Carvel planked dry storage

[Zappi]

Hi, looking to haul out my 35' mahogany over oak Pacemaker for a winter project. She's in need of topsides paint and of course bottom paint with potentially more. My question is... Whats the best solution to keep the hull from drying and shrinking? is it safe to think I can keep an amount of water in the bilge at all times? Do I have options? The boat lives in salt water and has not been hauled since 2007. The plan is to be on the hard for as much as 5 mos. Thanks.
Aaron

[dskira]

Put her on the durt ground , not on concrete ground.
Let the durt nicely wet.
Good luck for your work
Daniel

[Zappi]

It will be on dirt or gravel I suppose. I will tent it for the work. Should I wet the ground inside the tent?

[dskira]

Pudget Sound is quite humid I think, so it should be allright.
If you put a tent take a silver tarp type, not a colored or tan one.
Daniel

[PAR]

She shouldn't be on dirt, but blocked up over a dirt floor. Don't let the tent touch the hull if you can, because condensation forming on the inside, will run down and collect on the boat, which you want to avoid. No, you don't want water in the bilge, nor do you need to wet the ground around the boat.

[Zappi]

Thanks for the replies. She will be on stands with dirt/ gravel below her. I was planning on tenting her so that I can work on all exterior. So no tarp touching the hull. As far as color goes... I'm on a serious budget so not sure if color choice is in my vocabulary. How critical is color choice?

[PAR]

In your area, it's not especially important.