Portable Garage

[cat1168]

Does any one use a portable garage for your boat?
I have been looking at different manufactures and am trying to figure out the best quality.
Shelter king, Cover-it who is the best?

[ryanandrews]

RE: Portable Garage

do not buy one imo!!!!!!!!! about 2 months ago i bought a portable garage from pro canopy that enclosed my boat. great.............until the wind took it and i now have a canopy that looks like hurricane katrina hit it, a boat, and car with scratches on them! the canopy was totally ruined, and lucky me i was able to buff out the car! the boat has a few deep scratches in the gel coat..now everyones wondering how it was anchored down. i had the 6 leg canopy and each leg was cemented in 5 gallon buckets, along with guide wires!....the wind gets under them and its like a big ole' kite!......thats my opinon

[ck1105]

don't do it

I bought a $500 king canopy for my boat, worked great until wind blew, they make better kites than garages... Now its in a dump somewhere

[ryanandrews]

RE: don

it took me about 2 weeks to get results..ended up tearing it down shipping it back to cali(costing 120) and getting a partial refund! .....yes i got raped!

[dba4life]

RE: don

I used a king canopy 12x20 for 2+ years on my boat. Used mobile home anchors to secure it down. Never had a problem with the wind in North Carolina. Now if we were getting the reminants of a hurricane I would take the tarp off just in case. But that only happened once.

12x20 used to be the most common size, now it seems most places are only stocking 10x20.

I am looking to get a 12x26 or 12x30 now. There are kits on ebay that sell the ends and tarp. You need to get the poles from Lowe's or Depot.

[tski97]

RE: don

I bought one from costco for about $150. It has tarps on all sides so the wind does not get under it so. if the wind your area is mild like mine you it may work.

[PaulMcIntosh]

RE: don

I've used the costco one for the last Five years as a boat house on the lake, they look pretty flimsy because the Tarps are held on with bungy cords, but it works great, it stops the eyes tearing out of the tarp when the wind blows. However I do have it anchored down to the dock with 4"Lag bolts, 4 to a leg and 4 legs a side. In the winter I take the tarp off so the snow doesn't collapse it.
It's lasted 5 years just replaced it this year. We get about a 15 to 30 knot wind on the lake every afternoon that hasn't killed it yet. Paid $199 Canadian, costco.

[NAUTI84]

RE: don

Cat1168,
See your in Ct.
Snow & Wind will be your problem.
I've had two - If they're anchored down correctly they work great during the summer, but lost both of them in the winter. Almost impossible to keep the snow from building up inbetween the supports. If you add wood slat supports about a foot apart to support the roof canopy (and use the sides to keep wind from lifting the whole thing off the ground) you'll have a chance.
It is great having the boat covered w/ a canopy instead of just a cover.

[skijones]

I have a 10x20 "portable" garage from cover-it. Cost about $300 but well worth it. I took 2 27' ratchet straps and ran them to the trailer on each end. Have had some movement, but nothing that touched the boat. It is awful nice to be able to work on the boat when the weather cooperates.

Snow is an issue, but a shop broom works wonders from underneath. Just got tired of the tarp deal that never did seem to work very well. My buddy has a tower on his boat and a tarp with bungees seems to work great on that.

I did have extra zippers put in the rear cover of the garage, to be able to start the boat while in there. CO2 is not fun.

[FRG]

I purchased the one by Cover-It and it worked great, It actually held in heat well so that it never had snow build up. The anchors that came with it also worked great. Overall, if you can handle how ugly it is near your house, it's perfect.

[cat1168]

thanks for all the input

[CTRider]

I have used them for 15 years and never had a problem with snow or wind. I am on my second one just because I wanted a bigger one so I could leave the tower up. My old one is still being used by my neighbor. I do not know of the brand I have but if you are interested let me know and I can get you all the information. If you want to see it let me know as well, I am located in Sandy Hook, CT and you are more than welcome to come take a look.