Should I change my boat's engine oil at autumn haul-out or in the spring?

Always change engine oil and the oil filter before winter layup while the engine is still warm from the final run to the travelift. Fresh oil prevents acidic combustion residues from sitting on internal engine bearings over the winter.

What measurements should I write in my boat maintenance log before leaving the boatyard for winter?

Record your engine hours, raw-water impeller part number, primary and secondary fuel filter codes, alternator belt numbers, shaft and hull anode dimensions, hose internal diameters (ID) for stiff hoses, and antifouling paint brand and colour.

Autumn Boat Haul-Out Checklist & Winter Log

Every October, boat owners stand beneath their hulls in a chilly boatyard, point at a weeping rudder gland or a stiff galley seacock, and say the five most expensive words in boating: “I’ll remember that in the spring.”

You will not remember that in the spring.

By the first warm Saturday in April, six months of winter will have wiped your mental slate clean. You will drive to the boatyard with a thermos of coffee, climb the ladder into the cockpit, and realise you have no idea whether the raw-water strainer O-ring was 58 mm or 62 mm, which V-belt was squeaking on the final motor over to the travelift crane, or what size anode was fitted to the shaft. You will then spend two hours driving to the chandlery and back instead of working on the boat.

The difference between a chaotic spring refit and a calm launch happens on haul-out day—and it comes down to what you write in your logbook before closing the companionway hatch for the winter. Here is our seven-part haul-out checklist.

1. Final Engine Run & Fluids (On the Way to the Crane)

Your winter layup log starts before the travelift slings go under the hull, while your engine and gearbox are warm on the final motor to the lift dock:

Exact engine hours at haul-out (main engine, wing engine, and generator) for your annual tally.
Operating temperature and oil pressure at cruising RPM: Did it run two degrees warmer than in May? Note it so you know whether to descale the heat exchanger over the winter.
Warm oil and filter change: Changing engine oil before winter layup removes acidic combustion byproducts so they don’t sit on bearing surfaces all winter. Log the oil grade (15W-40), volume added, and filter part number.
Transmission / saildrive fluid: Check gearbox oil for any milky water emulsion (which warns of a failing shaft or saildrive seal while you have five months on the hard to fix it).
Coolant & raw-water winterisation: Record the hydrometer freeze rating (°C or °F) of the closed-cooling header tank, and log how many litres or gallons of non-toxic propylene glycol antifreeze were drawn through the raw-water intake until it ran pink out the exhaust.

2. Hull, Keel, Rudder & Underwater Gear on the Slings

The thirty minutes while your boat hangs in the slings by the pressure washer is the best inspection window of the year. Keep your logbook and a pencil in your pocket:

Hull & keel while wet: Inspect for osmotic blisters, keel-joint hairline cracks, or grounding scuffs while the hull is freshly washed, and sketch their locations on a hull diagram.
Cutlass bearing & rudder play: Push the tip of the propeller up/down and side-to-side to feel for cutlass bearing wear. Swing the rudder to check for play in the lower bearing.
Propeller & anodes: Log the percentage of each anode remaining (shaft, collar, prop cone, hull plate, bow thruster, saildrive ring). Write down the exact shaft diameter (mm or in) and anode model number so you can order replacements in January.
Saildrive hull seal date: Record the stamped manufacturing year on the rubber saildrive diaphragm.

3. Through-Hulls & Seacocks

Walk through the boat from bow to stern and operate every underwater valve:

Exercise every seacock: Open and close each valve. If the heads intake requires two hands and a wooden lever to budge, write it on the winter job list now—seacocks only ever get serviced when the boat is out of the water.
Hose tails, double clamps & strainers: Check for green corrosion, rusted hose clamps, or flattened raw-water strainer lid gaskets.

4. Plumbing, Freshwater & Holding Tank Winterisation

Frozen water expands by roughly 9% and cracks brass mixer taps, plastic accumulator domes, and macerator housings:

Freshwater system & calorifier: Drain the main tanks, bypass and drain the hot-water heater (after verifying the shore-power immersion breaker is switched OFF), and pump non-toxic potable antifreeze through every hot and cold tap—including the transom shower.
Heads, holding tank & bilges: Pump out the holding tank completely, flush winterising solution through the bowl and joker valve, and sponge the bilge sump dry.

5. Batteries, Shore Power & Electronics

Batteries don’t die of cold in January; they die of self-discharge when left partially depleted since October:

100% charge & resting voltages: Charge house and starter banks fully before disconnecting, then log each battery’s resting voltage (12.7 V+ AGM/lead-acid, 13.3 V+ LiFePO4) 24 hours later.
Isolate loads & check shore power: Note whether batteries stay aboard on float or go home to a frost-free garage, and inspect shore-power plug pins for black overheating marks.

6. Rigging, Sails & Canvas Removed for Winter Storage

Sails & canvas inventory: Log which sails, sprayhood, and cushions went to the sailmaker for washing and re-stitching vs which are stored at home, along with the sailmaker job ticket number.
Running rigging & masthead: Record which colour messenger line sits in each sheave slot, and if the mast is unstepped, inspect the Windex, VHF antenna, navigation lights, and split pins on the trestles.

7. The “Spring Parts & Measurements List” (Before Driving Home!)

Before you climb down the ladder for the last time, spend fifteen minutes with callipers and a tape measure, and write these exact numbers into your logbook:

Raw-water impeller part number (and whether you removed the impeller for winter).
Primary (Racor/CAV) and secondary fuel filter codes plus the alternator belt number.
Anode sizes and bolt-hole spacings (shaft diameter, prop nut cone, hull plate).
Hose internal diameters (ID) for any stiff sanitation, exhaust, or scupper hose (19 mm / 3/4", 25 mm / 1", 38 mm / 1-1/2").
Line diameters and lengths for any frayed halyard, sheet, or dock line.
Antifouling paint brand, colour, and number of tins used last spring.

Log It Properly in the Boat Maintenance Log

Scraps of masking tape and phone notes vanish by April. We built the Boat Maintenance Log (Boat Maintenance & Ownership Log, /products/boat-maintenance-ownership-log) on 100 gsm acid-free cream paper (160 pages) with dedicated haul-out checklists, engine service logs, rigging registers, through-hull maps, and spare-parts tables across five full seasons.

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