Inflatable Kayak Blog

As an owner of an inflatable kayak, I’m often asked questions about the durability of the kayak while in the water. Do I have to avoid sharp objects? What are the chances of puncturing the hull while paddling? Well, I always try to avoid “objects” of any kind in the water. That’s just common sense paddling. However, even if I did hit something sharp, I’d be confident that my boat could handle it. One of the properties of water is that it makes everything slipperier, which in turn deflects some of the force. Also, the nature of an inflatable is that the surface area of the hull has some “give” to it, which also deflects the force of the impact.

The materials that inflatable boats are made of these days are strong. For example, Sea Eagle uses two types of material on their products, the 1000 Denier Polyester Reinforced Fabric that can stand up to a claw end of a hammer (see video below) and a Polykrylar material that isn’t quite as strong, but is still very dependable. Innova uses a 1200-denier Nitrylon™ fabric which is also very durable. I’m familiar with both these brands and I hear that most other current brands are durable as well. In fact many of the durability tests that manufacturers put their kayaks through include hitting them with sharp objects since that’s probably the major concern of most potential customers. Punctures may be a concern, but the most common way to damage an inflatable boat is by dragging it on the ground on a regular basis, especially on cement or gravel. That’s the kind of wear and tear that is much more likely to damage your kayak than occasionally bumping into something while in the water.

I’ve always said that if you use common sense when paddling, transporting and storing an inflatable kayak, boat or pontoon, you’ll keep it in good shape for years.