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Originally Posted by feb
In my haste to cover the boat yesterday I managed to create a 3' straight rip in the boat cover. Can anyone recommend a fix other than to get a new one? I used the ole standby - duct tape. But I dont think it will last too long. I was hoping that there might be an iron on patch or something like that.
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Duct tape is a great repair where it's dry and can be wrapped around itself. A PVC-coated duct tape is available and much more weather resistant; however, no duct tape is great in outdoor applications. (Though the color selection is big in "Racer's Tape"—which
is duct tape).
Sails get torn on occasion, and we use "Sail Tape" for repairs. Unlike duct tape, it's very difficult to tear by hand.
Sail Tape is lightweight, very sticky, waterproof, tough, easy to cut because it's on a waxed backing sheet, available in a few colors other than white, and can work on one side only. (Patch both sides anyway—it will get you through a season—maybe more). Because a tear will keep going in the same direction, I'd recommend an overlapping backup patch on the inside, which can still be of duct tape. If your tear is near an edge, I'd wrap it around the edge to patch both sides with one length of tape.
A good hardware store will have sail tape, and any marina worth its salt should certainly stock
one color. If the only color available is red, cut the patch into an arrow shape—pointing to a snap. Nobody will think it's a repair!
Another alternative—found at Home Depot—is a tape entirely made of a PVC-type plastic. Better and cheaper than duct tape in your application—it's still nowhere-near as good as sail tape—it is called "tarp tape". It's available in dark blue and brown—"tarp colors"
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