Below are many, but certainly not all of the topics about boat life that we can demonstrate and discuss with you if you’re considering buying your own boat – or simply interested in what it takes to look after a boat. They’re also the bare minimum of things to consider, become familiar with, and preferably be on top of, when owning a boat.
It can take years to master many of these routines, or work out what you can learn for yourselves, what you need to take advice on, watch a YouTube video about, or get professional assistance with.
As experienced sailors, we’re happy to show you the ropes and talk about some of the things we do on Sea Pearl that you don’t have time to cover in sailing school – or even know they are part of what makes the liveaboard lifestyle so wonderful, including how it can vary on your own boat.
- Anchoring
- Anti-fouling & sacrificial anodes
- Are your solar panels giving you enough power on cloudy days
- Avoiding bad weather
- Battery & power management
- BBQ on deck
- BBQ on the beach
- Boat & Marina etiquette
- Cleaning & polishing gelcoat, stainless steel, teak & canvas
- Communications, radio and internet access
- Cooking on passage
- Customs clearance
- Daily equipment checks
- Dealing with sea sickness and how to avoid it
- Deploying and storing the dinghy
- Deploying and storing fenders
- Emergency procedures
- Entering & leaving a marina
- Fishing, landing and filleting fish
- Food hygiene in hot climes
- Food storage
- Furling & unfurling sails
- General Safety
- Generator and loads
- Hauling out preparations
- Helming & using the auto pilot
- How & when to use
the water maker - How & where to find local information
- How to choose an anchorage
- How to safely move around the moving boat
- How to use an electric toilet
- Keeping watch
- Lifting points & travel lift in the boat yard
- Loading & using an electric winch safely
- Maintenance – minor
& major - Passage planning
- Picking up a mooring ball
- Preparing & cooking fish
- Preparing food to eat on passage
- Preparing the boat for a passage
- Provisioning
- Q flags & courtesy flags
- Sail maintenance & valeting
- Sail trim
- Snorkelling & exploring
- Storage of everything
- Swimming at sea and with current
- Tacking & gybing
- Throwing ropes & tying knots & cleat hitches
- Trash recycling & management
- Using the dinghy
- Using Eco friendly cleaning alternatives
- Washing dishes on passage
- Washing down your boat
- Watch systems on longer passages
- Water management & how to use less water
- Weather routing
- What sails to use when
- What to cook when
- What to do when anchors drag
- When to be at anchor & when to use a marina
- Winterizing your boat on the hard standing
Please let us know when you book, which of these subjects you are particularly interested in, so that we can prepare some more in-depth information for your stay. For the most part, even if we’re not demonstrating these skills on a daily basis, we can certainly discuss any of them over a cockpit meal.