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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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Boat Cover

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szymek
Navigator

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Canada
209 Posts

Initially Posted - 09/13/2013 : 11:48:26

I finally picked up my trailer and Shy Tuna is getting hauled out in October and will be stored outside till 2015 season.

That's a whole another long story.

Normally over the winter I would just cover the cabin, mostly pop top area and companionway, with a tarp. Now that she'll sit on a trailer for 1.5 years, I decided to pick up one of those nicer fabric covers. Well my first local quote that i got, I almost got a heart attack.

Quote I got:
- cover with frame $2300 (+13% tax)
- dinghy style cover $1400 (+13% tax)

So I decided to check south of the border. I see that CD has custom covers and I also found sailorstailor.com. Both are asking 870. That is still more than I thought.

I haven't called CD but I talked to Sailorstailor. Since I'm storing my mast on top of the boat, they can add attachments in the middle of the cover to tie it to the mast to create bit of a slope so water/snow is not just sitting on the boat.

Do any of you have cover made by sailorstailor?? How's the quality? Share some pics if you can please.

Any other place i should look at for boat covers?

Should i be concerned about material chafing against the boat and marking the fiberglass??

Daniel
Shy Tuna
1985 C-25: SR/FK/TR #4838

Edited by - on

dmpilc
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4593 Posts

Response Posted - 09/13/2013 : 14:36:45

You've got several options. One is to buy a heavy duty silver/brown tarp, approx. 30'x20', and plan on replacing it at least once over the 1.5 years, or 2-3 smaller ones. Example, one 8/10 on the deck over the main cabin and companionway, followed by a 20x12 over the mast beginning at the stern followed by an 8/10 over the front of the deck, both lashed to the trailer to maximize water run-off. Another is to go with a custom cover, and you already found out how much that will cost. Too much!! How often will you be able to/be interested in checking on the boat? another option to consider is to watch for a good bargain on a powerboat cover on Ebay to modify at your local canvas shop for the sailboat. I've done 2 of those, for about $150 each. On the downside, it will not cover the entire boat, but it will cover the main cabin, windows, companionway, and forward hatch, if you trim it correctly.

Edited by - dmpilc on 09/13/2013 14:38:38

britinusa
Web Editor

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USA
5404 Posts

Response Posted - 09/13/2013 : 15:45:49

We keep JD under wraps all the time when she is home (ie. when we are not on board JD on a trip)

Originally I used Harbor freight woven tarps, but they would wear out within about 4 months. Silver bits would cover the boat within a week of the boat being under an older tarp. So we would replace it 3 to 4 times a year and at $70 a pop that would quickly mount up.

Earlier this year, I purchased a Heavy Duty PVC Tarp about 30' by 20' with reinforced edges and nice brass cringles. So far it has fared very well.

I have noodles over the center stanchions and on the top (front edge) of the mast covering the deck light fitting. More noodles over the Cabin top to Cockpit sides tubing. In short, if it looks remotely sharp, it has a noodle.
Now, it did cost over $200! but I would be on my 3rd tarp by now, the Summer really breaks down those woven poly tarps. So I feel that we are about on the winning side of the equation at this point.

I don't have a frame over JD, but if I were considering having the tarp on for more a longer period, i would make one out of PVC tubing.

Now, have you considered loaning your boat out? Or is that a totally dumb idea?

Paul

Edited by - on

islander
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4024 Posts

Response Posted - 09/13/2013 : 16:44:48

You could look into shrink wraping the boat. It will last as long as you need it to and won't need any maintanance. Cost less than a custom cover but more than cheap tarps. The up side is you don't have to worry about it.

Edited by - on

bigelowp
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1776 Posts

Response Posted - 09/14/2013 : 07:04:53

If you shrink wrap -- which will last a couple of years -- make sure you include a "door" which is a zipper opening so you can get on board and inspect/deal with humidity issues, etc. Good shrink wrap people have neat venting options -- two vents should suffice.

Edited by - on

Dave5041
Former Mainsheet Editor

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USA
3758 Posts

Response Posted - 09/14/2013 : 07:48:09

I have used Sailorstailor for several products other than a cover, although I'm thinking about one. The workmanship is great, overall quality of the products is excellent, and they prices are fair for the work they do. They are a small business just a few miles from me and very pleasant and helpful. They are sailors and stay very busy with local racers; that means things can take a while during the season.

Edited by - on

Stinkpotter
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
9081 Posts

Response Posted - 09/14/2013 : 08:44:16

The gold standard in custom boat covers is [url="http://www.fairclough.com/"]Fairclough in New Haven, CT[/url]. Friends have gotten nearly 20 years out of one of their beauties, but the cost is somewhat commensurate.

Shrink wrap is the best protection--at least for the first year... It takes a pro with a propane heat-gun the first time. He'll include the appropriate vents. Then, if it's removed carefully, it can be put back on, but will not be the same tight fit. (...and it's a big hunk to store between uses.) 2-3 years is probably the most you'll get from a $400-500 initial job. I don't re-use mine because I have no reasonable way to store the cover and the frame.

A zipper door can be added to shrink-wrap at any time--it's taped in place on the finished wrap, and then the wrap is cut away inside the door.

I've tried poly-tarps, but only on smaller boats next to my garage. In a boatyard, I don't like the way the winter wind gets into them and chafes everything they touch (including the tarp itself). I left Passage uncovered, and shoveled snow out of the cockpit once in a while with a plastic shovel.

Edited by - Stinkpotter on 09/14/2013 08:58:21

Voyager
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
5377 Posts

Response Posted - 09/14/2013 : 19:03:12

Since I've inherited Passage, I've generally covered the cockpit from transom to the mast with a large tarp. One year I tried to cover the bow too, but the bow pulpit caught a lot of water.
I add a 4-6 foot extension to the boom to make it flush with the transom and create a framework made from 1" PVC pipe bent over the boom, tied down to the stanchions.
The pipes overhang the edge of the gunwales by a few inches so the tarp doesn't touch the fiberglass. I tie the tarp grommets with line and lead it inderneath the boat, so the bottom paint sometimes gets chafed. I do not tie the tarp to the poppets / jackstands, as this could be fatal. A big wind could pull the poppets out from underneath the boat. I also do not tie the tarp to the frame or to the stanchions. That could pull the frame out in a big blow.
I tie line between the ribs in a few places parallel to the centerline to keep the tarp from collapsing and catching the snow.

Edited by - Voyager on 09/14/2013 19:07:41

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2272 Posts

Response Posted - 09/14/2013 : 19:42:03

Dropping the mast should eliminate any need for a custom cover. The cheap ones don't last long, but I bought a couple heavy duty all-silver ones from [url="http://www.easternmarine.com/Silver-Poly-Tarps/"]Eastern Marine[/url] that have lasted me 3 winters, and may make it through a fourth. The larger one goes over the stern to slightly forward of the tabernackle, and the smaller one goes over the bow and slightly overlaps the larger one.

[url="http://www.easternmarine.com/Silver-Poly-Tarps/"]

[/url]

I use a saw horse to elevate the mast over the stern, and I made a PVC bracket to elevate the forward sections to make a nice tent:

Edited by - TakeFive on 09/16/2013 14:13:03

bear
Admiral

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USA
909 Posts

Response Posted - 09/15/2013 : 11:11:18

I left "Brandy" at the marina shrink wrapped for the first time last year. Benefits I found were, top side remained clean, no unstopping, stepping mast, cost of shrink wrapping mostly offset stepping mast costs. No more pulling snow off tarps, no worry about wind tearing tarps. Last spring shrink wrap taken off by marina, launched and sailed the next day.

Edited by - on

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

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USA
5902 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2013 : 08:52:05

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by szymek
 Do any of you have cover made by sailorstailor?? How's the quality? <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
I used to have my sails repaired at Sailors Tailor, and they did a great job on sail repairs. They are extraordinarily knowledgeable racing sailors themselves. I never saw their boat covers, but $870. sounds reasonable to me for a C25 cover, depending on the materials used to make it.

Covering my C25 with tarps was close to an all day job, and the tarps were usually ripped to shreds in the spring.

I have a custom canvas cover for my C&C 35, and it is about 11 years old, and still in very good shape, despite the fact that it went through last year's hurricane without damage. This year, for the first time, I am having the seams and zippers re-stitched as needed. (Just ordinary maintenance, not hurricane damage.) It takes me a little more than half a day to put it on in the fall, and about an hour to remove it, fold it and bag it in the spring.

IMO, If you intend to sell the boat anytime soon, then a custom cover probably wouldn't be economically justifiable, but if you plan to keep it for 10 years or so, it would probably be a very sensible expense, to protect the boat and to make it easier to cover and uncover.

Whether the particular cover you are considering is well designed and made of durable materials depends on the specs for each product. Ask the manufacturer to provide pictures of his product, specs for the materials, etc.

Edited by - on

glen
Captain

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359 Posts

Response Posted - 09/16/2013 : 13:13:24

Our Aqualon cover has been holding back the Michigan winters for about 20 years now

Edited by - on

szymek
Navigator

Members Avatar

Canada
209 Posts

Response Posted - 09/18/2013 : 20:42:13

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by britinusa

Now, have you considered loaning your boat out? Or is that a totally dumb idea?

Paul
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I don't think I would be able to sleep at night knowing that someone else is sailing my boat.

So that is not even an option for me. I can take the boat up to my family's farm which is about 65 km away from the lake - so free storage for as long as I want.

I've been really thinking of ordering that cover from Sailorstailer... just the cost is bit steep. 870 plus approx 45 for shipping to Buffalo plus 13% tax at the border. That's just over 1k for the cover.

I'm really starting to consider just picking up that silver heavy duty tarp - probably 20 x 30.

Rick: your cover looks really good! Do you have any issue with chaffing? marking fiberglass? or moisture issues??

Edited by - on

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2272 Posts

Response Posted - 10/01/2013 : 19:55:43

No problems with chafing in 3 seasons. There are a couple spots where the silver coating is coming off, leaving a little black showing. It is a very heavyweight cover, much more than the cheap blue tarps that you find. I prevent chafe by putting tennis balls over the stanchions (look closely and you'll see them in the pic), and also stapled carpet over the ends of my sawhorse in the cockpit.

Almost no problems with marking the fiberglass, because I keep the cover taught enough (lines and bungees under the boat from the grommets) that it does not vibrate in the wind. There may have been one or two times where a grommet rubbed the boat over the winter, but it polished off very easily.

I put a few DampRid canisters in the boat to knock out the moisture. The cover itself is open at the cockpit end, so there's plenty of air flow around the boat. Nicro solar vents will not work because the cover shades them. I don't have them anyway, using a 120v dehumidifier inside the boat while at the dock.

Edited by - TakeFive on 10/01/2013 19:57:39

TakeFive
Master Marine Consultant

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2272 Posts

Response Posted - 11/16/2013 : 20:54:54

Here's an update, with today's pictures:

I stepped the mast today with my gin pole, and put up my PVC pipe structure to hold the tarp. I'll probably wait a couple weeks before covering it, while I decide whether to get new tarps or try to get another year out of the the 3-year-old heavy duty silver ones that I already have. I'm also considering replacing lifelines and rebedding stanchions, and I would want to get those off before covering this year. Normally the cover goes over those things (tennis balls on top of stanchions to prevent chafe).

Here are pics of the PVC pipe to make a nice pitch on the bow of the boat, and the sawhorse that I use to support the mast and cover. Note the carpet pieces over the ends of all 2x4s to prevent chafe. Lowering the mast is a 3-step process: lower mast with foot in tabernackle into the mast support crutch, remove foot and walk the mast forward to the bow while mast rolls through the roller, then build the sawhorse under the mast and move it off the crutch onto the sawhorse. The sawhorse will not fit under the mast until the foot is moved to the bow:

<center>

</center>

Edited by - on

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