How to Prepare a Yacht for Transport

Yacht for transport via a yacht carrier is the best way to save it from wear and tear and bring it safely to its final destination.  Preparing a boat for this type of transport is an important part of the transportation process.

During the passage, the ship could encounter conditions that your boat is not used to.  The basic principle we recommend is to prepare your boat as if it will encounter rough seas and bad weather. Accordingly, we have prepared general guidelines for you to know to properly prepare your boat for transport.

General Guidelines to Prepare for Yacht for Transport:

Galley

• Most pleasure craft cabinetry is not designed for heavy sea conditions.  The latches are designed to keep the cabinet doors shut, not to keep the contents inside. Therefore, heavy objects can break the latches in sustained rough seas on a ship and fall to the deck and damage the teak or nearby valuables.

• If you have canned goods inside pantries and cabinets, you may want to consider placing them in cardboard boxes and setting them on the floor. Placing them in front of other cabinets is a good idea as they will keep the cabinets shut.

• Placing any gallery equipment (such as toasters, mixers and microwaves) into cardboard boxes on the deck is also a good idea to keep them from scratching fine finish work. If you prefer not to have cardboard on your vessel,  make sure you use some sort of chafing gear to cover the equipment to keep them from damaging fine finish work.

• Use 2” blue low tack tape to secure all cabinet doors, placing tape across cabinets opening in a multiple “X” fashion for best results.

• Make sure your freezer and galley doors are secure with their sea-latches.

• If equipment is not on the centerline of your vessel make sure it is properly secured (such as washers, dryers and dishwashers) to the deck or with heavy objects placed in front of them.

• Secure the under sink area, which includes cleaning products, cooking oils and fire extinguishers.

• Tie off or secure your dishwasher and stove, or place boxes in front to keep them from coming out.

Pilothouse

• Secure all cabinet doors and drawers with blue tape.

• If drawers or cabinets contain book/charts or other heavy items, please use extra care in securing and placing them in cardboard boxes on the floor.

• Remove and stow any loose navigation equipment, such as binoculars and handheld GPS, to keep them from falling and being damaged.

• Lock pilothouse chairs to keep them from swinging wildly.

• The pilothouse can become extremely hot during the passage, so please use extra shading to prevent excessive heat, taping brown paper to the inside of the glass works well or cover all navigation equipment with white sheets.

• Secure your under-helm area and remove any heavy objects that may fall onto your gyro or navigation equipment.

Engine Room

• Make sure tool boxes are secured to their bases or placed on the floor.

• Lock your tool box drawers or secure them with straps.

• Make sure bench equipment is secured or placed on floor.  This includes grinders, power tools and tool boxes.

• Make sure any books or manuals are secured or placed on floor.

• If any cabinets or drawers contain heavy items like liquids or tools, please use extra care in securing them.

• Secure water tight doors and hatches by locking or wedging.

• If you plan on using a cooling system make sure you have a through-hull open close by in the event of a leak.

• For cooking, secure/support supply and discharge lines to alleviate excess weight on cooling connections.

• Make sure your ventilation system is closed to prevent sea spray from entering the machinery space for extended periods.

• Make sure you have no loose items, such as 5 gallon oil buckets or scuba tanks, that could shift and damage your steering gear or autopilot equipment.

Salon

• Using moving blankets, place large heavy items in front of audio visual equipment that may come out of the cabinetry.

• Use rubber matting or tie downs to secure lamps, sofas, chairs, and tables.

• If your dining room table is not bolted to the floor, please use lashing and tie downs to prevent it from moving.

• Secure/bubble wrap your crystal, china, dishes and glass wear.

• Use extra caution in securing drawers or cabinets that contain heavy silverware or dishes.       • Bubble wrap bottles/blenders in your bar area and place in cardboard boxes on the floor.

• Lock and/or wedge any sliding doors or cabinets.

• Secure cabinets with 2” blue tape in a multiple “X” fashion.

• Use extra caution if you have sliding drawers that contain heavy items.

• Statues and sculptures that are not bolted down should be placed on floor and secured.

Flybridge and Exterior

• Secure antennas, canvas covers, chairs, life rafts and dinghies.

• If you have navigation equipment on your fly bridge tape the plastic covers on them to prevent from losing them.

• Sails in lazy jacks that are not removed should be carefully folded and secured by multiple straps.

• Take down any canvas or other exterior items that could tear or blow away in heavy winds.

• Fuel needs to be ¼ tank or less.

• Batteries need to be turned off.

We’re the Largest Yacht Carrier in North America

These are just general proactive guidelines and every boat is different.  Please feel free to call Cross Chartering Yacht Transport at 954-686-6902, request a quote or email us at yachts@crosschartering.com with any specific questions so our operations team can assist you with the proper preparation of your boat.

Cross Chartering Yacht Transport is one of the only yacht carriers servicing all segments of the yacht transport industry. We are the largest yacht carrier in North America and understand that your yacht is a prized possession, and we will treat her as such. We are confident that we will meet and exceed your transportation requirements.