Quote:
Originally Posted by keaislandsailor
You all are great, thank you.
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Hi, keaislandsailor,
Do not use regular
sheets for cushion covers. As it turns out, i tried this in place of mattress ticking. The sheet fabric is just not thick enough. You can use almost anything else with good results. I made one mattress cover out of the cheapest cotton Polynesian Print I could find in Noumea, about $2.50/yd. and ~ 45 inches wide. Real Sunbrella (last I looked) was about $25.00/meter, 60 inches wide, but you could get
acrylic canvas from other sources quite a bit less. Check on ebay. If you go the
cheap cotton
route, wash and machine dry the fabric first, then iron it. You don't want it shrinking when you take it off to launder.
Fwiw, I personally like to use zippers so that my cover will open its mouth, and I can put the foam on it, and then zip around all three sides. I like it because it is a big pita to struggle mattresses into covers , and the method makes it entirely easy. With cushions, they're smaller, and easier, and you can use a sheet of plastic (cut a
cheap giant trash bag) to help you get it in. I still prefer zippers to velcro, though, but you can make nice looking cushions with velcro closure.
Finally, old mattress foam will absorb moisture from the
salt air, and from rain or sea spray. If you feel concerned about this, use closed cell foam for the exterior, and plan to close
ports and hatches while under way . Usually that's enough, but some rowdy countrymen of yours once came through an anchorage we were anchored in, coming close and throwing buckets of
salt water on other rally members' boats. Some friends of ours had the
hatch over their
HF radio open, and the
salt water killed their comms for the voyage. So, maybe make sure your comms area is always closed, or you have a waterproof sheet--even clear pvc would do it--between it and possible
water ingress.
Ann
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