maintenance sails

Maintenance Sails

Sail protection

Take care that all sharp corners and points such as bottle screws, split pins, stanchions, backstay blocks and spreader ends are well taped so that the sail the sail can be hoisted in one go. Mark the positions of the spreader ends on the sail so that appropriate self-adhesive Dacron protection patches can be applied at these points. Other “sensitive” parts of the sail, for example where a genoa rubs on a stanchion or pulpit or a batten pocket of a fully-battened mainsail rubs against the rigging, can be protected in the same way.
Halyard tension and use of leech lines

Do not set the halyard tension too high, a vertical fold behind the luff with wind pressure in the sail is an indication that the halyard tension is too high. Use no more halyard tension than necessary in order to pull out horizontal folds in the foot. Use the leech line with care and do not pull it tighter than necessary to silence the leech, for example, when more sheet tension is required the slot is larger as the wind strength decreases.

Folding, storage and storage of sails

Sails should be folded or rolled so that sharp folds and kinks are avoided. Fold the sail in pleats of 60-70 cm parallel to the foot, then roll it loosely and store it in a large sail bag. Before a mainsail is stowed on the boom, the tension of the outhaul must be released.
– Always store sails in a dry condition in a clean and ventilated room – If wet or damp sails remain on board, do not fold them but keep them loose in a well ventilated place – Never dry sails by hoisting them and letting them flap.

The combination of moisture and insufficient ventilation can result in mould and mildew on the sail. The lifespan and strength of the sail are not affected in any way, but it’s not a pretty sight and mildew is usually very difficult to remove.

UV protection of sails

When not in use, stow sails out of the effects of strong sunlight. A good sail cover and roller genoa cover offer the best protection for your sails, even when the genoa has an anti-UV coating or anti-UV strips sewn along the leech and foot.

Use of the sail

We strongly advise that you use your new sail in calm conditions the first time. Even though modern sail materials do not need to be “sailed-in”, this can help to evenly set the sail. The performance and lifespan of the sail will certainly benefit.
– Do not use the sail above the wind range for which it was designed. – Reef the sail as soon as the circumstances require. – Avoid letting the sails flog as much as possible. – Take care to always set the correct fairlead positions to avoid permanently stretching the leech or the foot.
– Give the lee sheet plenty of slack when tacking, never let the foresail hang on the spreaders.

Sail repairs and maintenance

Damage or small tears in the sail can be repaired temporarily using self-adhesive Dacron tape or spinnaker repair tape. Thoroughly clean and dry the repair area and apply the tape to both sides. At the first opportunity take the sail back to a sailmaker for a professional repair.

Cleaning the sails

Remove any salt deposits from the sail by rinsing it with clean, fresh water.
Blood and mildew should be removed as soon as possible; brush away as much as possible with a firm, dry brush and let the affected area soak for 2 hours with a mild bleach solution (1% chlorine). Then rinse with clean water and use a soft brush to remove the remaining dirt.
Rust stains can be cleaned with special purpose commercially available products. Carefully read the owner’s manual.
Oil, grease and tar stains can be removed using light solvents such as acetone, special stain-removers and K2R or gasoline; always rinse the solvent residue from the sail with clean water.

Sprayhood and/or cockpit tent maintenance

Your new spray hood and / or cockpit tent is carefully designed and manufactured. For these we only use high quality, stable fabrics and use top quality finishes. All maintenance tips that apply to a spray hood and/or cockpit tent obviously also apply to biminis and accessories such as rocons, sail covers, dodgers, etc. that are made of the same material.
It is important for you to keep your sprayhood and/or cockpit tent in optimum condition for as long as possible. We would therefore like to give you some tips on use and maintenance.

Protecting the sprayhood and cockpit tent

Make sure there are no point loads on the window material (e.g. by pushing hands against it) because it is a very flexible window film susceptible to deformation and it probably will not return to its original form. Also make sure that the sail cover is not rubbing on the top of the spray hood. Doing so may cause chafe marks that can not be removed.
Tension
When the spray hood (and/or cockpit tent) is first mounted on the boat, it is usually set up very tight. This is done intentionally in order to stretch out the fabric. Over time, the spray hood and/or cockpit tent will take shape and the tension will disappear.
Leakage at the seams
Sometimes it happens that leakage occurs at the seams during rain. This problem resolves itself after a few weeks because the stitching swells up naturally and no longer leaks. The stitch holes close themselves up.
Folding, storage and storage
Sprayhoods and/or cockpit tents must be folded or rolled so that creases and sharp bends are avoided and the windows lie flat without creases.
•    After drying store spray hoods and/or cockpit tents in a clean and ventilated room.
•    Never dry sprayhoods by hoisting them and letting them flap in the wind.
The combination of moisture and insufficient ventilation can result in mould and mildew on the sprayhood and/or cockpit tent. Although the lifespan and strength of the product is not affected, it is not a pretty sight. Weathering marks are often impossible to prevent or avoid in products that are always exposed to the elements. Due to the current environmental regulations, it is impossible for manufacturers to produce fabrics that are resistant to all forms of mould. Our increasingly warm and wet climate is also a contributing factor. Also, the windows may get a white haze that is hard to remove.

Discolouration of sprayhood and cover

The sprayhood is made of a plastic coated fabric (e.g. Stamoid) or an acrylic fabric (e.g. Sunbrella or Markilux). Plastic coated fabric does not discolour and acrylic fabric is also colour-fast, except for red colouring. These can become lighter. The thread used to sew the panels together is a combination of cotton and polyester. The cotton seals the holes and the polyester gives strength. Because the cotton is on the outside of the thread it can fade in the sunlight. This is unfortunately unavoidable.
Maintenance
Acrylic fabric has a coating on the inner surface. This serves to waterproof the fabric. The downside is that this coating is susceptible to mould. This is unavoidable, but at least it removed. To avoid mould growth the hood must be regularly cleaned on the outside with clean water and a very soft brush or microfibre cloth and rinsed thoroughly with clean water.
Vinyl hoods can also be cleaned with water and with a special vinyl cleaner when they are very dirty. Over time the plastic windows will become less transparent due to the effect of UV. This effect is unavoidable. If this occurs the windows must be replaced.
Zippers should be kept free by regularly spraying them with a Teflon spray (without grease). Since the tongue of the zipper is metal it must also be kept clean. This tongue is made of a metal alloy that has poor or no salt resistance.

Sprayhood repairs

Damage or minor tears in the sprayhood can be temporarily repaired with tape. Thoroughly clean and dry the repair area and apply the tape to both sides. Do not leave this in place too long because it is likely that tape residue will stay on the fabric upon removal. At the first opportunity take the sprayhood back to a sailmaker for a professional repair.

Cleaning the sprayhood

Remove any salt deposits from the sprayhood by rinsing it with clean, fresh water. Most stains can be removed with lukewarm water and a soft brush and/or microfibre cloth.
Cleaning products Several cleaning products are available from our watersport shop, for example:
•    303 high tech fabric cleaner ( for acrylic fabric)
•    303 high tech fabric guard ( for acrylic fabric)
•    Red Gull no. 2 ( for plastic coated fabric)
•    Starbrite fabric and sprayhood cleaner
•    Starbrite waterproofing with Teflon
Rust stains can be cleaned with special purpose commercially available products. Carefully read all the instructions and try first on an inconspicuous place. Oil, grease and tar stains can be removed using special stain removers such as K2R or white spirit; always rinse the residue of these products from the spray hood with clean water and try on an inconspicuous place first.

Fitting the sprayhood

Before installing a new spray hood make sure that your boat is clean. When fitting the spray hood (e.g. at the beginning of the season) fasten all the snap fasteners on the front first. Then fit the tubes in the tube sleeves and fasten the zippers. Then evenly fasten the two straps (port and starboard) to line up to the snap fasteners on either side of the boat. Finally, fasten the side fasteners.

Fitting the cockpit tent to the sprayhood
When fitting the cockpit tent to the sprayhood it is better, especially in the beginning, to fasten the cockpit tent to the sprayhood first (zip together) then zip the tubes into the tube sleeves and then fasten the straps on the cockpit tent also evenly fastening the snap fasteners at the right positions.
After closing the zippers finally fasten the back snap fasteners.

Roller genoa cover instructions

Instructions for rocon (roller genoa cover)•    Roll up the genoa as smooth as possible, slacken the sheets and make fast the clew then lay the sheets in long coils under the clew.
•    Attach the spinnaker‐ or second genoa sheet onto the hoisting point of the cover.
•    Close the zipper, zip it up for 10 cm and fasten the snap fastener.
•    Hold the zip slider firmly or tie the it with an approximately 1 m line to the pulpit and slowly hoist up the cover.
•    Once the cover is over the fattest point‐ the clew – the upper part can be pulled up all the way to the top.
•    Once it is completely hoisted, you can pull both lacing lines down simultaneously so that all slack is taken out of the cover.
•    Make sure that the cover is properly tightened because constant flapping may damage both the sail and the cover.
•    Fasten off the lacing lines.

Source: http://www.devriessails.nl

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