Material for cockpit cover

Mine is a PVC covered material such as that used for covers on trucks. Totally waterproof and very long lasting - current one is probably 15 years old. Best investment in terms of keeping the cockpit clean and dry (not self-draining).
 
Several brands and variants of canvas at Kayospruce at Segensworth, Fareham .( Phone 01489 581696) ask for samples and a catalogue for fittings etc.;another source is Hawke House, Gosport also reliable and helpful advice.

No connection etc.

ianat182
 
My boat came with a cockpit cover and I was a bit skeptical. Afer using it however, I think they are great, and very little trouble to rig.
As Tranonia has pointed out, the woven, impregnated, PVC stuff is bombproof and seems everlasting. It is heavy though and not so easy to stow when cold.
I have just made a new cover from coated acrylic canvas (Sunbrella is the brand leader and said to be good, though pricey). It lasts very well.
Dark blue looks good when new but shows bird poo, which can stain it badly. I think off white is best.
This time around I thought Cream would look the business.......
........in fact it looks a orrid kharki shade, a bit like an army surplus blanket.
 
Material for covers.

Sunbrella is probably the best of the Acrylic canvas options but i would look at weathermax if i were you. It is a great fabric, waterproof, Breathable and more importantly i think, it fades really slowly in sunlight. We have made some U.V strips from it and most of our dinghy covers are now made from it. It is great stuff. You can get it from contender sailcloth. I dont know if they sell direct to the public so if you have any problems let me know.
 
Chris Davison said:
but i would look at weathermax if i were you. It is a great fabric, waterproof, Breathable and more importantly i think, it fades really slowly in sunlight. We have made some U.V strips from it and most of our dinghy covers are now made from it. It is great stuff.
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Much lighter than more traditional cover materials, nice texture for handling and the very experienced canvas-work specialist who made my boat's full winter cover said it was good to work with. Unfortunately, the batch that the cloth came from was not finished properly in the factory in America and leaked like a sieve. Can't fault Contender's service - instantly down to the boatyard to look and to the sailmaker to discuss, and now paying for making the replacement cover.
 
Vote for Sunbrella

Chris Davison said:
Sunbrella is probably the best of the Acrylic canvas options b.
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Just had a cockpit tent made up in Sunbrella to go with the 2 year old sprayhood and bimini. Whilst I know that they colour matched the material, there is no apparent difference between the two year old material and the new.

Work done by Tecsew from Gosport. Very plesaed with result and VERY quick (I guess that it is that time of year) No connection etc
 
andygc said:
Much lighter than more traditional cover materials, nice texture for handling and the very experienced canvas-work specialist who made my boat's full winter cover said it was good to work with. Unfortunately, the batch that the cloth came from was not finished properly in the factory in America and leaked like a sieve. Can't fault Contender's service - instantly down to the boatyard to look and to the sailmaker to discuss, and now paying for making the replacement cover.
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So we have the second cover. It also leaks like a sieve. When it rains the water beads on the surface, so it looks OK. Then when the freeze came, ice all over the inside, followed by water all over the deck when the sun shone on it. Sailmaker went round a variety of boats with polyester/cotton and acrylic covers around the yard - all dry. He is about to make a replacement in polyester/cotton, and his canvas worker says he will never touch the stuff again.

It would appear that Weathermax is not such great stuff after all. Lovely to handle, lovely to sew, breathable, but completely useless as a waterproof winter cover for a wooden boat. It may be great in Rhode Island, but it's not so great in Devon.
 
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Another vote for 'ordinary' acrylic canvas. I had a replacement cockpit cover made for Border Maid in 2007 (she has to have one really, cockpit drains to the bilge) the one that came with her being on its last legs. After 4 seasons in the searing Eastern Scottish sun it is still perfect, a couple of elastics have beeen replaced and one minor repair now required but I expect it to last at least as long again.
 
One of the problems we have found with Weathermax is that its not a breathable fabric .
Condensation forms easily on the inside, specially when its this cold and then it drips on the deck .
If you sit underneath when its raining its probally not going to leak actually thru the cloth.This sort of material really needs quite a lot of added vents to keep the air flow under it moving .
Both Topgun and oddysey are used for winter covers with the same problem,but with a good current of air thru can help.Sometimes just an opening at the front and back is sufficient.In time both these fabrics do become more breathable as they age.Polyester and canvas do have the condensation advantage but of course will rot in time and shrink.
Cindy
 
Acrylic canvas is the stuff I've used for many projects. It's nice to work with, isnt TOO heavy and is sowakle on a domestic machine. Easy to find. I bought mine from Point north in Holyhead - they post anywhere and will send you samples foc.
Something to watch for with many of these more modern materials is that even though they are very strong they have terrible abrasion resistance, so don't have anything rub against them.
 
wilkinsonsails said:
One of the problems we have found with Weathermax is that its not a breathable fabric
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Well that is not what the makers claim, and the breathability claim was one of the reasons we chose it. I have watched the water dripping off the inside after heavy rain - nothing whatever to do with condensation - the deck and cockpit of my boat were saturated. As a material for a winter cover it is completely useless, and it seems unlikely to perform well as a cockpit cover. It looks fantastic - both covers were lovely jobs - and has the advantage of light weight for strength, but rubbish for the intended use.
 
How extremely frustrating, not to mention double the work on your poor cover makers behalf.
This may be one of those occasions when it really needs druming home to the manufacturer that its not up to the job. I would be very interested to see how you get on .
We buy our weathermax from Contender UK ,mainly only using it for sacrificial strips on sails at the moment,(its excellent for that ), so apart from the one cover with frost on the outside (it cant breathe then?!) when the condensation formed and dripped off,I reasoned that condensate was the trouble.
Yes I did sit under it when it was raining, cos it was a long walk back along the pontoon to the car without my oilies on .Not dripping that time at all.Quite a good pitch on it though.
Better luck with the next one ,try acrylic?
Cindy
 
Yes, Chris (Sails & Canvas) got it from Contender too. The pitch is steeper than 45 degrees so should be plenty. We are going to use polyester cotton for the next one. I'm leaving the argument with Contender to Chris.
 
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We bought both Odyssey (cockpit cushions) and own brand acrylic (camping cover) from Kayospruce to make items for our kit-built gaffer. I can recommend both the fabrics and the company.

Both fabrics are "waterproof", so condensation will form if the design isn't right. Rather this than "breathable" fabric, which does, always, mean not waterproof (even if not to start with).

It's the same with clothing - has anyone got a set of Gore Tex more than 6 months old that's proven waterproof? I use Guy Cotten oilskins.

Stitch holes and seams have not proved to be as leaky as we'd thought they'd be, and after over 2 years use the lighter acrylic is holding up well in high wear areas, like the corners of the hatch cover, where it's stretched.

My wife struggled a bit with stitching when going through multiple layers, but a 1960's straight-stitch Singer electric coped, where a more modern swing needle failed.

Kayospruce were very good on advice, and supplied all the fiddly bits and appropriate threads, too.

We also bought foam from Hawke House (see above), and I would recommend anyone considering buying foam to at least talk to the people there - they gave us valuable tips on layout and measuring.
 
An update on my Weathermax experience. The second cover leaked like a sieve, although supposedly the batch was a good one. The boat has been soaking wet (or covered in ice) throughout the cold spell. The new cover - polyester cotton - was fitted yesterday between showers, and with a breeze and the drier weather overnight and this morning the deck and cockpit are now dry.

So, Weathermax for a winter cover :eek:
Polyester cotton :)
 
Hi.

I made a boat tent for my Wayfarer from Coated Polyester - it is both breathable and waterproof and a relatively easy fabric to work. I got it from Point North http://www.profabrics.co.uk/ who I can recommend - they were happy to advise me over the phone, and provide samples. Also a useful source of fittings.

If I was making a sprayhood or dodgers I'd use something heavier, but for the rest of a cockpit tent it might work well.

Howard
 
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