I was wondering if my Alumacraft Fisherman 145 will be OK if I store it outside for the winter.  We just got the boat this past Spring so this is all new to me and I need some advice.  The boat is dry now and I will soon be winterizing the motor per the Mercury maintenance and winterizing instructions.

I was thinking I would just put the normal boat cover on it which fits nicely and keeps the rain out during the summer months.  I would then hang a rope above the boat, running longer than the length of the boat by a few feet, and then just putting a tarp over the rope, making an upside down V tent over the boat, and holding the sides of this upside down V tent away from the boat.  This would keep most of the rain/moisture from falling directly on the boat, and would allow for airflow around the boat.

There would still be condensation and moisture in the boat throughout the winter months, but it has marine plywood covered by vinyl flooring, and I would hope this could handle a bit of moisture.

Will this setup work to protect the boat well?  Is it worth it to find a storage locker/garage and pay for storage fees every month for 4 or 5 months?  Would it make any difference if I brought it into the garage and dried it out every three or four weeks before putting it outside again?

Thanks for any input,

Karl

Thanks Larry for the input!

I didn't mention it in the original posting but I was going to put both batteries in the garage and alternate having them on the battery/trickle charger, but thanks for the reminder.

When you say to put the utility light under the tarp, do you really mean to put it under the boat cover, and just say hang it off the steering wheel, to keep the temp and moisture at a reasonable level?  I have a nice boat cover that fits pretty well and then I would be hanging the tarp above that.

What is the powerhead?

dont forget to change your lower unit fluid of your outboard, and leave it tipped down so no water can get into the hub.  Oh ya and throw some stabil in for good measure.

Yeah even in the winter you can catch some nice fish. Lake washington has huge perch that you can catch along with the smallmouth. If you fish the small local lakes with largemouth, you can usually get a few to go and they are good sized. We routinely do a January trip to Silver Lake cause we have cabin fever, and catch a 5-6 lber. Maybe not this year though with that water quality problem.

The stuff you are doing is fine. I'm sure the maintenance manual will get you on the right track with the motor, fluids and fogging the cyclinders. Boat cover, tarp and a heat source is all you can do for the rest. If you get moisture on the carpets or whatever, you can get some mildew stuff growing but it comes out easy with a pressure washer.