set for the boat's lowest and highest positions
• Bilge pump and float switch tested; batteries charged^[2]
• Cockpit drains and scuppers clear
• Canvas, biminis and loose gear removed or tied down; furled sails wrapped and tied
• Shore power cord off the water, not pinched, ends in good condition^[3]No household extension cords.
• Trailerable boat: on the trailer if strong wind is forecast^[2]If it must stay in, bow toward open water with the cover on.
• On king tide days, check the gangway, finger and line length at the high and the low^[4]

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• Someone checks the boat on a schedule and after every storm^[1]Fill in the boat-watch contacts below and give a copy to the harbor office.
• Stuffing box and below-waterline fittings checked before you leave^[2]Slow failure of parts below the waterline is the most common reason boats sink at the dock.
• Seacocks you won't need are closed (leave cockpit drains open)
• Bilge pump on automatic, charger on, battery switches set
• Heaters and other appliances off; fuel, propane and water pump off per your manual
• Hatches and ports closed and latched; wheel or tiller secured
• Holding tank pumped out
• Hull cleaning booked to continue (copper paint: state guidance is no more than once every 30 days)^[5]
• Food, valuables and loose electronics taken home
• Harbor office knows how long you're away and how to reach you

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• Lines, chafe gear and cleats checked again^[1]
• Bilge water level normal; pump not running constantly
• Shore power and pedestal look undamaged (don't touch anything that's in the water)^[3]
• Damage photographed and reported to your insurer and the harbor