Tips for Storing Your Kayak

How do you store your kayak, especially when you throw in the option of it being outside? Do you store your kayak outside, do you keep it in a garage, do you keep it in the shed, under an awning, under a tarp, that type of thing? Keep in mind what the elements outside can do to your plastic kayak. Think about your car, does your car stay outside in the sun a lot? Think about the plastics like the bumpers and plastic trim. You often see a white fuzzy area where you can scratch into it, or the outer coating will kind of crack off, or simply fade. Your kayak will go through the same type of weathering, so try to keep it inside. Try to keep it in a garage, or a shed, under a carport, if nothing else put a tarp over top of it. For a few dollars you can go to your local home improvement center such as Lowes or Home Depot, and pick up a tarp, whatever size you want, and you can bungee it down.

A few more things you need to think about is if you’re going to have your kayak stored for a long period of time outside and in the elements, try not to leave ratchet straps on it. If it gets really hot or really cold the straps are going to tense and relax. Also if it’s really hot, your kayak itself can get a little bit softer. If you have it really cranked down, the ratchet straps can do some damage to the whole boat. If you’re going to leave it outside, put a tarp over it. Also, don’t leave straps on it for an extended period of time because it can cause some serious damage. The straps can cut into the kayak and leave ridges and furrows that will weaken it and create drag in the water.

Some other elements you need to think about too. Do you have it under sappy pine trees or under really leafy trees? Those leaves are going to fall off the trees. They’re going to sit in the kayak. It’s going to rain. It’s going to get condensation on it. The leaves are acidic and they can cause pretty nasty brown stains all over your kayak and these aren’t always that easy to get out.  What about sappy trees? Have you ever tried to get pine sap off the top of your car? It takes a lot of effort. What about birds? What about bugs? Things like that. For this you need automotive bug and sap remover. If you have a sit inside kayak, another thing you’re going to see sometimes is where rats and squirrels and mice like to spend the winter inside your kayak. You might find creepy crawlies kind of hibernating in it. So if you have a sit inside kayak, it might be good to invest in some type of Hatch cover, or just make sure you keep in that area with some type of improvised tarp over top of it. A good idea is to put cling free clothes dryer sheets inside the cockpit to discourage rodents. If you’re going to keep your kayak stored outside, try to do what you can to keep the direct sunlight off of it, as it’s going to possibly warp and dry rot, and then fade out the hull of the boat, but also be exposed to a lot of other little elements too.

It’s important to keep in mind that if you’re going to store it outside, especially for an extended period time, invest in a good cable lock, and lock that kayak up because you don’t want to go out to get your kayak the next time you want to hit the water, and it won’t be there. So don’t have that happen to you invest in some type of a locking mechanism so you can protect your valuable kayak. Bottom line is, try to keep your kayak under some type covered area if you can. If you don’t have that option, invest a few dollars in a tarp. Don’t leave straps on it for an extended period of time, and try to keep it out of direct sunlight, direct heat, and extreme cold to protect the hull. After all you want it to last you for a long time. The best comparison is, think about how you care for your car, where you park your car, what kind of damage the elements do to your car, and you probably take your car to the car wash and put some polish or wax on it. You don’t always do that to your kayak, so if you put a little bit of love and care in your kayak, it’ll last you a whole lot longer and look a lot better too.

It is also important to keep your kayak, paddle board, or SUP, off the ground. This almost always insures inside storage and discourages rodents. Kayak storage hooks are available from several companies such as: Malone, Rad Sportz, Suspenz, Extreme Max, and Tech Team https://techteamproducts.com/. The Tech Team Kayak Hook

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_pg_4?fst=as%3Aon&rh=n%3A3375251%2Ck%3Akayak+storage&page=4&keywords=kayak+storage&ie=UTF8&qid=1544551026 is our choice because it is versatile, well-engineered, and affordable.