Foredeck and Cockpit Awning Question.

patrickrea · #1 (**permalink**) 01-25-2009

I have just finished figuring out the patterns for foredeck and cocckipt awnings for a winter project. I was about to head for Fabricland (local fabric retailler) to get some rip-stop nylon in the morning when I stopped to look around the sailrite website. I caught a forum posting about NOT using ripstop nylon for this purpose.

Does anyone have a better solution? I am trying to make a set LIGHTWEIGHT awnings. Not something to sail the boat with.

rikhall · #2 (**permalink**) 01-25-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by patrickrea

Does anyone have a better solution? I am trying to make a set LIGHTWEIGHT awnings. Not something to sail the boat with.

Hi there

front_hatch_rain_cover

We used cordora for this one

JohnRPollard · #3 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

I would stick with sunbrella material. Yes, it's heavier, but it needs to be in order to hold up well and provide shade/block UV.

patrickrea · #4 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

My thought was to put 1" nylon webbing down the centre seam and along the edges. These will have web loops holding 1" rings in place for the lashings. I find it hard to believe that ripstop nylon will deteriorate that quickly. It's the same basic material as used in the construction of the upper portions of a tent.

JohnRPollard · #5 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by patrickrea

My thought was to put 1" nylon webbing down the centre seam and along the edges. These will have web loops holding 1" rings in place for the lashings. I find it hard to believe that ripstop nylon will deteriorate that quickly. It's the same basic material as used in the construction of the upper portions of a tent.

I think it depends on how much UV it gets. Nylon tents don't actually hold up all that well when left set-up continuously in intense sun. I think that's why you see so many long-term camp-tents made out of other material.

You're up in Canada (yes?), so maybe the sun is not so intense up there and you may not use your awnings quite so much either. Maybe the nylon would be fine.

Think about the circumstance when you would use the awnings. It needs to be reasonably strong, because eventually you'll leave it up while you go ashore, the wind will pipe up unexpectedly, and it will take a beating in your absence.

Sunbrella is expensive but very durable and provides good shade. I think a lot more UV gets through nylon.

Faster · #6 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

I'd agree that ripstop is not the best awning material.. but for a lightweight sunshade regular sunbrella might be a bit heavy. The [problem with a nylon awning is that it will have a lot of stretch and little stability in any kind of breeze.

Down in the Caribbean our friends use a material that resembled Sunbrella but was about half the weight.. sorry I don't know the tradename of the stuff but something like that is available I'm sure (they had theirs made by a sailmaker in Guadaloupe)

geraldartman · #7 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

Good tents have polyester flys because it resists UV better. Canvas, if dried properly lasts a real long time as evidenced by out troop's tents that are 30 years old and still working. To me though, if your leaving them up for months that's one thing. I have to bet that your probably not and the nylon will most likely last a number of years.

STTnBama · #8 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

My awnings were made using sunbrella. It is heavy, but I know it's gonna hold up, and it doesn't flog around in the wind nearly as much. If you sew pockets onto it, and cut PVC pipe to slide into the pockets, it will stabalize it even more and keep the edges a little higher off the deck, making it a little easier to get on and off the boat if your at the dock.

Faster · #9 (**permalink**) 01-26-2009

Too true, SST

Any awning, esp one in a windy area, is going to need some sort of stabilizing battens or poles to stay in place.. it also maximizes headroom beneath the awning out towards the deck edges.

patrickrea · #10 (**permalink**) 01-27-2009

I get the point about some sort of stiffener for the cockpit awning. I'll redo my plan for that one.

For the foredeck awning I am planning to curve the longer side upwards to help avoid flogging. The current plan is a smooth curve with the furthest point about 4" above a straight line drawn between the aft connection and the forward connection. All the outer edges will be reinforced with 1" nylon webbing which also allows me to attach 1" rings for the rigging.