Hurricane season opened June 1, and if your boat lives in a slip anywhere from Aventura down to Key Biscayne, now is the time to get your plan on paper — not when a named storm is sitting over the Bahamas. We’ve spent 20+ years under Miami boats, including the cleanup seasons after the bad years, and the difference between owners who prepared in June and owners who scrambled in August shows up in their hulls, their props, and their insurance checks.
Here’s a practical checklist built for Biscayne Bay conditions — plus one step almost no Miami boat owner takes that can save you weeks on an insurance claim.
Why Miami Needs Its Own Hurricane Plan
Biscayne Bay is shallow. When a storm pushes Atlantic water into the bay, that water has nowhere to go but up and sideways — into marina basins, over seawalls, against pilings. For docked boats, surge does more damage than wind: it lifts hulls onto pilings, snaps lines that were tied too short, and drags everything that isn’t secured into the water. After every major storm, the bottom around Miami’s marinas is littered with dock boards, ladders, line, and rigging — and that debris is exactly what your propeller finds first when you head back out.
That reality shapes everything below: your dock lines need to be set for vertical surge as much as horizontal wind, and your post-storm routine needs to start below the waterline, not above it.
Haul Out or Ride It Out in the Water?
The classic Florida question, and there’s no universal answer. For boats in Miami-Dade and Broward, the decision usually comes down to five factors:
| Factor | Points toward hauling out | Points toward staying in the slip |
|---|---|---|
| Marina rules | Some Miami marinas require evacuation when a storm is named — read your dock contract this week, not in August | A protected basin with no evacuation clause and room to set long lines |
| Yard availability | You hold a guaranteed haul-out contract with a local yard | No contract — Miami yard space disappears within hours of a storm being named, so “I’ll haul if it gets bad” is not a plan |
| Dock type | Fixed docks with short pilings are surge traps; boats float up and land on them | Floating docks on tall pilings rise with the surge and keep your lines working |
| Boat size | Trailerable boats should always come out and go inland | Larger vessels often ride a protected slip with proper lines better than they sit in a crowded, exposed yard |
| Insurance | Some policies reimburse part of a hurricane haul-out — check yours now | If your policy requires a written named-storm plan, a well-documented wet-slip plan can satisfy it |
One honest note: hauling out is not automatically safer. A boat blocked ashore in a packed yard can be knocked over by a neighbor’s stands letting go. The goal in June isn’t to pick the “right” answer — it’s to decide, write it down, and know exactly which forecast triggers it.
The Wet-Slip Checklist
Dock lines and chafe gear
- Double every line. Two bow, two stern, doubled springs — independent lines to independent attachment points, not one long line doing two jobs.
- Go long. Longer lines stretch more and handle surge better. Short, tight lines snap or hold the boat down as the water rises.
- Chafe gear at every contact point. Chocks, hawse holes, piling edges. A line that survives the wind can still saw itself in half in six hours of working against bare fiberglass.
- Set for vertical rise. In Biscayne Bay, plan for the water level to climb. Tie to pilings as high as practical and leave room for the boat to come up.
- Check your neighbors. The best-tied boat in the marina can still be wrecked by the worst-tied boat next to it. Talk to your dock now.
Strip the canvas — all of it
- Bimini tops, enclosure panels, and sail covers come off. Canvas either becomes a sail that loads your lines or it shreds — there’s no third outcome.
- Headsails off the furler, mainsail off the boom for sailboats.
- Dinghy off the davits and stored ashore.
- Cushions, fenders-as-decoration, grills, paddleboards, anything loose: below or home.
- Fold antennas and outriggers down.
Batteries, bilge, and below-decks
- Charge batteries fully and test each bilge float switch by hand — lift the float, hear the pump. A storm-season bilge pump runs for days on battery alone.
- Clear strainers and limber holes so rainwater actually reaches the pump.
- Shut off every breaker that isn’t the bilge circuit.
- Close seacocks you don’t need; leave cockpit drains open.
- Photograph the boat, deck, and cabin, and take your registration and insurance documents home with you.
The Step Nobody Takes: Document Your Boat Below the Waterline
Every prepared owner photographs their boat before a storm. Almost nobody documents the half of the boat that’s underwater — and that’s the half that hits things when the surge starts moving debris around the basin.
Here’s the problem from the insurance side: after a storm, you tell the adjuster your prop was perfect and your rudder was straight. The adjuster asks how you know. If your last look below the waterline was at a haul-out two years ago, you’re negotiating from memory. A dated underwater photo and video record of your hull, propeller, shaft, struts, rudder, trim tabs, through-hulls, and zincs is proof of pre-storm condition — the kind of evidence that turns a back-and-forth claim into a clean one.
A clean hull matters here for a simple reason: you can’t document what’s buried under three months of growth. Our divers clean with wide-blade hand scrapers (never brushes — they just polish the fouling), then shoot the record while the bottom is actually visible. Every hull cleaning we do already comes with before/after photos as standard, so a pre-season cleaning doubles as your baseline file.
While the diver is down there, it’s also the right moment to check your anodes. Storm or no storm, going into the hottest months with worn zincs is asking for trouble — zinc replacement on the same dive costs you nothing extra in scheduling. And if your insurer wants something more formal, an underwater condition inspection produces documentation written for exactly this purpose.
Cost context, since we publish it anyway: hull cleaning runs $4/ft for boats 20–50 ft and $5/ft for 60 ft and up. On a monthly plan it’s discounted and auto-scheduled — which means your boat enters every storm of the season with a recent cleaning and a recent photo record without you thinking about it once.
After the Storm: Look Down Before You Turn the Key
Surge rearranges the bottom of every marina it touches. What we find under boats after Miami storms, year after year: dock lumber wedged against rudders, stray lines and trap gear wrapped around props, blades dinged by debris that was floating two days earlier, and silt packed into raw-water intakes. Start the engine in that condition and a survivable week turns into a yard bill.
- Don’t run the engine until someone has physically checked the prop, shaft, and intakes. A running gear inspection and cleaning takes a fraction of the time a bent shaft takes to fix.
- Get damage on video immediately. If something did hit your boat, underwater footage taken days after the storm — compared against your pre-storm baseline — is the strongest claim file you can hand an adjuster.
- Check the zincs and through-hulls while the diver is down. Storm debris scrapes paint and knocks anodes loose more often than owners expect.
Your June Timeline
Do this week:
- Read your insurance policy: named-storm requirements, haul-out reimbursement, deductibles.
- Get your marina’s hurricane plan in writing — policies differ a lot across the Miami marinas.
- Buy chafe gear and extra lines now. They sell out the day a storm gets a name.
- Service batteries and hand-test every bilge float.
- Schedule a hull cleaning with underwater documentation so your baseline is on file before the first system forms.
When a storm is named: strip canvas and deck gear at 72 hours, double lines and set chafe gear at 48, final photos and breakers at 24 — then go home. No boat is worth riding it out aboard.
After it passes: inspect below the waterline before the engine turns, and file with evidence instead of estimates.
We work the slips and docks across Miami-Dade and Broward — Dinner Key, Miami Beach Marina, Key Biscayne, Coconut Grove, and 60+ marinas in between. See the full service area, or browse common questions in our FAQs.
Get Storm-Ready Now, Not in the Cone
A pre-season cleaning plus an underwater photo record is the cheapest insurance paperwork you’ll ever file — and you pay after the service, with before/after photos on every job. Book online, or reach us directly — Calls: (305) 978-1440 · WhatsApp (instant quotes, fastest response): (786) 756-0304.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I haul out or leave my boat in the water for a hurricane in Miami?
It depends on five factors: your marina's rules, whether you hold a guaranteed haul-out contract, your dock type (floating docks on tall pilings handle surge far better than fixed docks), boat size, and your insurance policy's requirements. Trailerable boats should always come out. Larger vessels often ride a protected slip with doubled, chafe-protected lines better than a crowded yard. Decide and write the plan in June.
When should I start preparing my boat for hurricane season in Florida?
Now. Hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30, and the supplies and services you need disappear fast once a storm is named — chafe gear sells out, yard haul-out lists close within hours. In June you should read your insurance policy, get your marina's storm plan in writing, buy lines and chafe gear, service batteries and bilge floats, and put a pre-storm hull condition record on file.
What is pre-storm underwater documentation and why does it matter?
It's a dated underwater photo and video record of your hull, propeller, shaft, rudder, struts, through-hulls, and zincs taken before storm season. After a storm, adjusters ask for proof of pre-loss condition — and most owners only have memories. A clean hull plus documented footage establishes a baseline, so any storm damage found afterward is easy to demonstrate and claims move faster.
What should I check on my boat after a hurricane passes?
Check below the waterline before you run the engine. Storm surge moves debris into marina basins, and the common post-storm finds are lines wrapped around props, dock lumber against rudders, dinged blades, and silt packed into raw-water intakes. Have a diver inspect the prop, shaft, intakes, and zincs first, and get any damage on video while comparing against your pre-storm record.
How much does hull cleaning cost in Miami?
Aqua Pro publishes its pricing: $4 per foot for boats 20 to 50 feet, and $5 per foot for boats 60 feet and up. Monthly maintenance plans are discounted and auto-scheduled, which means your boat goes into every storm of the season with a recent cleaning and a recent before/after photo record already on file. You pay after the service is done.
