My First Winter - Garage or Shrink Wrap

[JackstrawIII]

Hey guys, trying to decide how to store my boat this winter.
 

I could put it in one side of my garage:

- Pro - I’d have access to it all year to fiddle with it 

- Pro - it would not experience the weight of snow all winter long 

- Pro - cheaper 

- Con - garage space (not a huge deal, I’m used to keeping my truck in the driveway)

- Con - the mice could get to it and chew wires and stuff 

 

Or I could have it shrink wrapped and keep it in the driveway 

- Pro - garage space stays free

- Pro - less of a mouse habitat perhaps 

- Con - more pricy 

- Con - more wear and tear from the snow, cold, and damp 

- Con - can’t access it all winter to fiddle with things 

 

You experienced boat owners, what do you think? Have you found one of these arrangements significantly better for boat/owner than the other? Thanks. 

[airshot]

Shrink wrap would be my last choice, but it does hold up well if installed properly.  If I have a nice boat then it will be in the garage or other storage facility.  I have a pole barn, no food or feed of any type is kept in there so a couple pkgs of "TomCat" keep the ocassional straggler away and never returning.  I have a number of toys in my barn and never had a mouse issue and I live out in the country.  I also go out to the barn and visit frequently with my ShihTzu, so she noses around and keeps critters away.  When places sit idle with no movement for periods of time is what draws in critters. We also have a few ferral cats that prowl around but we leave them be as long as they dont hurt anything.  Years back, I built a lean to onto the side if my garage,  jyst 2x4's and some steel roofing, just tall enough to slip my boat under...with a good cover, stored with no issues.  Gotta keep snow, ice and water from puddling on the cover !!  Inside a covered boat, there are many smelly things that will keep critters away, one of them is strong mint/ pepermint, most critters can't stand the smell !!

[Way north bass guy]

Our last place had a one car attached garage, that my wife parked in pretty much year round. I took it over for a couple weeks right before ice out so I could get everything all prepped and ready to go, as well as for a week or so at the end of the season to get it all cleaned up ( and make sure it was properly dried out), then it was stored in an unheated shed at my other property. We now have no garage at our new place, but I have a wonderful attached, covered lean to off the side of my barn where I store my boat all year, as well as my tractor. Keeps them out of the elements ( including the sun), and I can access it whenever I want to do stuff to it. For me, it makes sense to let the truck sit outside all year, and keep the big toys out of the weather, as I’ll own the boat and tractor many more years than the truck. After seeing the effects of freeze/thaw/refreeze from my wife’s car parked in the heated garage every day, and the ensuing rust from all that snow/salt melt, I’d rather just keep the truck frozen all year and keep the boat nice and dry without having to worry about it. 

[Born 2 fish]

 My boat  stays in the garage year round. I have a 2 1/2,car attached heated garage my wife gets a spot for her car the boat gets the big side.

[gim]

I would go the garage route if you have a "nice boat."  I moved in May 2022 and one of the requirements I demanded was a 3-car garage so I could specifically keep my boat there all year round.  At my last house it was only a 2-car garage and I want to park my truck in there during the winter, so I paid a storage facility to store my boat in the winter (about 5-6 months).

[JackstrawIII]

Several comments have referenced a “nice boat”. I’m not sure if mine qualifies haha. 
 

It’s a 2012 Starweld open bow. I really like it, but it’s certainly not new. She’s got all kinds of scratches, scuffs, and dings, but she fishes great and I can toss the kids off the tube at will haha. 

[DaubsNU1]

I would always recommend storing inside. My old 1960 Rich Line was stored outside with a boat cover....and mother nature took it's toll. After moving to our new house in the country 5 years ago, that boat got to sit in the shop. Noticeable difference.

 

Had some mice issues in the shop, but managed to seal up all entrance points, and got some mouse-be-gone-type stuff...haven't seen any in there in 2+ years.

 

The new boat lives in the house garage during fishing months. When the water turns hard, it will be living in the shop. In my opinion, inside is always better.

[Susky River Rat]

Always garage keep it if you have that option. 

[Bird]

Leave everything in the boat and store it in the garage. ✔️

[JackstrawIII]

Seems like the overwhelming consensus is to garage the boat, which is great. 
 

But why?

 

I see a lot of boats wrapped for the winter. What are the negatives associated with leaving a boat outside in the winter? 

[Jig Man]

Negatives….mother nature

[A-Jay]

12 hours ago, JackstrawIII said:

Seems like the overwhelming consensus is to garage the boat, which is great. 
 

But why?

 

I see a lot of boats wrapped for the winter. What are the negatives associated with leaving a boat outside in the winter? 

 

Shrink wrap for outdoor storage has its pros & cons. 

One serious con is that ventilation can be a big problem. 

Trapped moisture causes mildew and mold, and polyethylene doesn't allow airflow.

Vents must be installed so they don't leak and there is sufficient airflow to prevent mildew.

There have been quite a few threads here over the years where boat owners are looking for

answers on how to deal with mold in their rigs. 

It's rarely an easy fix and often keeps coming back.

Also if the cover should somehow 'fail' in the middle of the winter,

you're left having to solve that on your own. 

Since most shrink wrap applications are completed in moderate weather conditions in a boatyard using a propane fired heat gun and flammable materials.

For most boat owners effective repairs are not something they tackle themselves.

 

Garage storage with or with out a regular boat cover may not be the perfect answer either depending on your deal. 

But it's out of the weather and at least some of the 'extremes' can be avoided.

 

btw - my rig is a garage queen. 

 

Good Luck

A-Jay

 

 

 

[Dwight Hottle]

Store it in the garage. And keep all lids open for ventilation over the winter to prevent mold & mildew.

[TnRiver46]

Raccoon > shrink wrap 

[JackstrawIII]

Ah… yes. 
 

We had a raccoon get into our garage once for about a week and it absolutely wreaked havoc. It scratched my wife’s car terribly, peed in my tool box, and created a total mess out of our storage. 
 

So, it’s not hard to imagine what they could do to a boat. Good call. 

[TnRiver46]

I’ve trapped many a boat coon for lots of customers. I got a picture somewhere, they totally wrecked every square inch of a sea ray once 

[MickD]

9 hours ago, JackstrawIII said:

But why?

Garage keeps the boat clean and dry and secure and offers better opportunities for critter control.  I don't think there is an "outside" option that comes even close.

[Nitro 882]

If I had space in a garage I would store my boat there. No weather consideration, just nice to access and play with all winter. With regard to mice, if they want in your boat they will get in your boat, wrapped or not.  Put moth balls in some old socks and distribute them throughout the boat if you have a mouse/chipmunk issue.                        Wrapping is likely to promote mold growth due to the "green house" effect and costs more than it is worth IMO.

I live in the Northeast so no stranger to cold/snow/sleet. I've stored my boat in the driveway since my first bass boat in 1988. Get a quality cover. I run a support from the front pedestal to the rear pedestal which creates a "tenting" effect that promotes run off of nasty stuff. I leave my onboard charger plugged in all winter. You may have to go out and brush it off after a heavy snowfall but just add that to your driveway shoveling duty.

Again, I would store in the garage if I could just for ease of access. I've never experienced anything negative from outdoor storage.

Just my 2 cents.

[jitterbug127]

My boat is a 1980 Flat Bottom Jon Boat. She'll probably never be in my garage again unless I'm working on it. This winter I put the regular fitted cover on it and then a big gray tarp over that. Worked pretty well. Mild winter helped.  

[airshot]

Big, large boats are typically shrink wrapped, to big for a garage.  Not many small garage size boats in my area under wrap.  If I had to store my boat outside, I woykd have a good quality tarp made at your local "semi truck tarp" facility !!  Far vetter quality and long lasting, cheaper than shrink wrap and can be used over and over.  Mine is 15 yrs old and still perfect other than dirty.  Build a frame and cover with a quality tarp.  Even better is to build an awning/ lean to type roof to park under to keep heavy snow off.  But...without any doubt...inside storage is always best!