I'm in the process of constructing a small room for drying sailing gear. It's going to have a towel rail, hooks to hang things from and a clothes rail. I'm also putting in a vent to outside through the door. I'm interested to know what others do after a weekend sailing to keep their gear in tip top condition.

I'd think about heating but just as important are insulation and ventilation / dehumidification, or the place will be running with condensation and nothing will dry. Consider a floor drain to take away water from dripping wet or just washed gear, and a largish extract fan. Dehumidifier could perhaps be a portable job, not sure how good they are but builders use them a lot. Tiled floor and walls will be easier to clean. Perhaps make provision for drying sails too, if not all then at least the kite.

Washing machine followed by airing cupboard?

You can actually buy drying cabinets, that you can hang wetsuits etc. in.
Google search Drying Cabinets, about £600

"interested to know what others do after a weekend sailing"

i generally dump the bag of sodden clothing outside the back door, and sometimes rinse some of it in the washing machine 3 days later. otherwise it might stay there 2 weeks, getting rinsed by the rain....and eventually i'll deal with it

[sigh]

Mags seems to be nearer reality!

Stick it in the washing machine & either hang outside or over shower rail above bath till Becky complains or it's dry.

Ellie uses the Mags technique sometimes accompanied by garden hose.  £600 sounds more like a mainsail than a drying cabinet to me

Yes,I'd rather have a mainsail than a drying cabinet. But they do exist, for those that do not want to build a bespoke drying/wet room:in which case it would be a cheaper option. We have one on-site for the water sports enthusiast, have to admit though, most people just rinse and hang outside tent to dry. As Mags says, normally rinsed when needed.

When I was a photographer, I used a metal locker with a fan heater in the bottom to dry my films. Could work for wet gear.
I put newspaper in my wet boots and leave them over night, Then I put them on the shed roof were they get the sun all day.
The wet suits go in the wash and then on the line. After four hours, I turn them inside out. If the weather is bad, they hang in the conservatory.
Dry suit days are quick and easy.

Sorry chaps, no idea what you are talking about, the wet suit fairy just sorts it all out....

GGGGG

Thanks for the useful replies.
I might opt for a humidity activated fan as a cheaper alternative to a de humidifier.
BTW It's now Tuesday and I'm still surrounded by wiffy sailing gear again:-(

I am the wetsuit fairy!!!!!

Newspaper stuffed into wet suit boots dries them nicely.  It also takes the smell away.

Newspapers: now that's the best one yet. I Like it.

That reminds me, I'd better get the bag out the back of the car. Can sometimes forget it all week!

Boots need a solution of Milton twice a year to keep them environmentally friendly

But then they don't come when you whistle!

Is the former Whitstable Pro advocating putting pages of poetry into his boots twice a year?

In an effort to tidy up the bedroom, I'm about to dump all my (clean and dry!) sailing kit into the garage.....but will it last the winter out there without going mouldy? There are no leaks, but the damp air can easily blow in the door cracks...

All of ours lives in the garage all year round. I am not the wetsuit fairy!

Son's kit is in the garage - mine's in the boiler room!