Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Tracker wants nearly $700 for a stock pontoon cover. Ouch!

I've found a manufacturer that warrants a trailerable cover for 6 years for less than $500.00, and I can get a non-trailerable cover for less than $200.00.

Is a trailerable cover really necessary? The boat will be stored at home and driven about 45 minutes to water each week.

TIA,

Plankton

Hey Plankton,

I bought a model year closeout boat from a Tracker Marine dealer with supposedly no factory cover available. Just as well. I ordered a universal cover from a company on the left coast for under $150 delivered. It carries a 5 year warranty and the manufacturer rates it as trailerable. I have been using it for about three months now. It sheds water just like the expensive ones and even more important it keeps the sun off the furniture. Like you I am pretty close to the water so I always pull the cover off before heading to the lake. Trailerable is not really a big deal to me.

I am a genuine, official, bonafide tightwad so big money for a cover just ain't happenin' at my house. For me there are just two key points to boat covers:

1) Gotta have one - the sun is a killer
2) Gotta use it - get one you can get on and off easily

I got lucky, if you can say spending 488.00 for a factory cover is getting lucky. I inquired about a cover before I closed the deal on the boat (2007 Suntracker Regency Edition 22 w/90 HP Merc). Turns out they had one in stock and were willing to sell at a good discount. Since the boat came with a wireless motor guide trolling motor and a 400.00 locater that was not listed in the ad I figured I would spring for the cover. Now if can just get it cleaned up enough to put it in the water, maybe this weekend. I have rented a slip at one of the marinas so will not be trailering.

Jim

Watch the covers on the net. They make them appear to fit like a glove. I bought one of the aftermarket covers an it was so heavy an ill fitting. I hated to take it off an put it back on when I went to the lake. Long story short if I had bought the 500 dollar fitted cover it would have saved me 2.5k when I sold the boat. I discounted the boat because the vinyl was almost destroyed. My advise get a good fitted cover an use it. The one on the new boat was 500 an fit very well, easy on an off. When its life is gone, I will spend another 500 an get the same thing. Most of the cover makers have the specs on the different toons or a local canvas guy might want your boat for a fitted cover. Bottom line this isn't an area you want to try an save a few hundred.
Just wanted to add, for the people considering a toon from a dealer. Work the price of a fitted cover in the price of the boat.
doc

Plankton wrote:Tracker wants nearly $700 for a stock pontoon cover. Ouch!

I've found a manufacturer that warrants a trailerable cover for 6 years for less than $500.00, and I can get a non-trailerable cover for less than $200.00.


Plankton

Plankton, in my opinion a cover of some sort is warranted. Do you need one that's trailerable, again, my opinion, if you're just traveling short distances to and from the lake, then no. But if you're parking your boat outside, absolutely. The sun is one of the hardest elements on a boat parked outside. When I first bought my boat about 7 months ago, I almost bought a cover from pontoonstuff.com Thier best cover for my 20 footer was $427 total, including shipping. But since I currently store my boat at an indoor storage facility, I backed off buying the cover, and instead use the playpen cover that came with the boat to keep the dust and pollen out. However, If I ever decide to stop paying the storeage fee and bring the boat home, I will be buying that cover. I look at it this way, if you're going to invest anywhere 17 to 30 grand or more for the boat, what the hells 4 or 5 hundred bucks to protect it. Again, just one man's opinion.

Alot of aftermarket dont fit as claimed and can cost hundreds aswell. When i got my toon it did not have a cover so i had one worked in the deal. As any stealer would do he got me an aftermarket that was nothing but problems. I watched ebay for a week or two and found the factory dowco cover (the $688 one) and got it for $200 new. After getting the factory playpen cover and haveing an aftermarket, I would either watch ebay for a factory one or spring for the factory.