Re: covering a boat for winter
I've always used covers - canvas or synthetic. Canvas, of course, must be sealed or it will drip melting snow into the interior all spring long.
The first couple of years I stored it in the yard beneath the trees. I learned (the hard way) that tree sap will drip onto it and cause holes. I've been told that it is acidic. The effect sure looked that way.
Also, I've never had any luck with the poles that stand on the deck and hold up the middle of the cover. On each of the two boats I've had (open bow runabouts) I've made up frames, either free-standing or which lie across the hull, out of 1/2 inch thinwall conduit (about a buck and a half for a ten-foot length at a hardware or electrical supply store) to hold up the cover - one for the main cabin and one for the bow area. These have kept the cover from supporting the weight of the snow and sinking into the hull. They're galvanized and last indefinitely - one set worked for over thirty years and was still effective when I sold the boat.
If interested, send me a PM and I'll forward a couple of snapshots.
