I need to fit a new car in the garage, so my Royalex Old Town Penobscot is moving outdoors for the winter. My plan is to screw two metal brackets into my fence posts and store the canoe there. I plan to wrap the canoe in a tarp and put some foam blocks between the hull and the tarp, so the tarp is not resting directly on the hull.

Any ideas or thoughts on this plan? Should I be doing something different?

Can you rang it from the rafters over the car? I used to have a canoe and two kayaks hanging in my garage over my truck and my car.

I wish I could, but it’s an old garage that’s all sealed up on the ceiling.

I screwed I bolts into the studs through the sheet rock and made a trapeze for hanging my canoe. Do you have room to do that?

Clever solution, but it wouldn’t work for me. My garage is tiny, with a low ceiling, and wouldn’t work to store a canoe by hanging it. My garage is maxed out in terms of space, and I can’t fit the canoe any more.

MaxG: "I need to fit a new car in the garage, so my Royalex Old Town Penobscot is moving outdoors for the winter. My plan is to screw two metal brackets into my fence posts and store the canoe there. I plan to wrap the canoe in a tarp and put some foam blocks between the hull and the tarp, so the tarp is not resting directly on the hull.

Any ideas or thoughts on this plan? Should I be doing something different?
"

Please talk with an expert about wrapping in a tarp. I’ve read that covering a canoe with a tarp creates an environment for mixed temperatures, air pockets, and ice which make your canoe more susceptible to damage.

Do you have a raised deck at your place? That's where mine reside year round. Not pretty but functional. Tyvek covers purchased from Piragis.

Paddle96: "

MaxG: "I need to fit a new car in the garage, so my Royalex Old Town Penobscot is moving outdoors for the winter. My plan is to screw two metal brackets into my fence posts and store the canoe there. I plan to wrap the canoe in a tarp and put some foam blocks between the hull and the tarp, so the tarp is not resting directly on the hull.


Any ideas or thoughts on this plan? Should I be doing something different?
"

Please talk with an expert about wrapping in a tarp. I’ve read that covering a canoe with a tarp creates an environment for mixed temperatures, air pockets, and ice which make your canoe more susceptible to damage. "

Yes, tarps can trap moisture underneath. This is a serious issue with power equipment or cars but for a Royalex canoe I don't know if it matters as much unless there is wood trim. Personally I would still try to use something breathable or ventilated and leave the bottom open like "martian" does in their post.

Thanks for all the advice. I plan to store it with a light tarp and leave the bottom open.

If you want excellent protection designed for canoes, think about a cover from Redleaf Designs. Jeremy and his wife know a ton about canoes.

I’ve also heard of people loosening wood gunnels on Royalex boats so that freezing temps don’t create differential stress and crack the Royalex. Maybe someone knows more about that.

Andym is spot on. If your Penobscot has wood gunwales and will be exposed to freezing temps then you need to loosen all the screws that attach the gunwales to the boat or you risk getting stress cracks in the Royalex at every screw location because the Royalex expands and contracts more with temperature changes than the wood.

Frankly I've left fiberglass and Kevlar canoes outside for years with no protection other than wiping on some 303 before storage and keeping them off the ground in a spot with decent shade so I think your tarp plan is fine and maybe even overkill but loosening the gunwale screws is important if the gunwales are wood; if they are vinyl you don't have to do anything.

I think that wiping it down with 303 is also a good idea before storing.

Thanks for the advice. The gunwales are vinyl, so it should be all good.

As I understand it royalex cracking is a result of differences in the thermal expansion/retraction between the gunnels and the hull. This is why loosening the wood gunnels is important. If you have vinyl gunnels I'd expect it to be less of an issue since royalex is vinyl and ABS so they should expand and contract together more consistently?

For my penobscot with aluminum gunnels I just try to keep it in a spot where the temperature is less likely to fluctuate (in a shady spot outside, in the back corner of the garage, etc) and haven't had any cracks yet. I also have a number of moving blankets that I use in my cargo trailer, etc that I keep draped over the conoe as it sits in the garage to hopefully insulate it a bit from temperature shock when the doors open and close. I think as long as you're not putting it in a spot that gets full sun or anything like that you'd be fine putting it outside.

mkvnwk: " "

Love this storage idea. I would put the Royalex in the basement but I already have my kayak hanging there. ;)