Condoms for Zippers

Yet again, we had heavy rain and winds through the night, and consistent rattles on the boat became tiresome.
We had already identified some poppers not being popped into place and being whipped up by the wind against the boat, but last night, as with every one since that discovery, we made sure we were popped, bungee’d and zipped up tight before we retired.
Something was tapping against the side of the boat though, so this morning we both investigated.

Depending on whether you’re aboard or outside, will determine which of the two zipper tongues you use to secure the cover.
Mr Wind was making his presence felt by sneakily slipping under the cover and rattling the inside tongue against the metal bodywork.

Having found the problem, the next was how to fix it.

Hubby came up with the idea of placing gaffer tape across the bottom of the zip fastening so that there was a barrier between it and the boat. That would have been OK provided we didn’t want to open the cover for any reason, or were prepared to replace the gaffer tape (a bit of a fiddly job once the cover was in place) every time we used it.
Inspiration hit with the thought of covering the zip tongue with fabric, thus making a little sleeve, and I fished out what was left of our curtain header tape for the job. Unfortunately, the ‘hook’ part I’d hoped to push the tongue through was too small, and making it bigger would have defeated the object, as the material would just have dropped off.
Working on the same theme (of a sleeve) Hubby suggested using a piece of garden hose and pushing the tongue inside.
We were almost there, as now my mind was working on how to secure the hose in place.
In the bottom of our sewing kit, I found a small length of nylon chord.
We tied one end to the narrow part of the zip sticking out of the hose, then looped the other end to the fat part of the tongue and tied it.
No unsightly bulges or dangly bits, and if anything, just an almost silent nudge against the boat.
Perfect.
Sweet Dreams!

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