Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

Skylark · 2004-10-29 12:55:02

Hi,

Not really a C&C 27 specific topic but figured I'd collect some input on subject from the list.

Round here, there's a bit of a split in opinion concerning those of us that must leave our boats out doors on the hard over the winter. Some say tarps find a way to come loose and really do more harm than good flapping against your boat. Others say you shouldn't leave your deck exposed over the winter -- actually this seems to be the majority.

Just wonder what those on list in more northern latitudes have to say on subject.

Robert
Mk V #18 "Skylark"
Lake Winnipeg, Manitoba

Last edited by (2004-10-29 12:55:45)

KenPole · 2004-10-29 13:37:53

The overwhelming majority among more than 500 boats at the Nepean Sailing Club, including more than 40 C&C models up to 33 feet, is in favour of tarps. If well secured, they post no threat to topsides and, in the case of any boat with cored decks, are considered a must. Some of our owners have the full Keeble Cover assembly while others range from generic poly tarps to hay tarps. The latter cost $200 (25x30) here in Ottawa but if well secured and looked after should last at least several years if not a decade. Mine goes on tomorrow.
Ken Pole
Santiva
Ottawa

2004-10-30 02:26:30

My two cents is that a winter cover is beneficial to a boat if it is done properly, and can damage a boat if not. At my yacht club in Toronto, come spring you can always see a few tarps flapping away and beating on the boats, sometimes even threatening a neighboring boat! But there are also many covers that have kept their boats "snug as a bug in a rug" over the winter. Owners seem to be split about 50-50 on covering their boats. After many years of not covering my boats, I have recently started covering. I built a good frame and use an extra heavy weight tarp well secured. One advantage is that it makes it easier to work on the boat over the winter.

Aragorn · 2004-10-30 02:43:38

My 2 cents worth is biased because my boat has been painted (Imron) and I've found that this paint abrades from a loose tarp quite easily. Having said that, I don't like the idea of the cockpit drains freezing full and having ice build up in the cockpit. I've compromised-- I build my frame, designed to cover the aft 1/2 of the boat, right after haul-out, while the weather is still nice, I but don't actually tie the tarp on till the weatherman indicates a need to (late Nov?). I live a block from BYC so I check the tarp a few times a month over the winter and get it off early in the spring. I favour tarping in a tent shape with both ends wide open to encourage air flow while the boat is covered.
Clare Jordan - Aragorn

davidww1 · 2004-10-30 08:38:33

Tarp for sure.

Something I once read suggested that you should not unnecessarily expose a part of your boat that is hard to replace or repair if it can be protected with something that is relatively easy to replace. The writer in this case was talking about suncovers as protection against damage from tropic sun, but might as well have been talking about tarps, snow and ice.

The greatest worry of course is that our normal freeze/thaw cycles would allow water between the deck and a fitting, that freezing would expand the gap and suddenly you've got water in your deck core. There is also the concern (mentioned elsewhere, and the effects of which I have seen) of that same freeze/thaw cycle cracking a cockpit drain fitting or the seacock it connects to.

I close my tarp up as tightly as I can to keep the wind from getting inside it and setting it flapping (which is bad for tarp and boat). I reckon that even when it's as tight as possible, there's probably at least a square foot of "ventilation" in the form of gaps of one sort or another. I also have a winter companion slide that's basically a frame for wire mesh – it lets fresh air in and keeps the coons out. Whenever I've visited the boat in winter, I've seen no sign of condensation.

An aside about boats painted with linear polyurethane paints like Awlgrip and Imron: a neighbour claims that a shrinkwrap cover damaged his finish, first from the installer's heat gun and second from the poly rope chafing against the paint surface.

David Weatherston
Towser, Toronto
C&C 27 Mk IV

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#1 2004-10-29 12:55:02

Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

#2 2004-10-29 13:37:53

Re: Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

#3 2004-10-30 02:26:30

Re: Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

#4 2004-10-30 02:43:38

Re: Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

#5 2004-10-30 08:38:33

Re: Opinion survey Tarp v. No Tarp

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