Newcomer silly question

[meikelvet]

Hello , I am a newcomer and have little knowledge and a lot of questions.
My sailing boat will be on land from November till March next year,behause of freezing danger, location is in the Netherlands. Why is it recommended to remove all sails, when the boat is on land, the sails are protected by a cover the whole year, what are the advantages ? The sails cannot be stored at home, they have to stay in the boat.
What would you do?
Meikel

[chris mac]

I drop sails and flake to boom, put cover on like normal. But drop slides out of mast. Take boom off with sails wrapped and store in the cabin. Nothing gets lost and it's protected from wind and snow. Head sails too, but that's obviously easier.

[jstevens]

Meikel,
Freezing is not the major issue for removing the sails during winter storage. It is just prudent to avoid damage during winter storms. It is also a good time to inspect the sails and make any repairs that are necessary. In areas where severe winter storms are common (e.g., NE USA), many boatyards will refuse to store the boat on land with the mast up. Ice storms with strong winds have been known to knock over otherwise well secured boats.
My advice, if you cannot store the sails at home, store them in one of the lockers or in the cabin of the boat.

John

[Paul L]

Mold growth on the continuously damp surface.

[fallingeggs]

I always figured it was to windage, so the boat is less likely to tip. Probably a small help at best. I do take the opportunity to wash and patch the sails.

[Kenomac]

Here in the med, the sails will become stained with red dirt coming off the Sahara if left on, even when furled. Believe it or not, it actually rains red mud here occasionally. I made the mistake of taking the advice from a lazy boat watcher to leave them on the first year, what a mess it caused.

[Pete7]

Many of the sail makers will offer a winter valet and store so you can pick them up in the Spring which might be an option. We take the Genoa off on a dry day in November, use a large room in the sailing club to neatly fold them and store on the boat but they must be dry or mildew will be your enemy.

Pete

[dlymn]

even furled and secured sails can break loose in a heavy storm (have seen it happen, very sad) The flapping can tear your sail to threads and worse. Staining is an issue too.It's about risk management. Low risk, but high harm.

[charliehows]

probably one of the most basic simple rules of boat maintenace - if you know you're not using the sails for a while take 'em down and store 'em below. Dozens of reasons why, but every time i sail past a mooring field I see at least 1/2 dozen boats with sails in covers hanging under the boom that, if an attempt to hoist them was made, would come out in rotten shreds. For those particular boats, least of their worries, but if the sails had been properly stored, they at least, would still be usable.

[sailorboy1]

The past 2 winters I have left my sails on. The only thing that happened is that I saved time and work, the sails were just fine.