Fall is officially upon us now, meaning that regardless of where you live, it will soon be time to put away the boat for the season. If you’ve moved recently or if you purchased your boat this spring or summer, you might not have thought about what you will need to do to store your boat. Luckily, there are a few options on how to store your boat.
Image Credit: www.turksshipyard.co.uk
The benefit to using a custom cover to store your boat is that you can keep it in your yard if you have the room and your homeowners association won’t mind. Plus, it’s relatively inexpensive to store boats this way and you can keep a watchful eye on your boat as it sits in the yard temporarily.
A downfall to this storage option is there isn’t a lot of airflow using this type of storage, so your boat can experience a mildew problem if you don’t dry it out properly.
Shrink wrap will keep your boat well ventilated to prevent the formation of mildew. As an added benefit, you can purchase DIY kits for the shrink wrap if you feel so inclined to want to tackle it yourself.
Of course, with shrink wrapping a downfall is that once it’s wrapped, you can’t work on the boat during the winter. If you don’t have any repairs to make, this might not be a big deal but this is something important to keep in mind with this storage route.
Credit: shrinkwrappingaustralia.com.au
Arguably the best way to store your boat throughout the winter is using an indoor, climate controlled storage unit. These units will allow you to fully or partially shield your boat from the elements, and some of these storage units even have the ability to offer heating if you should so choose. Plus, with your boat tucked away in a storage unit, you can work on it as needed throughout the winter if you want to make any repairs or modifications.
The biggest downfall to this storage method is the large price tag. However, if you are investing in a nice sized boat and really want to store it in the best way possible, this could be an expense that you’re willing to live with. Another downfall is that you might need to travel to and from your storage unit any time you want to check in on your boat.
If a storage unit sounds like a good plan for you but you don’t want to have to keep traveling off site, you can purchase or build a custom storage building on your property if you have the room. Custom steel buildings can be built to suit your boat’s needs, and most steel buildings are wired for electricity so you can have lights and a full electric hookup in your building.
You can also choose any additional features you might want – would you like windows or a roll up door? Do you want to make the storage unit into a utility building that also features an attached carport? All of these options are possible if you build something on your property that is suited specifically for your needs.
About the Guest Author: Amy Moczynski manages the digital marketing for ProBuilt Steel Buildings, a company that offers custom steel and metal buildings for sale, include carports and boat ports.