It was with much guilt, just before the lock down, I put the sails on the spars of Mirage at Cobbs Quay marina (with a view to delivering her back in a couple of weeks time from that point to Chatham) without greasing either the Mainsail furler or the Genoa furler, as I was short on time and the conditions were windless and perfect for getting the sails on.
That got me thinking - what other annual maintenance jobs do you do to keep your Bavaria in good order? The sheaves that run the lines aft, for instance? Do you oil those?
- Grease Roller furling gear, main and genoa.
- Service engine, change filters etc.
- Service saildrive by changing its oil. How often do you change seals?
- Service fresh water system by empty it at the end of the season, then running Puriclean through it at the start of the season (if required, if its been used over the winter it may not be necessary).
- Servicing the winches every other year?
- What do you do to service the seacocks? One of mine, the seacock to the saildrive, is already seized when I bought her. Someone I only noticed it when I launched else I would have sorted when out of the water.
Standing rigging: Inspect everything for corrosion, cracks, check pins, spot any obviously wrong tension, grease backstay tensioner (the winch handle operated types), check sealant around chainplates.
Running rigging: Clean ropes, inspect, replace as needed. Make sure all sheaves turn easily.
Furlers: Inspect and grease. Check for wear on furling lines, especially Furlex, where the knot holds it on the drum.
Teak trim: Sand to key and apply a few coats of varnish over the old where worn through or UV damaged.
Teak deck: Throw it in the bin! (Ok, that's on the todo list still). If yours is still worth keeping, re-caulk the seams were needed, cut down the proud ones, clean gently with a soft sponge or cloth and apply anti-fungal agent (mostly needed in cold/wet climates - in the Med we hardly need it anymore).
Sails: Drop and inspect carefully, repair lose/broken/damage stitches. This is key to avoid much more extensive damage later.
Engine: Service as per schedule. MD22: Remove exhaust elbow connector piece, inspect and replace as needed (stainless version available from parts4engines). Check hoses for leaks or crinkling sound when squeezed. Investigate any oil drips you find.
Diesel tank: Pump up the bottom sump and filter out dirt/debris until only clean diesel comes up.
Saildrive: During haulout, replace oil (from bottom drain!), clean and paint. Replace seals. Check shaft for wear on the seal area, Speedi-sleeve if needed. Re-assemble with waterproof grease on splines, Loctite on bolts. Replace anode(s).Flush water channels with mild acid (vinegar, etc). Inspect seacock for galvanic corrosion or difficulty turning.
Interior: Varnish as needed. Clean bilges (lots of dust/crumbs end up in ours, even though I've taped black bin liner under the finger holes).
Paperwork: Renew passports, credit cards, registration, driver licenses, and any other permits/paperwork so it won't expire mid-season. Sort out last years paperwork/invoices and file/bin. Inform insurance of changes in cruising area.
Plumbing: Clean and disinfect freshwater tanks and the whole pump/piping system.
Watermaker: Pickle in autumn, unpickle and replace filters at start of cruising season.
Canvas: Check for worn thread and re-sew as needed. Wash with soap and brush, then apply UV waterproofing.
Stainless: Polish all the things!
Gelcoat: Repair any marks/cracks that go through to the laminate.
Electronics/Computers: Do software updates and make sure everything still works after. Do this at the end of the season so you have time to fix anything that didn't go well. Update charts at beginning of season so they're current. Order the pilot books you need for the new season.
Dinghy: Wash, dry thoroughly and stow.
Winches: Service. Cover when not in use for a while.
Other: Refresh-charge all the NiMh batteries in various things (handheld radio, milk frother, shaver, etc.).
That should keep you busy during winter, and I'm sure I forgot at least half of it :-) Not all of it is strictly done annually, many things depend on use, location and conditions.
For example winches are serviced as needed, which depends not just on how much use they see, but also how much dust, salt and dirt gets in them. Some places have a lot of airborne dust, which means winches need servicing often as the grease turns gunky and abrasive.
Last year we had a bad Meltemi season, which meant it was very warm and often rough and salt-water constantly got sprayed everywhere, instantly drying and leaving vast quantities of salt deposits everywhere, so the stainless rusted like mad and needed a lot more cleaning and polishing. In the Med the UV is high and things need re-caulking more often.
In the UK this was not a problem, but instead we were dealing with green growth on deck and condensation below from moist and cold weather.
So just keep an eye open and notice when something needs doing
