film shrinking your own boat?

[ferrailleur]

Just perusing the ULINE catalogue (I don't work there!)
Interesting link.


https://www.uline.com/BL_2414/Marine...al-Shrink-Film


Has anyone ever shrunk their boat for the winter storage in or out of the water.


It seems like a DIY project....


Your thoughts and experiences?
Thanks

[RossH]

I think it is a common practice in the NE where many old wooden boats (Schooners) stay in the water and get wrapped for the winter.

RossH

[Limit6lgp]

It’s not hard to do with a little practice. It takes a little bit of a touch at first to not melt holes in the plastic. It can be a bit more challenging if it is in the water.

You’ll want to put an extra layer on any sharp edges. You can use scrap pieces of shrink for that. Make sure that the bottom line that wraps around the hull that the shrink gets tucked under is as tight as you can get it. Then start around the bottom at the string tucking it under and melting it to its self all the way around. Once you have done the bottom just start on one end and work your way around the boat.

After that then you get out a case of tape and use it to cover all the holes lol.

And don’t forget a couple desiccant bags to keep the moisture down.

TimG

[bletso]

Another source is https://dr-shrink.com

[SV Siren]

It is common practice here in Michigan, and I expect all northern climates. If you ever do get to the point of wrapping, use or rent a good self igniting propane shrink wrap torch, a small heat gun will take you forever...literally.

I use Dr. Shrink, 7 mil, and it holds up well.

If you do plan on spending any amount of time under the cover do yourself the favor of using white shrink wrap, the blue makes things very dark underneath, and most importantly the blue color will screw up your vision for a little while once you come out from beneath the wrap.

[No_Agenda]

We have wrapped our boat the last 7 years. If your boat is tall when on the hard you may want scaffolding it makes the job much easier. Buy a used gun off Ebay. We buy the shrink wrap in a 250 ft roll. Cost to wrap our 30 foot boat is about $120/year. Keep a fire extinguisher near by just in case.