Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

How to detect significant sun damage in a plastic molded kayak?

+0
−0

Molded kayaks are usually made of polyethylene, an otherwise extremely durable material which can be damaged by the sun. The used market is full of kayaks manufactured ten or twenty years ago which spent some part of their life outdoors. There are many variables in manufacturing (UV stabilizers, pigments, even simple thickness of the plastic), maintenance (application of UV protectants) and storage (occasionally on the roof of a car vs stored outdoors for years on end).

Given the above, how can one tell if the weakening/embrittlement of the plastic is enough to significantly reduce the durability of the kayak?

I am not worried about dents or “oil canning” which may be a result of a short time in the sun, as much as structural integrity of the hull (retaining the toughness and reliability that is the great virtue of molded plastic boats).

History
Why does this post require moderator attention?
You might want to add some details to your flag.
Why should this post be closed?

This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/q/21788. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

0 comment threads

1 answer

+0
−0

As long as it still flexes you're good to go.

Part of the strength of polyethylene kayaks is in their flexibility, apart from colour loss, the most significant aspect of sun damage to the plastics is that they become brittle. If pressing on the larger flatter sections causes it to flex elastically then the sun damage is not yet significant.

This is more of a risk for older boats, the plastics used have changed over the years and modern boats are less susceptible.

You should also check any fittings for sun damage, for example the softer rubber of hatch covers is more vulnerable due to its greater need to flex and stretch.

Oil canning is usually a result of bad storage or transportation rather than sun damage, the easiest way to get it is overtightening the straps on roofbars. One of the solutions is to leave it out in the sun for a while.

History
Why does this post require moderator attention?
You might want to add some details to your flag.

This post was sourced from https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/a/21793. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

0 comment threads

Sign up to answer this question »