A $25,000 Rodent Repair Bill? How About A Better Car Cover?

Welcome And What’s Ahead

Mike Marrs 0:04

From the Texas Golf Cubs, welcome to In Wheel Time. Cars, People, and Places. Coming up in this episode, we're going to be talking with Ken Hoonig about his take on car covers and what he's done to make some improvements.

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Morning, guys. Hey there. This is Ken, and also my friend uh Mark's joined us as well.

Mike Marrs 0:26

Good morning. Good morning. Nice sunshiny day out there. Looks great.

SPEAKER_00 0:30

North Carolina, the heart of the UNASCAR car mecca.

Mike Marrs 0:36

Good place to be involved with cars. Absolutely. So before

Ken And Mark’s Car Backgrounds

Mike Marrs 0:40

we get into talking about your car cover, let's talk a little bit about your background to kind of establish where and why you went this way because it's rather unique, I think.

SPEAKER_00 0:48

Yeah, I grew up in the 60s, uh, where basically Detroit had um their renaissance and and large engines and um you know really nice styling. Um they're they're cars that uh we all you know lust after uh today, and and um as I went through my career, I was able to um start accumulating other cars and and uh enjoying them. You know, dad was a mechanic in the army and he worked on big cars that had um uh guns on them, so it all started from way back when.

Mike Marrs 1:21

Yeah, pulling wrenches. About you, Mark. How did you get thought involved in all this?

SPEAKER_03 1:26

Well, growing up in body work and uh mastering something that's uh didn't look so well and bringing it to perfection, spent much goal on golf cars throughout my whole life.

Mike Marrs 1:38

Yeah, it seems like we all kind of grew up either we really wanted to go fast or we wanted to look good, or we wanted to look good and go fast. It kind of depends on which way you went. So we were all kind of right there about the same boat. So let's talk about what really led what was the trigger point to say I gotta do something better.

SPEAKER_00 2:00

Well,

Rodents And Real Damage Costs

SPEAKER_00 2:01

uh collecting cars, they sit around for about um the time you go to a car show, or you end up uh taking them out for a um a move to get all the fluids. And uh unfortunately, one of my cars, actually, several of my cars, got invaded with rodents, and they ended up um on one car did about $25,000 of damage. Yeah, I tried all those urban remedies, the Irish Spring Flakes, the uh mothballs, the dryer sheets, the feline spray that makes your car smell really interesting. And um, they they didn't work, um, bottom line. And uh the victor traps work, but not after they nibble on your wiring harness. So the the rodents don't go into your car to eat your car, they go in uh in order to be able to uh hide from predators that want to eat them while they have their babies, um, eat the food they collected, and then they nibble on things close by in order to keep their teeth down. And that's where it starts causing a problem.

Mike Marrs 2:59

Yeah, I have to tell you, when I started doing some research about this before we got to it, uh all those stories started popping up on Facebook, you know, the Irish Spring, cut the bar in half and do this and do that, and mothballs, and just on and on and on. And it was just thought, how crazy is some of this stuff?

SPEAKER_00 3:18

Yeah, well, the one that kind of cracks me up a little bit is where they want you to wrap your wiring harness with that um capacium tape. And you can barely drop a quarter down inside the engine compartments today, and yet you're gonna get in there and wrap your whole wiring harness with that pepper, you know, pepper tape. Sure, not gonna happen.

Mike Marrs 3:36

Next time you got the engine out, just climb in there and put it all in there and put the engine back in, and you'll be good to go.

SPEAKER_00 3:43

Exactly.

Mike Marrs 3:44

So

Building A Physical Rodent Barrier

Mike Marrs 3:45

so let's talk about the I mean, car covers been around a long time, obviously, and there's a lot of people make them out of a lot of different stuff and different grades. So you had some, I guess, I'm assuming that you had some that you were using uh for your cars. So let's talk about the process of developing a new car cover.

SPEAKER_00 4:07

Well, it wasn't really something that I tried to do as far as oh, um, light bulb, um, we'll just do a car cover. It was trying to find an active barrier that kept the rodents from getting into your car in the first place. That that's the core. Again, they're not going in there to eat it, they're going in there to find a hiding place. So if you block them out of that, and rodents have the habit of where they come in, sniff, and move, sniff and move. And they they have to keep moving in order to be able to ensure that they're not, you know, uh trapped in one spot and then eaten. Um, and then it kind of dawned on me, I use car covers every day on my uh collectibles. Why don't I just make um a weighted version around this so it holds it to the ground and keeps them from getting um in and underneath, and therefore, cover seal was born. And then a bunch of friends of mine who saw this who also collect cars, they wanted me to go ahead and make a couple for them, and that got a little out of hand and it became a business.

Mike Marrs 5:03

Okay, so you've got a little some uh unique attributes, shall we say, to yours that they're not all just exactly like yours in the overall design. You know, yours isn't isn't necessarily a form fitted to where you got to worry about tucking side mirrors in pockets and things like that. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

SPEAKER_00 5:24

Sure. And you know, whenever you start out doing something, you start going, um, I'm gonna build this like I'm going to use it. So you put all the things in it that you want. You can't always find those features on things that are uh available on the market. So we compromise. I didn't have to compromise, so I learned way more about textiles than I ever wanted to in my lifetime, and all about fabrics and and um you know sewing methods to make them robust and how thick the fabric needs to be to last outside, but yet not be abrasive on the car paint. And um, gee, whatever seal into the ground, you're gonna get humidity and it's gonna be trapped. And all of us have had those, uh a lot of us have had those car bras that if you trap moisture underneath them, they would oxidize your paint. So waterproof covers, stay away from them because they, you know, can trap moisture from underneath it and oxidize really nice paint finishes. So I put vents on our car covers. And then I also you know knew that I uh have ripped several of my car covers on various different exhausts or antennas and stuff. And um, so we made the fabric rip stop. So if you poke a hole in it, it doesn't go uh down the rip, yeah uh the weave line and propagate the rip. Um we also changed the weight and the weight so it made it a little bit more manageable, but still will shield away from you know letting rodents you know nose underneath it. They may nose it, but they're not gonna lift a pound, you know, or two to to get underneath something.

Mike Marrs 6:55

Right. So so I guess it's not quite that heavy by the quarter inch or a half inch, but overall it's heavy enough that they can't lift it and get up under it. What about wind?

SPEAKER_00 7:05

That's what's really kind of nice. Collateral benefit, didn't expect it. Um, you find that when you build things, all of us have in our home projects. So, what's nice, and the reason we don't have to have those little pockets for the mirrors, um, ours don't blow off. So we tested it to 45 miles an hour, and what blows a car cover off a car is when the wind gets underneath it, parachutes it and blows it off the car. Just it up. Correct. So the wind doesn't get underneath ours and it doesn't blow it off. And that's also a benefit for dust. So you're not, you know, you get a leaf blower around your car from the gardeners. Guess what? It's blowing the dust underneath the car cover, which settles then on the car, and the car cover over that, which makes a grace of great abrasive finish. Dust doesn't get underneath our car covers.

Mike Marrs 7:56

Okay, okay. So, have you got one of these set up that you can show us?

SPEAKER_00 8:02

We do. We have one on a car. We can take you down there and uh take a look at some of the features and and uh how it looks.

Mike Marrs 8:08

All right. Well, I'm gonna put this on pause while you're getting set up and we'll take a look at it.

SPEAKER_00 8:13

All right, great.

CoverSeal Walkthrough And Features

Mike Marrs 8:18

Okay, Ken, you've kind of shifted where you're at here. Let's let's take a look at this this car cover. I'm really interested to see it.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

Well, what we have is um the cover on um so we used a little bit bigger cover than we normally would um because it was available, but what you see is some of the features in our car covers. The first thing you'll notice is we have vents, and these can be open or closed by the user. But that way, if there's ever any moisture coming up, evaporating from the ground, it vents out of these things and doesn't accumulate moisture, which is also really important, not just for oxidizing pain, but for mold. So, one of the big challenges for car covers, especially waterproof car covers, is that you grow mold. And if you ever wanted your car to smell terrible, uh, just let it get moldy for one.

Mike Marrs 9:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:10

Next thing we did is you'll notice this fabric. This is 420 denier fabric, and it's got a pattern in it. Well, it's a rip stop fabric. You poke a hole in it, you might have a hole, but it's not gonna propagate to a rip. So that means it's gonna last longer for you. And it's silver, so it's right now reflecting a lot of the sunlight. So there's like 90% of the sunlight. So the temperature outside is gonna be the temperature inside, it's not gonna be cooking your car.

Mike Marrs 9:37

Okay, so this is suitable for inside and outside use.

SPEAKER_00 9:41

Oh, absolutely. It'll last like forever inside. Outside, you've got a good three years or so on these things, depending on the wind conditions. Then here's also the key critical feature. So if you look, here's that weighted apron that's on the car. So this thing is weighted to the ground by this flexible tubing that's in here, and that holds the car cover to the ground and keeps the little rodents that want to come in and find a place to hide out of your car.

Mike Marrs 10:10

And it looks like it's flexible enough, it'll lay to the contour of the land there.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

Oh, and the other thing that you don't have to do with other uh other car covers you do, which you don't have to wear ours. If you're charging the battery on a trickle charger, or if it's a hybrid, then you've got that cable, it goes right underneath that apron, uh, and the flexible tubing will go over it, so you don't have to poke a hole in the cover in order to be able to plug in things.

Mike Marrs 10:37

Uh, good idea. I can see where that would be, uh, particularly with the hybrids and stuff, where people would be using that a lot. Well, great. This would be a great item for. I mean, we're starting to get into the holidays. We've got that, we're gonna be talking about more things, uh, gifts for automotive enthusiasts that are you want to put under your tree. And I think that this would be uh a great addition to anybody that's got a collector car or just a car you really want to protect, even if it's mom's brand new one.

SPEAKER_00 11:06

Absolutely. And once you have one of these, you you don't go back. I mean, we've had NASCAR using these for when they end up uh having inclement weather during a race, and you can see where uh our NASCAR team, because we were with Joe Graff uh Jr. at the time, um, they put it on uh really simply. Um, it it lays up on the car, and you don't have to do that dance where you run in the back and get it on the car, and then you have to run forward and uh have to deal with elastic straps, etc. So this car cover, for instance, all you have to do um is get it up on the car. What ends up happening once you get it on one side, the weight holds it to the car, and then it's simply just letting it drop and straightening it out, and that's the full extent of putting it on. It's actually easier to put on than most commercial car covers.

Mike Marrs 12:13

Yeah, I've got a four-door truck with a cab high camper on it. Uh, I have a cover for that. That's uh it's a it's a fun event to put it on. So, okay, well, very good. And and it's lined. I was at one, I was watching you drop that side down, it's lined across that bottom so that the bottom layer where the weight is that doesn't impact the paint or anything, right?

SPEAKER_00 12:36

Sure. We use a DWR, it's called durable water resistant coating, and that softens the fabric because there's this trade-off between thick fabric, durability, and abrasiveness. So we've got a nice balance between the two where it protects the car, it's not um as abrasive, and let's put it this way anything but a microfiber towel, and we you know what could create micro scratches, but you know, we did that balance, and the thing about it is that um with uh um this kind of uh coating, it limits any kind of abrasion that you would have um from any car cover. Any any cover that you put on a car is bound to give you some micro scratches, even with those liners. So people go, hey, why don't you uh build in one of those soft liners? Well, we did that, and guess what we found? We found that no one puts on a car cover when uh um the car is perfectly clean, and what it ends up doing is accumulating the debris that's on the car into that soft liner, and now you've got sandpaper.

Mike Marrs 13:42

I I can attest to that because, like I say, I've got a big rig, and and it's it's gotten away from me a couple of times going over the top before I got straps on it, and that interior lining, it just grabs dirt and leaves and anything it can get close to. And it's a job I take a vacuum cleaner to clean the car cover so I can put it back on. You know, it's it's a pain. So I could see uh that'd be a good thing right there.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

Yes. Uh, and this is designed to sit on the ground. So, what people don't really understand is when you put on a car cover normally, you put it on the car and you're rolling it backward and forward. On ours, you roll it out next to the car, you pick up the edge, you stick it on, and then you go to the other side and you pull it to over the other side, and you're done. That uh black fabric that's in the bottom there, that's a PVC impregnated 600D um fabric, polyester fabric that they use in in footwear, they use in backpacks, so it's meant to stay on the ground and it doesn't rot.

Mike Marrs 14:41

It's pretty durable then. So,

Materials, Scratches, And Cleanliness Reality

Mike Marrs 14:43

let me ask you this where can people get a cover like this?

SPEAKER_00 14:47

So we sell them on Amazon, and they also, I think shameless plug for your videos. Um, you you have them in real time on Amazon as well, and they also can get them from our website, um, get cover seal.com, g E T C O V E R S E A L dot com.

Mike Marrs 15:06

Okay, you're kind of cut out there, so I'm gonna repeat it. It's get coverseal.com, g-e-t-c-o-v-e-r s-a-l.com.

SPEAKER_03 15:16

Perfect.

Mike Marrs 15:17

All right, sir. Well, we appreciate it very much, and thanks to Mark for being a great cameraman and helping us out there. Yes, he's still there. Good deal, good deal. Well, guys, have a beautiful day. It looks like it's really nice there in North Carolina. I hope it continues to be that way, and we want to thank you again for joining us. All right, sir. Take care.

Heroes And Hot Rods Event Promo

SPEAKER_01 15:40

It's that time again. Fire up those engines. Heroes and hot rods is rolling into Bass Drop for Veterans Day weekend. Friday night, cruise downtown. Saturday, 400 of the coolest rides in Texas, take over Main Street. Honor our veterans, enjoy local food and shopping, and help support local charities and scholarships. Presented by Craig's Jewelry and over 200 local sponsors, November 13th and 14th, downtown Bastro.

Mike Marrs 16:08

In wheel time has been talking about the cars, the trucks, the people, and the stories that make the automotive world interesting. Now we're taking In Wheel Time to the next level. New vehicles, automotive news, car reviews, motorsports, industry leaders, and interesting people. We're gonna take you beyond the driveway and the dealerships with stories from the people who build, race, restore, and actually live the automotive lifestyle. And we're hitting the road with driving destinations worth discovering. First across Texas and eventually wherever the road can take us. Plus, we're gonna have some automotive history, features, interviews, and stories that you may have missed. It's still in-wheel time, but there's a lot more of it to discover. Watch us, listen to us, follow us. It's in wheel time. Cars, trucks, and the people who love them. And speaking

Texas Fall Road Trips And Festivals

Mike Marrs 17:06

of road trips, how about we looking to see where the roads can take us? Now, the fall is finally making its way across Texas, even though it's still football season. It makes it a lot nicer for football Friday nights. Still going strong, but the weather is definitely getting cooler. So this week on Where the Roads Can Take Us, we're gonna trade everyday routines for nights for pirates, pumpkin patches, and a little Texas country hospitality. So grab your favorite traveling companion and let's see where the roads can take us. And of course, in the Houston area and across East Texas, one of the first places that we're gonna stop at is the northwest of Houston, where the Texas Renaissance Festival turns an ordinary weekend into a trip back through time. This has been going on a long time. A lot of people have got a lot of nice stories about it. But we're talking knights in shining armor, jousting tournaments, costume performance, a lot of wandering musicians, hundreds, literally hundreds of shops, and there's enough food to make you forget about counting calories at least for the weekend. But you don't have to dress like a medieval knight to enjoy yourself. But a lot of people do. Get in the mood and join and dress up. Each weekend brings a different theme. October the 24th through 25 is pirate adventure. Now, the next weekend is all hallowed is all hallows eve over the Halloween weekend. In November, you're gonna find a weekend for the heroes and villains and barbarians and Highland Effling. So you can make it a day trip, you can make it a weekend, and because there is camping nearby. In fact, I know in fact I have a niece that got married here. They went, they camped all weekend, had a big wedding. It was a big fun deal. Very nice. So there's lots of ways to do it. And don't forget about the turkey legs. From the Renaissance Festival, we're gonna head west out of Houston over to Brookshire, where the Dewberry farm turns into a fall uh Texas sized celebration. If you enjoy pumpkin patches, corn mazes, and some old-fashioned family fun, this might be your kind of getaway. The farm features an acre acre of corn maze, a huge pumpkin patch, friendly farm animals, and more than 40 rides and attractions. There's even a country carnival atmosphere with a lot of seasonal treats, we got photo opportunities and a lot of activities for the younger travelers. And when the sun goes down, the fall festivals can take on a different personality with some nighttime attractions and fireworks are scheduled on the evening. It's the kind of place you can go, spend an entire afternoon, wear yourself out, and still have something left to see. From Brookshire, we're gonna slide up towards Montgomery, Texas through November the 8th. Now, this is where the P6 Farms offers another Texas style fall celebration. But it's got its own personality. This is a family farm that combines pumpkin picking, flower fields, vintage rides, and a little country and a little country entertainment. There are pig races, giant slides, an animal barn, and plenty of opportunities for those who want to make some family fall photographs. But what makes P6 especially interesting is the changing weekend advocate is the changing weekend activities. October the 31st features a Halloween costume contest and a scavenger hunt. November the first brings uh a Dia de los Motas celebration. Day of the Dead celebration. I could say it easier that way. Followed by American Heroes Weekend, November the 7th and the 8th. That final weekend recognizes teachers, first responders, military members, and veterans. It's a great way to get off the interstate and enjoy a little of the country hospitality. Now, if your idea of the fall festival doesn't necessarily involve carnival rides or large crowds, then our final stop might be what you're looking for. Now, this is the Nails Creek unit of Lake Somerville State Park. And it's holding its third annual fall festival on Saturday, October the 24th. But instead of roller coasters and midway games, you can enjoy horseback riding, a Dutch oven cooking demonstration, and fishing activities, a lot of archery education, and a lot of outdoor family fun. There are opportunities to learn about water safety. You can visit with park representatives and you can enjoy the natural beauty of the Lake Somerville area. And while the festival only lasts one day, the state park itself offers hiking, camping, fishing, and plenty of other reasons to come back for another visit. So sometimes the best road trips are the ones that get us a little closer to nature. So whether you're ready to dress like a pirate and wander through a eight acre corn maze and get lost a little bit, you can pick out the perfect pumpkin or just enjoy a quiet afternoon in Texas uh countryside. Get out and explore nature and some of the area festivals. So that's another look at where the roads can take us this week, right here on In Wheel Time.

Weekend Car Events Calendar Highlights

Mike Marrs 22:09

Cars, places, and people. We're going to finish up with a quick look a little bit further down the calendar on this weekend's week. We're going to take another look at we're going to take another look at the weekend update. We're just going to look a little further down the calendar, a little more planning time to figure out what all we want to go and see and do. Now, first thing we're going to run up to is, of course, October the 31st. The uh Cadillac V Club Trunk or Treat. Now, this is at Circle D Specialties in Houston, 9 a.m. to noon. Now, the Houston Cadillac V Club is celebrating Halloween. The Houston Cadillac V C Club is celebrating Halloween with decorated performance Cadillacs, costumes, candy, and family activities. Circle D Specialties hosts this Halloween morning gathering, giving enthusiasts a chance to enjoy some high-performance American cars while providing a little holiday fun for the kids. November 6th and 7th, Lone Star Mopar Fest. This is Houston area again. Mopar enthusiasts have a weekend to circle on their calendar as the Lone Star Mopar Fest returns November 6th and 7. Now, this is listed on the regular car show calendar, and it brings an opportunity for Chrysler Dodge, Plymouth, and modern Mopar performance bands to connect. Be a great weekend, and there'll be more details at the event. So be a great weekend for Mopar lovers of every brand. Coffee and Cars returns to Dakon. Coffee and Cars returns to Dakon Park for the second annual R Call. Coffee and Cars returns for the second annual All-Stars Car Show. Organizers plan on bringing more than 360 vehicles into the stadium environment, including displays on the field, the concourse, and the surrounding areas. This is an unusual opportunity to combine Houston's automotive culture with one of the city's most recognizable sports venues. Dykin Park Houston, November 7 and 8th. November 7th also is the November Fest Car and Bike Show. November 7th is also the Alvin Rotary November Fest Car and Bike Show. Now this is at the National Oak Park in Alvin. Now this is their annual November Fest celebration. Got a car show, got a motorcycle show, got some entry, got some antique tractors, some live entertainment, and a couple of tributes for veterans. So there's more than 130 trophies. Plaques are offered across numerous. More than 130 trophies and plaques are offered across numerous vehicle classes. Spectator admission is free, making this a real family family, a real family-friendly activity. Then the big one, November 13th and 14th, the 20th annual Heroes and Hot Rods. And this is a historic downtown Bassrop. The Bastrop area cruisers. Now they celebrate the 20th annual Heroes and Hot Rods Veterans Weekend. Now it's a Friday evening cruise in on historic North. It's a Friday evening cruise in on historic Main Street that leads into Saturday's car show. And they're going to have over 400 vehicles. They've already sold it out, and there's a special veterans tribute ceremony as well. All the proceeds support veterans organizations, automotive education scholarships around the area, and several local charities. Vehicle registration is sold out. So there's vehicle registration is sold out, and spectators are admitted free. Again, Bass Drop, Texas. Again, Bass Drop, Texas. And that is a look at our weekend auto. And that's a look at our weekend auto scene that's coming up in the near future. As always, check with the event organizers, check the websites, make sure there's no rainouts, no delays, or no changes at the last minute.

Where To Watch And Listen

Mike Marrs 26:23

And with that, I want to say thanks for joining us on In Wheel Time and ask you to join us every Saturday morning at 9 a.m. for another episode of In Wheel Time. We're streaming on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch, and our website inWheeltime.com. And again, Saturday mornings can get busy. And if they do, you can keep up with everything that we're going to, things we're talking about on our podcast. Now that's in wheeltimepodcast.com or Apple, Spotify. You can even go to Amazon and listen to us while you're doing some shopping, particularly if you're looking for car parts or car automotive guests for the upcoming holiday season. I'm Michael Mars. Thanks for riding along with In Wheel Time.

SPEAKER_01 27:16

Friday night, cruise downtown. Saturday, 400 of the coolest rides in Texas take over Main Street. Hunter our veterans enjoy local food and shopping and help support local charities and scholarships. Presented by Craig's Jewelry and over 200 local sponsors. November 13th and 14th, Downtown Bastro.

Mike Marrs 27:36

Teen Eaters In Wheel Time has been talking about the cars, the trucks, the people, and the stories that make the automotive world interesting. Now we're taking in wheel time to the next level. New vehicles, automotive news, car reviews, motorsports, industry leaders, and interesting people. We're going to take you beyond the driveway and the dealerships with stories from the people who build, race, restore, and actually live the automotive lifestyle. And we're hitting the road with driving destinations worth discovering. First across Texas and eventually wherever the road can take us. Plus, we're going to have some automotive history, features, interviews, and stories that you may have missed. It's still in wheel time, but there's a lot more of it to discover. Watch us, listen to us, follow us. It's in wheel time. Cars, trucks, and the people who love them.