Winter storage advice?

[u079721]

My Ericson 38 is on the hard at a sailboat broker outside Detroit for the winter, being shown for sale. What is new to me is that this will be the first winter that the boat has been stored outside, or with the mast up.

I will be having the boat shrink wrapped at the end of November, but even so there will still be rain water coming down the mast. - something I never had to deal with in winter before. What, if anything, do you folks do about that? Do you add antifreeze to the bilge in the hope of keeping it from freezing? Ignore it? Live in denial?

And what about rig tension? I've heard some folks recommend that you loosen the rig, but no one here abouts seems to do that.

All advice apprciated.

 

[Steve]

my 2 cents

We somewhat deal with your issue each winter. Either right or wrong, we place a small amount of raw antifreeze in the bildge and check frequently... sponge out .. thats it! I'm intersested in some others views!

Steve E35-3 in New Hampshire

 

[Geoff Johnson]

I take my rig out once every five years (as recommended by my yard which thinks the wear and tear on the boat caused by removing the rig does not justify doing it more frequently). When the rig is in I leave it tensioned (except for the hydraulic backstay). As for the bilge, I had a drain hole drilled through the hull at the turn of the bilge so I never get more than a couple of inches. Without the drain, the bilge could fill. I put in a liberal amount of antifreeze, but it still freezes. I don't think it matters. The main thing is to get the bilge pumps out of the water.

 

[e38 owner]

I have stored my e 38 on the hard for many winters. I shrink wrap the boat or use a custom cover. If the shrink wrap is well done the boat will stay dry. I have silicon in the mast track. I place a little antifreeze in the bilige and in the shower sump because my boat tends to lean forward just a bit when on the trailer. I take out the floor boards over the bilge so that any water that enters the bilge will not affect the teak and holly sole.. The blue shrink wrap cover keeps the boat nice and toasty on a sunny winter day. The non toxic antifreeze works great. We have done the shrink wrapping ourselves and have learned a lot over the years so please email me if you need any suggestions.

I loosen the upper and mid shrouds a few turns and it seems to be ok.
This year I tied an older rope on to the haylards and pulled the shackels up to the top thus protecting the rope halyard from the harsh winter

 

[Joe Benedict]

I have an E29, which will be stored outside in Winthrop Harbor, IL (just south of Wisconsin border.) The previous owner had a garboard (sp?) plug installed due to concerns about winter freezing in the bilge. It also makes annual bilge cleaning a lot easier. As for the rigging, the local yards recommend loosing and in alternating years mast removal. Mast removal is expensive, but periodic inspection and maintenance of mast components is a good thing.

 

[Sailsteve]

Cover it

Clearly, the answer to winter storage is to cover the boat. Shrink wrapping is ideal, but a snug blue tarp fastned tightly over a sturdy frame is also okay. Last winter I decided not to cover the boat. I won't do that again any time soon. Water seems to find its way into every crevice or hole. A lot of it finds its way into the bilge and a lot of it gets under deck hardware. In either case freezing water only tends to widen cracks and destroy the coring around the cracks. In previous winters I have constructed a frame out of inch-and-a-half PVC pipe (really strong) with a blue tarp over it and it works great. If there is any way you can avoid storing mast-in I would heartily recommend that you do that. The mast is a giant funnel that sucks moisture out of the air and channels it into the boat. Also, in strong wind a vibrating oscillatinf mast can shake a boat in its cradle. If you're up on jack stands it can actually work itself off the stands over time. Antifreeze in the bilge is a a good thing to do. Most of all, don't forget to winterize the engine.

Steve
E-36RH
Glory Days