How to store sails for the winter

[catalanc]

Hi all,
I am new to sailing and not sure how to store my sails for the winter. My 22 MKII has been winterized and shrink wrapped; I took most everything off the boat, including sails and cushions.
I was told by "a guy" at the marina that you can roll up the sails and then fold up for storage. I took a sailing class a couple of years ago and I remember a specific folding pattern for the jib (flake?) and then folding in thirds. Better than simply rolling and then folding? Same for the main?
I appreciate the advice ..
carlos

 

[CaptDon01]

Welcome to the MK-II family! I'm a trailer sailor and have a full batten main on our MK-II. So I simply leave it attached to the boom, and roll it up,(not rolled up around the boom). I secure it to the boom, place the sail cover back on, and remove the whole boom with mainsail and place it on the portside quarter berth. My jib is just folded and placed in the sail bag. It also sits on one of the quarter berths while the boat in in storage, or while being trailered. Look on Y-Tube and see if there is something on sail folding.

Here's a photo of our MK-II in Colorado on our trip home to San Diego from attending the 2013 C-22 Nationals in Florida. We stopped in Kansas to visit old friends and decided to take I-70 across to I-15 in Utah.

Don

 

[Henry Scurlock]

Although these instructions are for shipping it is a good method of flaking for storage too. It will be much easier to fold the main if you first remove the battens. Try to store them with the sail so they are easy to locate come springtime
http://sailcare.com/foldsend.shtml

 

[Parsons]

Things that kill sail (plastic) cloth -- sunlight, motion (continued luffing), creasing (tight folds), and mildew/mold. For your winter storage, you don't have to worry about the first two at all. If you don't pack your sail tightly in a bag, the creasing won't much trouble. I've heard experienced sailors insist on rolling all sails, but for me it is a matter of convenience (quickly folding) over sail longevity (I hate rolling!), and my sails are not that expensive that a few weeks less life is going to kill me.

For winter storage you must worry about things growing on them. Mildew doesn't damage Dacron sails, but it will discolor them and a pain to clean. If possible, clean prior to storage, but most importantly fully dry them. Store in a dry space with some airflow.You don't need to keep a fan blowing or anything, just dry. I prefer indoors in the basement because I worry about our temperature changes in the attic or garage. During the fall or spring daily temp changes, water condenses on some surfaces and this can feed mildew or even molds. My basement stays dry with an even temp, and the sails and other cloth (cushions, PFDs, covers, foulies, etc.) spend the winter down there.

 

[shemandr]

If you take battens out, mark them as to which pocket they go in and which orientation - bow vs. aft.

 

[$tingy Sailor]

My local sail maker recommends flaking first and rolling the result. I've found that to work really well at minimizing creases and the size of all my sails for easier storage in a lazarette so I can retrieve them from above deck. If I switch headsails while underway, I just stuff the unused one down the forward hatch and roll it properly later.

 

[Joe]

Flake, then roll. Do both as loosely as possible... the goal is not to induce creasing in the sail.
To flake, it's easier with two persons, lay the sail out.... one person at the tack the other at the clew... the tack side (luff) person is the leader, he places his hand about 2 feet up the luff from the tack.. this is the width of the first flake or panel... the other person mirrors this action... then both crew reach above this mark with their free hand to pull a section of sail down to the foot. Now you have the first flake.... continue making even sized flakes until the head is resting at the top of the last fold. Then starting at the clew.... roll the sail up loosely and insert it in the bag with the tack at the top.

When you remove the sail from the bag... you should be able to lay it on the deck.. with tack forward near stem, and the head easily visible.... the you can simply roll the sail out on the fore deck in position to bend on. If you are hanked... you attach the tack AND sheets, then straddle the sail as you clip on the hanks from bottom to top. You're ready to hoist. If your sail is on a foil then you can attach the halyard and sheets.. insert the luff into the pre feeder and simply hoist away.... the flaked sail offers no resistance.... A rolled sail will be more difficult to control during the hoisting process and the sheets cannot be attached until after it is unrolled.

 

[shemandr]

Let me emphasize Joe's statement that the person that the luff/tack person is the leader. So often I've flaked a sail with someone on the leech/clew who feels it is a collaborative effort. It isn't. The clew follows the tack. And the tack person pulls the flakes forward so that they are in a nice position to either hank on or feed into the foil groove. It's the same with the main but that's a whole different thread.

 

[catalanc]

Thanks for all the advise guys. Very helpful. One more question ... should I clean them first? If so, how?
Lots to learn.

 

[$tingy Sailor]

I describe how I clean mine in this blog post: Sail restoration. The barn is optional.