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If you are considering buying a boat cover and you are confused about what is out there, you owe it to yourself to read through this. Whether you buy from us or not, this will give you a good understanding of what is out there. Reading this could very well save you many hours of researching, thinking, and sorting information about boat covers. It also may save you many many dollars. Reading this will help you make an educated decision concerning what boat cover you want. Again, whether you buy from us or not, if you are potentially in the market for a boat cover, you owe it to yourself to read this. It will only take a few minutes. We appreciate you taking the time to look.
First of all, there are hundreds or maybe thousands of brands and types of boat covers out there. We have studied these extensively, and they can be grouped into 3 general categories of covers.
1. TARPS...You will see some boats covered with tarps. Tarps are commercially available and inexpensive, but they generally do not look good and do not last long. They are also somewhat difficult to deal with since they are big and flat and are not made in any way specifically to cover a boat. They also are just a moisture barrier, so they keep water out, but also keep water in, which can cause serious damage in terms of rot, mold, mildew, etc. We would highly recommend avoiding tarps as boat covers.
2. CUSTOM COVERS...You will see some very expensive covers ($1000 to $2000 range) These are custom made for a given boat and an upholstery shop has to make them, or you would have to normally buy one from the company that made your boat. They are a very good fit, but are very expensive. The quality is good, but is not necessarily better than what we sell. They probably will fit better, as it is a 'custom' cover but there is a hefty price to pay. Also, they are generally awkward, heavy, and difficult to install. Often, they will have snaps to hold them on, and dealing with a hundred or more straps is not super fun, generally. A boat dealer recently told us that it takes 4 people to install his customer cover.
3. SEMI-CUSTOM COVERS... What we sell is right in between these 2 referenced previously. We call ours semi-custom covers. They provide a custom fit most of the time for most boats. Our covers are made to cover the entire deck area. We carry covers that should be very close to the size you need. Our covers are staggered in 2 foot increments, and we can normally fit one very closely to your boat. Sometimes there is material left over,(should be a foot or two at the most). Normally, a foot or so of extra material is not important at all. Sometimes, there is no leftover material. It just depends on the size layout of your boat. Our covers always cover the entire top and the entire sides, or the entire top and most of the sides of your playpen area. The ability of this cover to do such is again greatly influenced by the layout of your boat. If your boat has a lot of 'stuff' that is higher than the rails, such as a tall console, bimini top, tall seats, etc, this will make it to where the cover may not can cover all the way down the sides of your boat. Please see our pictures. There are tremendous economies to be found by investing in one of our covers.
Our new Vortex Boat Covers are semi custom covers and have many important advantages over almost any other cover out there, besides the price.
1. Vortex Boat Covers are suitable for storage, mooring, or trailering. Many covers are made for a specific type of use. Ours are made for all 3.
2. Vortex Boat Covers have the best strap system available. Research has shown that straps over the top and completely under the boat do very little good. (Also, ever crawled up under a boat on a trailer to run straps? Ever bumped your head under there?) Our covers are made with a new system whereby a series of loops is sewn to the fabric and the strap goes through that loop, around your trailer, and snaps together..very very simple and very very strong.
3. Vortex Boat Covers do not have grommets to scratch your boat.
4. Vortex Boat Covers have an elastic rope sewn into the hem..to help hold the cover tightly to your boat. This is very nice for mooring. Say you have your boat down at the dock and just want to cover it temporarily. Most likely, you would not need straps, etc for such a project. The elastic will hold it in place. Then, for storage or trailering, you can fasten the straps for a more secure fit. The elastic makes putting the cover on the boat much easier. It makes it a very easy 2 person job, and a reasonably easy one person job.
5. All of our covers are made from marine grade canvas that is proportionally 2 to 4 times as thick and heavy duty as most covers out there.
A good boat cover will pay for itself many times over in terms of protection of your environment. The general idea is to protect your boat from the elements (rain, snow, sun, etc. ) The function of a cover is to take the abuse from the elements that is normally destined for your boat. Our covers are good for performing that function in 3 main areas (mooring, storage, and trailering). A good cover will pay for itself very quickly. Consider the time put into a thorough cleaning, maybe for the first outing of the spring….That several hours of cleaning could have been avoided or greatly minimized by use of a good cover.
Take a look at our pictures. They are real. Beware of sellers with computer generated pictures of perfect fit covers. Beware of sellers that sell boat covers that maybe have never even tried one of their covers on a boat, and have no idea how the cover interacts with the boat. Boat covers are square. Boats are generally not square. Boats have features and items installed on them that make a less than a perfect fit a necessity/reality. We take real pics of the real product in real world applications so you will know exactly what to expect. We strive to set very realistic expectations of our products.
It is extremely safe to say that the money you invest in a quality cover will be returned to you many times over during the lifetime of a boat, in terms of reduced repair, reduced wear and tear, less fading, less faded and stained upholstery, carpet, etc, and the lower $ required to repair these issues.
We have 2 general types of boat covers.
TYPE 1: We carry covers for pontoon boats, deck boats (big square boats, etc...)
TYPE 2: We carry covers for v-hull type boats, generally, boats that are pointed on the front, and square on the back (fishing boats, runabouts, fish/ski, etc)
We have several sizes for each main type of cover, and generally, we want to size a boat cover to fit as snugly as possible, but not so snugly that it will not fit! It certainly has to be big enough, but not too big. It often seems like a good idea to get an oversized cover, but, we have found, through years and years of experience, that the extra material is often cumbersome and difficult to deal with. So, unless you really have some outstanding circumstances, go with the smallest cover that will actually fit your boat. If in doubt, please call us, and we will help you figure it out. We gladly offer no-obligation consultations. It is in all of our best interests to work together to get you the best possible cover.
Also, for most types and sizes, we will have several colors to choose from. For most types and sizes, we will have blue, grey, beige, burgundy, and green. This particular listing here will be for a particular size and color, but we will have all available options listed, or you can call us for assistance at 1-800-309-5190.
For our Vortex Boat Covers, they are sized like this. We carry several lengths (currently 14’, 16’, 17 ½ ‘, 19’, 20’, 22’, 24’, and 26’) Each size will fit up to a certain beam, as listed above, in the title or heading of this listing. That beam is standardized based on industry standards of lengths and widths of boats. At the given beam that a cover is made for, it will cover that entire beam, plus about a foot down the sides all the way around. For example, our 19’ cover is for up to a 96” beam. So, if your beam is 96”, the cover will cover the top of the boat, and down the sides about a foot all the way around. If you boat has a 90” beam, then you can expect the cover to cover the top, and a little more than a foot all the way around. If you boat has maybe a 102” beam, then the cover will cover the top, and a little less than a foot all the way around. There is some flexibility, and the given beam is ideal, but is not an absolutely vital number.
HERE IS WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM US.
1. ITEM YOU RECEIVE WILL BE WHAT YOU SEE PICTURED AND DESCRIBED.
2. WE ARE EASY TO GET IN TOUCH WITH...YOU CAN EMAIL US OR EVEN CALL US DURING THE HOURS ABOVE AT 1-800-609-9457.
3. WE WILL SHIP PROMPTLY. WE SHIP 5 DAYS PER WEEK. WE SHIP VIA UPS GROUND, FEDEX GROUND, AND US POSTAL SERVICE , AND AVERAGE DELIVERY TIME IS 1-5 DAYS, DEPENDING ON YOUR DISTANCE FROM US. WE ARE CENTRALLY LOCATED IN THE U.S. AND WE HIT 34 STATES WITHIN 2 BUSINESS DAYS. WE TAKE SHIPPING PROMPTLY VERY SERIOUSLY.
4. SHIPPING CHARGES ARE FAIR. SHIPPING IS FREE ON THIS ITEM. WE SHIP VIA UPS GROUND, FEDEX GROUND, AND USPS PRIORITY MAIL..OUR CHOICE.
Toll Free Sales Hotline 1-800-309-5190. Hours: Monday - Friday 8:30a.m. to 4:30p.m. Central Standard Time
These are the best boat covers available. They are suitable for STORAGE, MOORING, AS WELL AS TRAILERING.
The cover is made from marine grade polyester. The cover is made from 7.8 oz/600d/600 denier solution dyed polyester. 'Solution died' simply means that the thread is dyed before it is woven into the material, as opposed to the fabric being woven or produced, then dyed. This process allows for better penetration of the dye, and better colorfastness. This makes the cover very resistant to fading. The fabric is then coated twice with polyurethane on the bottom or downside, UV protected, and mildew protected.
What this all adds up to is the best cover available. It is nearly twice as thick as what you see readily available commercially. It is designed to keep water out, as it is WATERPROOF. Yet, water vapor can permeate it, so it will keep moisture out, but will not keep moisture in!
600d is an indirect measurement of density and weight. The higher the number, the heavier, thicker, and heavier duty. This is the thickest cover you will find. You will see a lot of 300d, even 150d covers, which are proportionally half as thick and 1/4 as thick as our covers.
Our covers come with tie down/hold down straps, as well as a storage bag. For certain applications, such as higher speed trailering, you may need to add extra straps. The material is heavy duty enough to support any reasonably paced trailering, but you have to eliminate the movement of the cover, which is very difficult. It is generally better to trailer uncovered, as it is just normally not worth the effort to prep a covered boat for trailering.
These are very waterproof. These will collect water. If you are going to use this for storage or in any condition on your boat where rain could collect on it, we would highly recommend some type of support system. Support systems are readily available online. It does not have to be anything incredibly complex, just enough to create and arch so it can shed rather than collect water. A very common and economical way to do this is to build a support system or 'skeleton' with pvc pipe. Grey electrical conduit works very well and is even less expensive. People have used saw horses, an empty garbage can or two., etc. Often, you do not have to spend any money on a support system.
It is highly recommended with this, or any other new boat cover, to test for colorfastness in an inconspicuous area before putting the cover into full use. It has been observed, rarely, a chemical reaction that occurs between new boat covers and certain materials that are common in marine environments. The reaction is most common, although still quite rare, with white marine vinyl, especially new white marine vinyl. When wet, chemicals in these certain marine materials have been observed to pull the dye out of new solution dyed boat covers. It is highly recommended, if you have white marine vinyl seats, especially new white marine vinyl seats, to strongly consider a different color. Beige and grey work very well. If in doubt, or with any questions, please call us. We will be glad to help. Since we, VortexDirect, are not held responsible for any seat discoloration, etc, we want to help you make a good decision, so feel free to call us or email. We will be glad to help.
Shipping is free to anywhere in the contiguous United States. For shipping to anywhere else, please contact us. Please see pictures.
This is not a disposable type cover. It is made for years and years of use. It has a 5 year warranty.
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Many of our products will ship for FREE! If not, the shipping calculator will figure shipping to anywhere in the 48 Contiguous United States. For Canada please email or call us for a quote before bidding. Shipping quotes for Canada will not include imports fees, duties, taxes, brokerage, customs etc. We will not be able to ship any product as a gift for Customs purposes, etc. WE DO NOT SHIP TO THE FOLLOWING UNITED STATES AREAS: ALASKA, HAWAII or PUERTO RICO. WE DO NOT SHIP TO OTHER COUNTRIES THAT ARE NOT LISTED AS A 'SHIP TO' AREA. Please contact us for details if you are outside our normal shipping areas.
To keep shipping charges fair for all parties involved, shipping charges are calculated by the UPS/ebay shipping calculator. We do not add handling charges or inflate shipping charges. We want you to enjoy your transaction with us.
We need a physical address to ship to...We normally ship via UPS/FEDEX and UPS/FEDEX does not deliver to PO boxes. Please include physical address with your payment, so we do not have any delays. If possible, include a phone number with your payment/order, so if there are any questions, they can be easily resolved. Let's work together, to make this a 100 percent positive experience for all involved! 
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