Kayak - Winter Storage and Care

[Espo66]

I purchased a Jackson Mayfly this year, putting it away now for the winter as here in the NE it will start getting too cold (for me) to fish. My wife was gracious enough to let me store it in inside, in the room where we have a pool table setup. I fell good about that, but was wondering:

 

Is it OK to wax the kayak with regular car wax? Or is there anything especially made for whatever plastic material it is made out of ?(not sure)

 

Anyone recommend any preventative maintenance along those lines?

 

Thanks,

 

Larry

[Bird]

Indoor storage is the optimal choice. 

 

I've been washing my kayaks with Dawn dish liquid and after dry, apply a coat of Aerospace 303 UV protectant. 

The stuff works great.

[J Francho]

I keep mine in a shady spot in the yard year round with no issues.  At least one of my kayaks has to be a decade old.  Don't let them fill up with water, and keep them out of the sun.  The cold won't hurt anything.

[MN Fisher]

30 minutes ago, J Francho said:

I keep mine in a shady spot in the yard year round with no issues.  At least one of my kayaks has to be a decade old.  Don't let them fill up with water, and keep them out of the sun.  The cold won't hurt anything.

First year I had the canoe, it was kept outside all winter long, upside down on a pair of saw-horses, covered with a tarp to keep the sun off. Same polyethylene they make kayaks out of. No problem. Now I keep it in the garage on the trailer. Temp differences aren't going to hurt it...and it gets well below zero here some nights.

[Dens228]

Mine hangs on the back wall of my garage, the electronics go in the basement. 

[CountryboyinDC]

I guess you could wax it with car wax, I'm not sure what the outcome would be.  For me, I still put 303 https://www.goldeagle.com/product/303-aerospace-protectant/ on my Royalex canoes and polyethylene kayaks.  I think most paddlers use that if anything.  Unless your billiard room is exceptionally exposed to UV, you may want to wait to apply until you're ready to start fishing next year.  It won't hurt either way, and it's definitely not an involved chore.  I also go through and tighten all the screws on my fishing kayaks.  The only things that cold hurt are things that contract by different proportions (Royalex canoes with ash gunwales were particularly problematic), but your kayak should be fine.  That's a nice kayak - I considered one even though I don't fly fish.  Lots of neat features.

[TcRoc]

My Yaks washed with whatever is around .. pull everything out and stored under deck which is covered by a roof. Depressing time of year lol.

[Bankc]

I store mine in the garage.  Don't use wax on a plastic kayak.  It won't stick well, and doesn't offer any protection.  There are some UV sprays you can use, but if you're storing it inside, it's not worth the effort or money, as it won't be exposed to UV light anyway.  Just clean it with mild soap and water, and make sure it's evenly supported so it doesn't warp.  And make sure it dry, which I assume you are because you're storing it inside.  

 

Most plastic kayaks are made of HDPE, which doesn't require much maintenance.  UV light and mold are your biggest concerns, as well as warping.  

[Bluebasser86]

Anybody use a ceiling hoist to store their kayak? I have a spot in my garage I think mine will fit in (if it ever gets here), and I'd much rather store it inside than outside.

[Bankc]

9 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Anybody use a ceiling hoist to store their kayak? I have a spot in my garage I think mine will fit in (if it ever gets here), and I'd much rather store it inside than outside.

I do.  I'll admit though, that's it's not as convenient as I had hoped.  First, it's hard to pull up and lower.  My kayak, with all of the stuff I have stored in it, probably weighs over 100 lbs.  I'd estimate that I'm having to use about 70-80lbs of force to move it.  Theoretically, due to the pulleys, it should be 50lbs, but there's a lot of resistance so it's actually a good bit more than it should be.  As you get near the top, you have to lift it one side at a time to keep the brake from engaging.  Otherwise you can't get it all of the way up.  And with my shorter ceiling, I need as much clearance below it as I can get.  I have to stoop when walking below it even if it's all the way up.  The rope also digs into my hands pretty badly, so I usually wear work gloves when operating it. 

 

Also, make sure you predrill the holes for the bolts and drill them through the exact center of the ceiling joists.  You're gonna put a ton of weight on that thing while lifting the kayak (the weight of the kayak plus the weight you apply to the rope).  If you don't predrill the holes, it's easy to shear off a bolt head trying to work it through the wood.  And if you don't nail the exact center, it's easy to split the wood of the joist when the kayak wobbles (you have to pull it at an angle because the kayak is directly below it).  It's not hard to install (though the instructions were of no help), but you will want to take your time to make sure you do it right. 

 

Having said all of that, I am glad I bought it.  It does keep the kayak out of the way and makes it easier to load and unload than having the lift the kayak up on a rack.  Plus, they're fairly cheap.  Mine wasn't much more than $30 (RAD Sportz brand).  

[GTN-NY]

10 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Anybody use a ceiling hoist to store their kayak? I have a spot in my garage I think mine will fit in (if it ever gets here), and I'd much rather store it inside than outside.

I do also. Three of them using the Rad Sports lifts. Two of them are no problem but my Jackson Big Rig is a beast to hoist and I empty it out. I was thinking about hooking a Harbor Freight Electric Winch $60 to the pulley system to help out. 
I also put two 2” pvc pipes under the kayak to help support the hull

[Espo66]

14 hours ago, Bankc said:

I store mine in the garage.  Don't use wax on a plastic kayak.  It won't stick well, and doesn't offer any protection.  There are some UV sprays you can use, but if you're storing it inside, it's not worth the effort or money, as it won't be exposed to UV light anyway.  Just clean it with mild soap and water, and make sure it's evenly supported so it doesn't warp.  And make sure it dry, which I assume you are because you're storing it inside.  

 

Most plastic kayaks are made of HDPE, which doesn't require much maintenance.  UV light and mold are your biggest concerns, as well as warping.  

 

That's good to know, thanks!

 

I went through a pinball phase years ago and turned our garage into a game-room. It now has the pool table. House is also on a slab, so no basement. I toyed with either leaving it outside where I stored it over fishing season, or hanging it in my shed. Was worried about outside thinking possible ice build-up, and shed, b/c of the squirrels that make it their home in the winter.

 

For now, it is in the corner of the game-room and the wife is good with it. Will leave any wax or chemicals off and just clean it as suggested above.

 

Already can't wait until spring.

 

 

 

Thanks to all for the feedback.

 

Larry

 

 

[MN Fisher]

Just now, Espo66 said:

just clean it as suggested above.

I use diluted Simple Green on my canoe...effective and totally biodegradable. It's pretty much the only cleaner I use on everything around the place.

[CountryboyinDC]

13 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Anybody use a ceiling hoist to store their kayak?

Mine are pretty much all suspended by 2 cam straps from ceilings in the garage, carport and basement.  Canoes, I store gunwales down with a piece of 2x4 along the bottom to keep them from rolling.  It's a simple, cheap solution.  @GTN has a solution that supports the boats aling their length, and that would probably be the manufacturers' preference, but I've never had an issue.

[NYWayfarer]

On 11/4/2020 at 7:08 PM, Dens228 said:

Mine hangs on the back wall of my garage, the electronics go in the basement. 

Same here. My Garage is not insulated. At least the yak is out of direct sunlight and the elements.

 

I was mine with either Dawn dishwashing liquid or car was soap before hanging up for the year.

[moguy1973]

Both of mine go inside my shed.  One sits on the ground and the other above it on the wall on a 2x4 rack I built.  Have stored them in there for over a decade now and no issues. Polyethylene can withstand temps around -100F before they get too brittle to use.

[fishwizzard]

The only issue I have had with outdoor storage is spiders.  My first trip this past spring was an exercise in control, I had three wolf spiders come out to say hello in my first hour on the water.  I keep all the hatch covers on so I have no idea where they were hiding and how they survived the 40min trip to the lake.  

 

I don't really mind spiders in general, but don't like sharing a 10sqft cockpit with one.  

[J Francho]

If you set your kayak on fire, you'll get rid of them for good.

[MN Fisher]

Just now, J Francho said:

If you set your kayak on fire, you'll get rid of them for good.

Nuke it from orbit - it's the only way to be sure.

[J Francho]

I'm more of a DIY, but if you have the connections....

[Bluebasser86]

Our garage gets a good number of spiders and house centipedes in it, so I'm sure it's a matter of time before one hitches a ride with me. I don't like spiders, I'm not terrified of them, but I have a hard time keeping it cool if one surprises me by crawling on me. Hopefully the camera is rolling when that time comes.

[J Francho]

Put one of these in your boat.

[Bankc]

I don't know if it's just dumb luck, but I've never found a spider in my kayak.  And I keep it in the garage, which is home to many brown recluse and a few black widow spiders.  I like to believe that hanging it from the ceiling on a ceiling hoist is the reason for that.  I'm sure they could still get up there and drop down into it, but the added difficulty in doing that seems to be pretty effective in keeping them away.  

[Bluebasser86]

Thanks for the advice on the ceiling hoist. I was hoping to have a little more clearance, but I'll be the only one in the family that has to duck, at least until the boys get a little taller.

[Darth-Baiter]

You all open up the hatches?   Me, I put a small fan blowing inside my kayak in between trips.   I do not  want stanky mold. 
 

I get to fish year round tho.    Well, once I buy some immersion gear$$