I NEED SOME ADVICE ON OUTDOOR STORAGE

Due to lack of options (and of course, being a cheap a$$) I decided that I have to store my 2005 Wakesetter outside this winter. The boats already been winterized, and now I was hoping to get some tips/advice on the storage itself. So far, the plan is to clean & wax the boat, fold down the tower, put on the cover, and then cover the entire boat/trailer with blue tarps. Sound like a good idea? If not, let me know a better way please. Thanks guys...

.....my only thing about the blue tarps is that they dont breath and keep moisture in your boat especially when spring comes....I would make sure your boat is bone dry inside...and when things thaw out or things get wet during the winter to open it up and let it breath ....I used to always get mildew in my boat...but it wasnt stored at my home and i didn't get to it till may. So if you have your boat at home and keep an eye on it you should be okay.

That's what i did. However i did have some industrial size moisture packs that are 12" long and 8" diameter, i placed 6 of those around the boat. I also left the tower up to tent it and allow a bit of an air barrier of sorts. I used silver thinking a dark one will promote heat/condensation, who knows.

I wish I could get away with doing something similar, but my neighbors would complain to the HOA. If I bring my boat home for more then one day I usually end up getting a letter from the HOA reminding me that I cant store my boat at my house.

A Sunbrella cover & A dessicant tray like this http://www.drytheair.com/xcart/store/catalog/product_16134_DriZAir__Decorator_Unit_w__Tray.html
They say Sunbrella isn't 100% waterproof, but you could have fooled me.
I just bought a really nice cover from here, best price around http://skiboatcovers.com/
Sunbrella breathes, tarps don't.

(Message edited by pri3st on October 30, 2007)

Kevin, your right that a tarp won't breathe, that's why i covered it with the tower up to create an air space. With the tarp covering the guides it creates an air flow space on both sides allowing air to travel between the fender/guide areas. With my sunbrella cover on it keeps the dust out of the boat and the tarp keeps water off of the cover and keeps the sides of the boat and trailer from getting trashed. I did it this way last year and had not one bit of moisture or mildew in the boat.

I don't think I have a picture of it, but I had a custom boat cover made that goes over my tower. I had it made because I was once storing my boat outside, and it covered the entire boat, down to the trailer to reduce sun exposure. It also made it impossible to collect water. It is waterproof and it breathes and the whole thing only cost me $500. I had it made in Sacramento, the guy did an awesome job and the detail he took on the design was simply amazing. PM me if you want somoe details.

Razzman, you must have some very understanding neighbors.

If you cover it with tarp, you can put three or four jars of the damp rid, and you should be fine for avoiding moisture and mold.

Shrinkwrap! I paid about $350 last year to have it shrinkwrapped and the boat looked perfect when I took it off in the spring. They made it so I can reuse it for a couple years so I'm doing the same this year.
I did the huge tarp thing 2 years ago and I was constantly worrying about everytime there was a big storm or wind. Didn't worry about the shrinkwrap once.

Get a cheap RV cover off of ebay. I had one last year and it worked great. Make sure its breathable. Just clean your boat, put your cover on but not so snug, leave the tower up, then put the rv cover on. I had no water get through to the factory cover so it stayed nice. The only problem with tarps is if you dont get one big enough, you gotta overlap two or three which leave some seems for dirt and rain to possibly get threw.

Our boat lives outside, although it doesn't freeze down here in the Winter it does rain more days than the sun shines on average (we have 4 seasons in one hour sometimes in Auckland) It's usually covered with a tarp over the tower, we've recently had a new cover made since the original one leaked, so that goes on underneath the tarp. She's only 18 feet so a 5 x 3 meter (15 feet x 12 feet, give or take) tarp does it OK. Luckily we don't have the HOA here, so we can do what we like when we like and no one has an issue. I'm sure they're doing great things for property prices though.

if it rains and that tarp in on the fiberglass, it will discolor the gel. Had that happen once. The tarp will also sand down your gel when the wind blows.

I have been pondering between shrink wrap and paying for storage over the winter months. Both options cost about $300 if I keep the boat stored between December - March (4 months). If you live in the Louisville, KY area KY Boat Works stores 12 X 32 for $75 a month. Just store it there with some dessicant to absorb moisture and you don't have to worry about it being in your driveway.