Keeping Cockpit Clean in the Winter

[csobalvarro]

The rains have finally started here in the Bay Area. I checked out my boat to see how she'd weathered the first couple of storms. The good news is she's all dry inside -- YA! But she had collected some water in the cockpit, which has gotten pretty dirty and nasty in the sun. I tipped the trailer back a bit, so the water drained. But I expect more of this kind of on-deck muck in the coming months. What's the best way to prevent this, or at least clean in up? I've heard covering the boat can actually be worse due to trapped moisture. Just trying to keep her as "ship-shape" as I can.

 

[novelman17128]

clean boat

I cover my boat with a plastic tarp, leaving small openings at each end. I buy the BROWN plastic (much stronger than the cheaper blue.) I get mine at Wal-mart for about $25 and it lasts 6-12 months in the high desert, even with heavy rain and nightly winter freezing. I have a 22' Venture on a trailer in my yard.Novelman

 

[CP-Mike]

still not buying the tent argument.

I don't get it. Where do you put the sandbags? Hang them from the edges? Even so, having a tent setup, it's still going to come in contact with the deck at the edges of the boat, and you'd still get chafe there. Because by having the cover up away from the boat, it has lots of room to flap around in the breeze, thereby moving the parts of the cover that are in contact with the boat. This is exactly what happened when I had my tarp hanging over the mast. Even though it was up off the deck, when the wind blew, the whole tarp whipped and flapped where it wasn't in contact with the boat. Even though I had the edges tightly bungeed to the trailer, the flapping energy traveled past the rubrail and flapped the part that was tight against the hull, causing it to abrade the hull. I would think the best way to reduce chafe against both the hull and canvas would be to eliminate as much potential for movement as possible. And that means making the fabric conform as closely as possible to the deck and hull. The top picture you posted looks more up my alley.

 

[J. Barrett]

Backbone

My PVC frame is composed of three trusses. One at the cabin rear grab rail, one halfway along the cabin, and one at the forward cabin stantion. They are made of 3/4 CPVC with the uprights and rafters joined with 45 degree elbows. I used T's on the rafters to allow for a ridgepole of sorts to connect the three. The trusses themselves are cemented together. The ridgepoles are secured with electrical tape so that they can be removed in the spring and hung on the wall in my garage. The cover drapes over the mast at the rear and slopes down over the bow. For the most part the rain and snow simply slides off. My cheap blue tarp is on its third season. -John