I have never had a problem of cockpit drains freezing in the 30+ years I've
owned my Landfall 38. Most years I have winterized in the water with my
cockpit drains open. Of course, I am not in Canada or New England where
temperatures are lower but our creeks and rivers being frozen over are common.
My cockpit drain hoses do not crossover and I have paid a lot of attention to
the cockpit drain hoses (and deck drain hoses) to make sure I don't have a low
point in the hoses. Of course, if your boat is stored out of the water, it may
not sit as level on jack stands and a low point could exist in the hose while
stored on land where it didn't exist while in the water. (Personally, I prefer
to keep the cockpit drains open at all times.)
While it seems better to have the shrink wrap continue below the deck level, I
wouldn't trust (several mil thick) shrink wrap's (or tarps) integrity for a
complete winter to keep water out of the cockpit, regardless of how it was
installed or how well it looked because I have seen tears develop in shrink
wrap covers (and tarps commonly leak).
I have known of a case with a friend's boat that "sank" while in the jack
stands over the winter. The water accumulation was so bad that it displaced
oil in the engine and it marked all the interior teak--it was a big mess. He
used a tarp over the cockpit while stored on jack stands. I don't know if his
cockpit drains were open or closed (or frozen) but his cockpit drain hoses were
not damaged.
This does bring up an important point: to thoroughly check all hoses connected
below the waterline before launching. I believe that my boatyard does this
regularly before any launch. So, (I think) whoever launched the boat has a
responsibility in the matter of a damaged drain hose too--possibly more than
the shrink wrap guy.
Bob
Bob Boyer
S/V Rainy Days / Annapolis MD
1983 C&C Landfall 38 - Hull #230
email: dainyr...@icloud.com
blog: dainyrays.blogspot.com
"There is nothing--absolutely nothing--half so much worth doing as simply
messing about in boats." --Kenneth Grahame
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