Cockpit drains that don’t drain can cause trailers to tilt, invite frogs to breed, and even sink boats if the vessel is small. Bits of cloth, leaves, and bird droppings can congeal into a concrete-like mix that can literally seal a small-diameter cockpit drain.

A variation on the strum box, this DIY strainer is simple to build, clog-proof (it will overflow down the drain when it clogs) and can be cleaned of the most stubborn hair and fibers with a single wipe of the hand. The mounting stub should have a loose but not overly sloppy fit in the drain, typically 1 to 1.25 PVC. The riser is a 1.5-inch PVC drilled with closely spaced, staggered 3/16-inch holes. The top is open. After drilling the holes, sand or scrape to get rid of all of the burrs, but do NOT chamfer the holes; that will actually make it harder to clean. A drill press helps, since there are a lot of holes

For winter boat storage, remove the grill over the cockpit drains and just drop these in. Neither leaves nor ice can block it, since it is tall enough to reach above the accumulation. The riser can be as tall as you like; 8 inches works for tubs and most cockpits, but taller could make sense in snow country.

The lazy variation: Roll up some hardware cloth (coarse wire mesh) into a tube and stick it into the cockpit drains with at least six inches sticking out. Not as durable, not as easy to live with, but suitable for winter storage.