outdoor wooden mast storage

[ChristopherMoon]

My newly restored wooden masts, varnished only, are lying on outdoor mast racks at the yacht club... any suggestions on what material to use to protect. Worried about UV Rays re: varnish durability. Poly tarps may create moisture issues...Sunbrella may create financial issues. Has anyone checked out the cost of fifty foot zippers? So any ideas?

[BHOFM]

Can you go to the Wal Mart in Buffalo and get a cheapie
car cover. They are about $20/$30 and can be cut and
sewn very easily.

I cut down a medium size one for my twelve foot sail
boat and had a lot of material left for covers for all
the other pieces.

I took out the center panel that was about eight feet
wide and nearly eighteen feet long.

They are not water proof. They breath.

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/1892/donebv.jpg

[alan white]

You can buy a product designed for the interface between a house frame and its foundation, called "Sill Seal" or similar, usually light blue spongey foam a quarter inch thick and several inches wide. You can spiral it around the mast snugly and it should seal pretty well. It should seal out the UV and rain and dirt. It costs little and can be reused.

[Hunter25]

I would think the last thing you would want is to have the mast touched by something which could be scuffing it in higher winds. I think the best thing would be to cover it but not touch it to protect against this possible chaffing. Dirt can be washed off in the spring, keeping it pretty dry and out of sun light and with plenty of air flow around it sounds better to me.

[dskira]

You can buy a product designed for the interface between a house frame and its foundation, called "Sill Seal" or similar, usually light blue spongey foam a quarter inch thick and several inches wide. You can spiral it around the mast snugly and it should seal pretty well. It should seal out the UV and rain and dirt. It costs little and can be reused.

This is by far the best advise.
Cherrs
Daniel

[alan white]

I would think the last thing you would want is to have the mast touched by something which could be scuffing it in higher winds. I think the best thing would be to cover it but not touch it to protect against this possible chaffing. Dirt can be washed off in the spring, keeping it pretty dry and out of sun light and with plenty of air flow around it sounds better to me.

Not at all. The product I mention is not going to move relative to the mast. It is a bit gummy in texture so it grips well. It is elastic enough to seal as it's wound around the mast. I've used it to insulate pipes outdoors in the winter and it stands up to heavy weather.
Covering the mast with a "roof" is all well and good but it's not as simple and it offers less protection from moisture (dew) and airborne dirt.
Either way will work perfectly well, however, for practical purposes.

[ChristopherMoon]

Thanks for the replys...I've tried Tyvek or similiar product designed for wrapping a house. Said to be water repellent yet breathable. The advice came from a few who had tried and were happy with the product. I've wrapped the masts and will assess its success this spring.

[alan white]

Tyvek has terrible resistance to the sun's rays, It degrades quickly, but TyPAR, it's competitor, which is silver in color, lasts for a decade in the sun without deterioration. If you have problems with tearing after a while, switch to Typar. Typar is also more protective of UV light penetration to the varnish.

[hoytedow]

Just an idea, untested: Spiral wrap it with Saran Wrap and spray the Saran Wrap with white or silver Krylon spray paint to reflect UV light.

[ancient kayaker]

Another idea: if you have problems getting material with enough length or width, try double-sided tape sold for securing outdoor carpet. Its a glass fiber fabric with a very sticky black adhesive.

[PAR]

I think anything that physically touches the mast will have mold and possibly rot come spring when it's removed. This assumes that it doesn't rub the finish off the stick when the wind blows. Condensation alone can cause a bunch of issues and wrapping wood with plastic seems a marriage made for trouble, particularly without ventilation.

[hoytedow]

I would have thought keepingt it in a southern exposure to the sun would have kept it warm enough to drive off what little moisture could seep past the plastic wrap. Again, just a theory. Try it on a 2x4 first.

[PAR]

In the morning and the early evening, when temperature changes swing pretty widely compared to the day, you'll get condensation. This is one of the biggest reasons for ventilation in wooden boats.

[alan white]

It should be noted that the spars are probably going to be varnished in the spring. Minor flaws will be sanded out. Two new coats of varnish will be applied.
I'm lucky enough to be able to store spars indoors. But if I couldn't, I wouldn't mind wrapping spars up in just about anything that prevented the Sun and rain/snow from getting to them. Even a couple of tarps and duct tape if need be. The main thing is don't leave the wood exposed.

[hoytedow]

I suppose you could build a shed 2 feet wide and 50 feet long with a small heater and air circulation system to keep out humidity and condensation.

[ancient kayaker]

Why not just an extra coat or two of varnish?

[PAR]

A few "hoops" of what ever, block the mast up and cover it (the hoops) with a tarp, leaving both ends open to the weather. It'll self ventilate, nothing except the blocking is touching the mast, nothing can rub the mast and condensation will form on the tarp, not the wood.

[hoytedow]

Just make sure the tarp is sloped throughout, so condensation won't drip onto the wood.

[ancient kayaker]

Would a vent at the top be advisable?

[PAR]

The typical arrangement would be a tent shaped set of braces placed over the blocked up mast. The tarp draped over and tied or attached to the braces, hoops or what ever the stand offs are. A top vent would be a luxury made better with a day/night Nicro vent, though probably not necessary in most environments during winter.

[alan white]

It really matters where you live. I get the feeling that Florida's climate is far more damaging to anything made from wood either painted or varnished than way up here.
In my northern climate experience, winter weather pretty much suspends biological activity, at least insofar as insects and mold are concerned.
I would imagine that in warmer climates, one must be a lot more scientific about protecting wood.

[hoytedow]

You imagine right. The little buggers chew slower in the winter, but they never stop chewin'.

[ancient kayaker]

Bet they stop chewing when they freeze!

[hoytedow]

Where I live it only freezes for maybe 4 hours per night less than 5 days per winter.

[PAR]

We've had one hard freeze here in the last 11 years and it was for about 3 hours. This isn't enough to kill off the little beasties. Up north, you have a long freeze and it kills off most everything and they start over from scratch in the spring. Here, they never die. We have bugs big enough to knock you in the head and drag you off to their den, to dine in leisure.

[ancient kayaker]

Where I live it only freezes for maybe 4 hours per night less than 5 days per winter.
-here it maybe thaws about that often.

... We have bugs big enough to knock you in the head and drag you off to their den, to dine in leisure.

-them's called gators, right?

[hoytedow]

Skeeters. Long range. Look like tankers when full of you.