About to finish the summer season in the northern hemisphere, it is good to start thinking about the needed cares of our boat before spending the long winter. Sails are a sensitive element of the boat and are subject to wears, scratches and breakages. Therefore you should devote some attention before winter.
We’ll start by removing the salt, as the small crystals are very aggressive with the tissue. The best way is soaking water with a hose as we hoist the sail with the boat in our mooring, if it is not very windy. Let’s avoid that the sail flaps, because flapping damages a lot the sails, especially the laminated ones. Once it is dry, we drop it down.
The next step is to check and detect if there are any flaws. Pay attention if the cloth has any cut or tear and if the sewings or glued unions of panels and reinforcements are not damaged, checking that the particularly exposed cloth areas to chafing are not weakened. We must be careful when reviewing the three clews, leeches and batten pockets. As we find a defect that must be repaired we should mark it with brightly colored tape to not forget any of them unrepaired but also to avoid further oversights, especially if we repair the sail some days, weeks or months later.
If we are not going to use the boat for a few months is highly recommended removing the jibs from the rollers and the mainsail from the boom. If we have enough space to keep them straight inside the boat or in a garage, you better roll them up than folding to avoid that the folds damages the cloth.
It is better folding or rolling the sails without battens. Let’s mark the battens writing the sail and number (Main 1, being 1 the topper and etc.) to avoid mistakes when mounting again. Keep the battens of each sail together with a few turns of tape, and avoid mixing with other sails.
If we keep the sails in a bag or cover we will protect them from dust and light. Ultraviolet rays are another powerful enemy for cloths. If we keep the sails wrapped inside the boat without a cover, lets try to seek them where the sunlight is not direct. Wrapped in the dinette floor and the curtains closed is a good choice. If the boat allows multiple locations, choose the darkest.
DrSails will be your great ally to repair yourself your sails. The high-tech adhesive was born thinking about repairing sails, and its flexibility is an essential feature for a durable bonding.
In addition to its technical characteristics, DrSails formats 10ml, 25ml and 265ml are very easy to apply thanks to its mixing nozzles, which ensure the right amount and the correct mixture of the two components of the adhesive.
Visit our Tricks & Tips, where you will find video tutorials on repairs sails.
