The Chief Stew hands you a blank sheet and says: write me the master suite deep clean. Not a list of rooms — a list of tasks a junior stew who has never seen this boat could complete without you standing over her, and that you can audit line by line afterwards.
What makes a checklist work
- Sequenced: high to low, dry to wet, dirty to clean.
- Specific: "wipe wardrobe" is useless. "Empty wardrobe, vacuum base and rails, damp-wipe interior with neutral cleaner, dry, replace cedar blocks, re-hang" is a task.
- Product-named: state the approved chemical and dilution. Ambiguity is how marble gets etched.
- Timed and owned: hours estimate, initials, date, sign-off.
Space-by-space content
| Space | Deep-clean priorities beyond the obvious |
|---|---|
| Master suite | Headboard and headlining, wardrobe interiors and safe, under-bed and bed base, mattress rotation, curtain headers, bathroom stone re-seal check, drawer runners, en-suite extract vents |
| Guest cabins | Same as master, plus mirror edges, bedside drawer interiors, hairdryer and safe function check, skirting and door tracks |
| Saloon | Under and behind sofas, cushion cores, sofa feet and floor beneath, art frames, curtain drops, lampshades, coffee-table underside, carpet extraction |
| Dining | Chair legs and feet (kick damage), table leaf mechanisms, under-table, sideboard interiors, glass and silver stores, table protection pads |
| Sky lounge | Headlining and alcantara panels, exterior door tracks and drains, sun-faded fabrics, bar fridges and drip trays, AV cabinet interiors |
| Gym | Equipment underside and rails, rubber flooring seams (sweat and salt), mirrors, sanitising regime, ventilation |
| Spa | Steam room and sauna wood, drains and traps, grout and silicone (mould), jacuzzi lines, plunge pool, towel stock rotation |
| Cinema | Seat mechanisms and upholstery, acoustic wall panels (dry brush only), AV vent filters, blackout curtain tracks |
| Crew areas | Mess and galley behind and under equipment, crew cabin mattresses, laundry lint and drains, gym and heads, bilge cleanliness under the deck plates |
Building the pack
- One checklist per space, versioned, dated, in the interior standards manual.
- A defect column on every sheet — the cleaner is your inspector, and they find things nobody else will.
- Photograph the finished standard and keep it as the reference image. A picture ends the argument about what "done" looks like.
- Store completed sheets. They prove the work, they support insurance and warranty claims, and they show a new Chief exactly where the boat stands.
Onboard Notes
- Crew areas get skipped and then become the mould, odour and pest source that contaminates the guest areas. Schedule them properly, not as an afterthought.
- Spa and gym are where hygiene failures actually hurt guests. Legionella, mould and skin infections all start in wet, warm, poorly drained spaces.
- Do not let a checklist become a tick-box ritual. Walk behind the sheet, spot-check three lines at random, and coach on what you find.