Jump to content

Welcome to TheMalibuCrew!

As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!

Bad Luck with Evolution Cover


zornman

Recommended Posts

Last fall I purchased an Evolution Cover as part of the group buy. When I received it, I was quite pleased. The cover fit very well and it was much easier to install than my previous cover!

The problem occurred this spring. I pulled the boat out of storage and took it to the marina so they could assess the warranty repair on improperly installed fins from the factory (that is a whole other miserable story!! Needless to say the boat is on its way back to the factory soon Cry.gif ). Once I found it is going back to Tennessee, I stopped by to pull a few things out of the boat only to find the cover with about 50+ gallons of water sitting on it. Now I will say that before the rain, the cover was so tight you could use it like a trampoline. I'm not sure if the material streched due to the rain, but the cover is probably ruined now. Unless it shrinks significantly when it dries, it is simply going to be too big now.

Another issue with this cover is that the tie downs press so hard on the sun deck that it leaves impressions in the vinyl. I have to give them kudos for a cover that is very easy to install and the material is fabulous, but I am nonetheless disappointed.

If the shape comes back, I'll add another post, but I don't think it will.

Link to comment

Since you left the boat at the marina for them to work on, I would assume the probably is high that they removed the cover, and possibly did not reinstall it properly?

Link to comment
Last fall I purchased an Evolution Cover as part of the group buy. When I received it, I was quite pleased. The cover fit very well and it was much easier to install than my previous cover!

The problem occurred this spring. I pulled the boat out of storage and took it to the marina so they could assess the warranty repair on improperly installed fins from the factory (that is a whole other miserable story!! Needless to say the boat is on its way back to the factory soon Cry.gif ). Once I found it is going back to Tennessee, I stopped by to pull a few things out of the boat only to find the cover with about 50+ gallons of water sitting on it. Now I will say that before the rain, the cover was so tight you could use it like a trampoline. I'm not sure if the material streched due to the rain, but the cover is probably ruined now. Unless it shrinks significantly when it dries, it is simply going to be too big now.

Another issue with this cover is that the tie downs press so hard on the sun deck that it leaves impressions in the vinyl. I have to give them kudos for a cover that is very easy to install and the material is fabulous, but I am nonetheless disappointed.

If the shape comes back, I'll add another post, but I don't think it will.

Unbelievable, how could you possibly blame any of this on a manufacture? The cover was most likely not installed correctly by the dealer and you are blamming the maker of the cover, I had one for two years on my last boat and never once had a pooling issue.

Link to comment

With my cover installed correctly if the boat is parked and the bow is not raised up high and on level ground water will sometimes pool on the cover if it rains hard enough. If you do not use additional cover supports it's going to happen. My cover is a Rankin.

Link to comment

Like BillFooter just said, if the boat is inclined nose down, or the cover is not exactly right, my Rankin can still pool up. I've been putting a swimming noodle on the engine cover to raise it a few more inches up.

Mine hasn't had 50 gallons of water in it, but a couple gallons, and it all shrunk back up as soon as it dried out.

Also, part of installing the cover exactly right is the made sure the hooks around the gunnels are secured. This make a world of difference on my cover.

Edited by Bill_AirJunky
Link to comment

It more than likely won't shrink, but I highly doubt that it's ruined. Once you get the boat back & you have time, put the cover on & assess the damage. If it's not tight enough, you can have Cory alter it to have it fit correctly. You more than likely will need to pay him to do it, but it will be a fraction of a new cover.

Most people (including many dealers) don't understand how tight the cover should fit & don't put them on correctly.

Link to comment

If the cover was properly installed it is impossible to have 50 gallons of water pool on it. Your issue was simply an install issue by you or your dealership. The cover has probably stretched from the 400 pounds of water that was on it. I can't believe you would try and blame you or your dealers incompetence on Evolution covers. Like you said you received a good cover and it was ruined/stretched by improper installation. Indentations on the rear sun deck are completely normal for any custom cover, the rear straps are the anchor for the cover what do you expect.

Would you blame Malibu if you ran your boat out of gas too???

Edited by 06vlx
Link to comment

First off, I am going to give bug kudos to Cory at Evolution. He already called to discuss. Thanks, Cory! He has offerred to help diagnose a potential solution.

It is possible that the marina installed it incorrectly, but in the past, if anything, the problem has been that they tightened my old cover too tightly. BillFooter is definitely correct about the incline. That was my first thought, too. If the front is down, it can't be more than one or two inches (jack post wheel is sunk about 1 inch in the ground), but that will certainly be part of the parking checklist in the future.

Has anyone been able to solve the problem with the buckles smashing the transom side of the vinyl on the sun deck? If I pad it, there will be a higher risk of pooling. Assuming I can get the cover back in working order, I'll add one post for support (especially if I don't cover it), but I can't continue to use it if it still smashes the vinyl.

Wakegirl confirmed what Cory said that it can be fixed at a much lower cost than replacement, but it is still frustrating. Add that to the possible hull defect on the boat and I am having a bad start to the season....but I'll vent in private.

Thanks, all.

Link to comment

Glad to hear that Cory is taking care of you. No surprise there.

I've had my Evolution Cover on the boat now for over 3 years and it still is in great shape. I have it sitting out on the boat in the water all season long with lots of exposure to rain. This is the Pacific Northwest afterall. :) I have occasionally found a small amount of water on the cover and have had to make periodic adjustments to the tensioning, but never anything close to 50 gallons. I also suspect that your dealer didn't place the cover on properly.

I haven't had any problems with permanent indentations in the vinyl. I have noted some temporary ones that are gone soon after removing the cover and using the boat.

Hope your boat and cover work out quickly for a great season.

Link to comment
Glad to hear that Cory is taking care of you. No surprise there.

I've had my Evolution Cover on the boat now for over 3 years and it still is in great shape. I have it sitting out on the boat in the water all season long with lots of exposure to rain. This is the Pacific Northwest afterall. :) I have occasionally found a small amount of water on the cover and have had to make periodic adjustments to the tensioning, but never anything close to 50 gallons. I also suspect that your dealer didn't place the cover on properly.

I haven't had any problems with permanent indentations in the vinyl. I have noted some temporary ones that are gone soon after removing the cover and using the boat.

Hope your boat and cover work out quickly for a great season.

Maybe the indentations will work their way out. I've only had the cover off twice and the first time was only a day, but the indentations were still there. I'm sure the indentations are larger than normal now because of all of the weight on the cover.

There was enough water that it looked like a "kiddie" pool. The water went was about 5' in diameter and at least 16"-18" deep in the center. That may not be 50 gallons, but it sure was a lot. It does say a lot for the workmanship of the cover and the material. The rain that caused this happened several days earlier and the water did not leak through the cover nor did any of the seams tear.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...