Leaving canvas up in northeast winter

[Captain Larry-DH]

Anyone with a full cockpit enclosure have experience leaving it up in a northern winter?
My enclosure is made of Stamoid (not canvas), and there’s acres of it with large clear sections. My (Florida) canvas shop says I should store it flat indoors with cloth sheets between layers. They said larger (unattached) clear panels could shrink as much as 2” in extreme cold. (I asked about potential zero degrees F). Would cold weather vinyl shrinkage pull too much on the tracks and snaps? Would keeping it up resist the shrinkage without damage assuming the load is spread?
Not easy to make room for flat storage indoors for these large panels (catamaran) and I’ve seen other boats leave canvas in place. (Connecticut)
Input from those with experience is most welcome.

 

[dlochner]

Vinyl will shrink with cold. That will put a strain on the stitching as well as the connectors.

You might try rolling it, using a sheet to protect the vinyl from scratching. Or roll it between a sheet and store it on the boat out of the sun and weather.

 

[Parsons]

Stored monohull for five winters in Michigan and never would think, or saw anyone try, storing the isinglass outdoors. We removed ours and rolled it around a 6-inch diameter tube (carpet store surplus) with old sheets between layers. Stored it in the basement, so room temperature and humidity controlled. It kept nice and, other than being stiff in the cool weather, was in great condition in the spring. I assume you were thinking of covering it, and not just leaving it facing snow and ice? Anyhow, bad idea to leave such expensive stuff stretched and vulnerable.

 

[Davidasailor26]

I store mine flat with towels in between sections. I bring it home and put it under a bed. If the sections are bigger than would fit under a bed it would be a pain to store them, but I’d still try hard to find a better alternative than having them in the cold, ice, and wind all winter.

 

[PaulK]

Leaving it up would seem like a great way to get yourself a new enclosure for Christmas!

 

[Captain Larry-DH]

Thanks, it sounds unanimous. Will dismount it and store it indoors. I like the idea of carpet store rollers. or maybe I'll put it on a sheet of plywood on sawhorses in my basement.

 

[jssailem]

put it on a sheet of plywood on sawhorses in my basement.

If you arrange the sawhorses correctly and you hold the enclosures against the plywood with some bungee lines, you can flip the plywood downside up and use it to assemble a train set. Multi-tasking.

 

[Parsons]

BTW: when it comes to cleaning in the spring, give Imar Strataglass cleaner (301) a try. Not only does it do a great long-lasting job, but it smells so good

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

I assume you made a conscious decision to leave the boat uncovered. Cats compared with mono hulls have lots more horizontal surface to catch moisture and freeze when uncovered.

 

[Captain Larry-DH]

I assume you made a conscious decision to leave the boat uncovered. Cats compared with mono hulls have lots more horizontal surface to catch moisture and freeze when uncovered.

Yes, it's all very well drained, with large 1.5" scuppers. I'm not concerned about horizontal surfaces. It's the deck fittings I worry about, and attachments that can trap water such as the rub rails. I'll overlap the tops of the rub rails with 3M Preservation Tape so water doesn't get underneath and freeze (it comes off clean in Spring). The large saloon cabin windows are all sheltered in a way that won't collect ice at the seams, and the smaller side ports are flush. (I had the same issue with my trimaran for many years, in a different way. I covered the center hull with a Fairclough cover but left the amas uncovered. I'm not a shrink wrap fan.)

 

[jssailem]

Water and ice. None of that’s nice.
We have a lesser problem in the PacificNW with the two primary breakers of boats during winter weather.

I have not heard about Preservation Tape that might be helpful.
I’ve used plastic tarps to provide a tent that sheds the water away from the ports and cabin.

 

[Captain Larry-DH]

@jssailem if you buy the 3M Preservation Tape, choose your supplier carefully so you don't end up with a knock-off. I saw it on Amazon much cheaper than I paid for my last roll but reviewers stated they thought it was counterfeit. Expect it to be expensive. Here's a product page from 3M https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/p/d/b40068317/
Here's a credible seller https://www.go2marine.com/4811-2-in...yUCq7E8tQYHu4RhW7l3Gat2AuQvrmEFRoCC9MQAvD_BwE

 

[jssailem]

Thank you. That is a good price.
And located in Seattle. two fur.