What Is a Boat Cover (Winter Cover)?
A cover that protects the wintering boat from sun, rain and dirt - get it right and it protects the gelcoat; get it wrong and it becomes a mould and abrasion machine.
A boat cover is a protective skin used to cover the boat during winter lay-up or any long period ashore. A good cover does three jobs at once: keeps out UV and rain, breathes (with ventilation pockets), and sits without rubbing against the hull.
Winter sun and dirt are a silent abrasive on exposed gelcoat and teak; a cover stops that bill. But only if two conditions are met.
Two conditions
Ventilation: a boat wrapped without ventilation creates its own climate inside, and by spring you wake up to mould, smells and black-spotted cabins; airflow is the enemy of mould.
Tension: a loosely fitted cover will chafe the hull all winter in the wind; those dull stripes down the boat’s topsides are the signature of a flapping cover.
Do not tie to the guardrails: cover lines must never be fastened to the guardrails/stanchions (the wind will load them); they should be secured to the boat itself or to weights.
Standing water will also tear it and collapse the frame; the slope and support points must be set correctly. The test of a good winter cover is in spring: if, when the cover comes off, the boat is dry, odour-free and bright, it has been set up properly. When ordering, ask for three things: ventilation pockets, soft lining at chafe points, and a lashing system that secures to the boat itself.