Boat cover for New England winters?

[Brian L]

Hi Guys,
So about three months ago I bought my first boat ('99 180 Sportsman) and although I'm loving every second of it I can't help but think that October is right around the corner so I thought it would be best if I start looking (and subsequently ordering) for a boat cover for the winter season. Any recommendations? Also, I assume I should get a cover for the motor too so if you have a motor cover recommendation that and any other winter-prep tips would be much appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[eppem]

boatcovers.com

 

[eppem]

sorry, boatcoversdirect.com

 

[Parthery]

Go with Sunbrella..it holds up better to the elements.

Make sure you support it appropriately...otherwise the weight of the snow may cause problems.

 

[drbatts]

sorry, boatcoversdirect.com

thats what i did rather then shrinkwrapping. worked very well.

 

[Grady_bob]

On my Tournament 192 I kept the standard Sunbrella cover on then draped one of the $30 blue poly tarps from Home Depot over the Sunbrella cover and bungeed it to the trailer. That way the snow and ice didn't damage the expensive Sunbrella material and once the snow stopped I'd go outside and simply slide the snow off the very slippery poly cover with a big contractor style broom. It worked well last winter as we had several snowstorms with accumulations of +15" a few times. In the spring I removed the poly tarp and just left the Sunbrella cover on so the boat could "breathe" and not get moldy inside. The Sunbrella cover still looked like new after a very rough winter.
Did the same with my jetski last winter- draped a small blue $10 poly tarp over the form fitting jetski cover and the snow basically slid right off the blue poly cover by itself.

 

[Brian L]

It sounds like the Sunbrella cover from Boatcoversdirect.com seems to be the way to go...I guess I'll be on the phone with them soon.
Grady_Bob - I like your idea of draping a cheap tarp over the good cover to protect it...no sense in ruining an expensive cover...so I'll be adding that to the list too!

Thanks guys!

 

[grady33]

Has anyone purchased a cover for a272 sailfish from boatcoversdirect? Wondering how easy it goes on. I keep my boat on a lift all winter.

 

[eppem]

boatcoversdirect.com

Bought one 3 years ago and never looked back. Its super strong, had already paid for itself, and its "green"...no shrink wrap to toss or recycle.

Its a little snug on the sides but it fits great and our boat is only out of the water for a few months in the off season.

I highly suggest using them.

 

[grady33]

What color would folks suggest? I was thinking blue or white?