Boat Cover Material?
 

I want to get some feedback regarding the various materials for boat covers. From what I have gathered so far, SunBrella is the best out there, but this can also be seen in its price. I have also stumbled upon some other covers made out of SurLast, Sharkskin, Sharkskin Plus, Sharkskin Supreme, and some marine polyster types. I know there is definitely going to be some relation between price and quality, but want to see if any of you have some opinions on any or all of these materials. Any and all feedback would be appreciated

I've had Top Gun, Sunbrella, Surlast and vinyl.

Top Gun - Was a very well made cover and the material did a great job at keeping the rain out. My cover didn't have vents and I've been told that it should have or least that it's recommended as the material doesn't breath well.

Sunbrella - In my opinion the best all around material. I had a Sunbrella cover for 7 seasons and it still looked and worked great.

Surlast - This is the cover that came with my 07 X2. It left black marks on my seats, leaks like a sieve and I've had to have it sewn back up three times so far. I do like the way it fits on the boat but all the negatives convinced me to replace it this year for a Sunbrella cover from skiboatcovers.com.

Vinyl - Absolutely the worst material to use for a cover. PO had it made for the boat and it was scraped when I got it home.

When it comes to covers you get what you pay for. If you plan to keep the boat for a long time buy the best cover you can possibly afford. That way you'll only have to but one once.

Not only is sunbrella water resistant/waterproof and UV resistant, but its also the longest lasting. Worth the upcharge if you plan on keeping the boat a while for sure.

Sunbrella all the way. The cover on my last boat still looked good after 15 years.

Factory covers are made out of SurLast. I've picked up a couple through Ebay for around $125 each. The fit is great, but my experience has been that the factory covers don't hold up well over time. My boat floats in our slip for July and August and the sun takes a toll on the cover. The first factory cover lasted a couple of years before the fabric, stitching and Velcro started having issues. I figure I'll get a couple of years out of the new one and then step up to one made out of Sunbrella.

I had a custom boat cover made from Sunbrella. It performed well, but I did notice some stretch.

Also, I was told Top Gun is probably the toughest, but its very abrasive and can sratch the side of your boat. Just someones opinion.

The factory is surlast which is right on par with sharkskin. Diff mfg use diff names. Sunbrella is def the best. Kind of depends on what you are looking for. If you are just wanting a cover to cover the boat while in a garage or storage area with an occassional use outside or rowing in downpour sharkskin is fine. However if you are looking for a cover to store a boat outside or on a lift sunbrella is def worth the upgrade.