Hi I'm new to Kayak fishing and this is my first kayak, and I need tips on how to clean it and what soaps would be good to use for getting rid of salt debris without compromising the plastic of the kayak? I do fish saltwater only and I live where the sun constantly shines. Also what are some storage tips If you do not have a garage or shed to place kayak in? Any advice would be appreciated, thank you in advance!
Posted by Inofromjjk4031
3 Comments
I rinse mine off once a year. It’s a kayak, not fine China.
If you really wanted to go the extra mile, you could do a power wash with a foam cannon with a higher PH soap to get all the salt and gunk off. The main concern is the screws getting rusted.
Spray/rinse it with a hose after each use (tap water). Dont need to be super thorough, just be sure to spray well the seat and other fabric areas so they dont accumulate salt crusts. I usually do it while still on top of my car, in the garage ramp. Once finished I park the car inside and unload the wet kayak.
Fins, rods, other gear spray as well before storing, make sure all the braided lines etc get rinsed, or they grow salt crystals that damage them over time. Probably youll want to somehow grease the fins chains and gears, when dry. As a motorcyclist I could recommend motul chain cream, its a small tube that costs maybe 10 bucks and you put that on the chain and it will resist everything for a long time. But probably a quick WD40 spray should be also fine (check instruction manual etc I’m no expert here)
If you can, let everything dry outside before storing.
Every now and then, you can wash the kayak more thoroughly and rinse all the interior, if it has some hatches that access inside the double hull, some water will get there, so rinse well and use the emptying hole , leave open for a while so it dries well inside. Specially after getting full of mud, algae, posidonias, that kind of stuff, you may want to wash it better so it doesnt stink. Once clean, just rinse after every use and you’ll be fine for very long. I use the same soap as for cleaning the motorcycle or car, and a floor sweeping brush.
If you will store it in open air, try for it to be always in the shadow, never in direct sunlight. If you have some kind of roof, shack, something like that, thats ideal. And cover it with a thick tarp to protect from dust, water, etc.
Dont close it airtight just in case it gathers pressure, but also dont leave it open or the bugs or birds will find their way inside haha. Just the emptying valve not tightened, something like that.