Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

Washing Kite after use

Forum for kitesurfers
Pin Head
Medium Poster
Posts: 72
Joined: Tue Mar 24, 2009 3:20 pm
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Washing Kite after use

Postby Pin Head » Thu Jul 21, 2011 9:26 pm

Hi

Just had a wicked week on my new kite.

As I don t know, do I have to wash it down with freshwater to remove the salt feel on the kite? Should I have done this after every session or after say a week on the water.

Thanks

Pin

Jdizzle
Frequent Poster
Posts: 409
Joined: Fri Sep 10, 2010 6:03 pm
Local Beach: Marazion and Gwithian
Favorite Beaches: Marazion
Style: Bebinner
Gear: Ozone
Brand Affiliation: Ozone
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby Jdizzle » Thu Jul 21, 2011 9:47 pm

There is no need to ever wash or rinse your kite, but i give mine a rinse a few times a year just to freshen them up a bit.

fourperf
Frequent Poster
Posts: 338
Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2004 4:27 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby fourperf » Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:07 pm

Pin Head wrote:Hi

Just had a wicked week on my new kite.

As I don t know, do I have to wash it down with freshwater to remove the salt feel on the kite? Should I have done this after every session or after say a week on the water.

Thanks

Pin
been kiting 10 yrs. Never washed a kite.

User avatar
dyyylan
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 1754
Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2011 11:45 pm
Gear: N/A
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby dyyylan » Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:28 pm

I've heard it's fine if they're wet with saltwater, but don't rinse a kite with fresh water and roll it up until it dries, because it will mildew. But bars or anything else with metal parts should be rinsed off with fresh water or it will corrode faster.

User avatar
Lord Brush
Rare Poster
Posts: 32
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 10:24 am
Local Beach: Langebaan, Table View
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby Lord Brush » Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:53 pm

Yeah, I believe you should only rinse with fresh water if you can allow it to air-dry completely!

Don't really think it's worth the hassle otherwise....

KiteboardingTampaBay
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 709
Joined: Sat Apr 12, 2008 5:09 pm
Local Beach: Tampa Bay area
Brand Affiliation: School owner,Kiteboarding Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay Kiteboarding Association
Freak Dog Kites
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact:

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby KiteboardingTampaBay » Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:54 pm

I only rinse my kite if it has a lot of sand or mud between canopy & underside of LE. That is
an often overlooked area of the kite and can be a sand catcher. If you leave it in there it can cause problems. If you do rinse it with a waterhose, make sure to let it dry completely- fresh water causes mold and mildew, but saltwater doesn't.

The reason for not washing your kites is the chlorine and other chemicals found in tap water. Chlorine will deteriorate the threads, eat away at the coating on canopy material, and fade the colors.

If you think its dirty, take it out in the water and give it a quick rubdown before you deflate.
If there's not a good place to roll it up, (mud or sugar sand) loosely roll in the water and dry it out when you get home.
I try to avoid rolling up my kites on the sand whenever possible and it helps keep them in great shape. :thumb:

More gear maintenance tips here:
http://kiteboardingtampabay.com/kiteboa ... escue.html
Last edited by KiteboardingTampaBay on Sun Jan 01, 2012 12:57 am, edited 1 time in total.

tswierkocki
Frequent Poster
Posts: 299
Joined: Sat Feb 19, 2005 8:16 pm
Kiting since: 2001
Style: Hydrofoil, Surf, Freeriding
Gear: 3m, 4m, 5m, 8m Flysurfer Peak 4 kites
7m, 10m Cabrinha Apollo kites
Cloud F28 surf foil
107cm Kanaha pocket board for kite foiling
4’8” Stretch Trow surfboard
133 Axis Vanguard twintip
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 8 times

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby tswierkocki » Fri Jul 22, 2011 2:19 am

Also kiting 10+ years and have never washed a kite. I do rinse my bar and lines in the shower after each session.

I do always let my kites fully dry before packing them up

User avatar
Kamikuza
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 7057
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2009 4:49 am
Local Beach: Sabae Beach
Favorite Beaches: Ol' Stinky
Gear: This, that, the other
Has thanked: 220 times
Been thanked: 193 times

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby Kamikuza » Fri Jul 22, 2011 2:43 am

kitanga's come in handy ... I made some out of webbing and cheap karabinas ... gets it dry real quick.

http://kitanga.co.uk/

User avatar
discojuggernaut
Frequent Poster
Posts: 266
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:37 pm
Local Beach: Long Beach - Sunset Cooridor
Favorite Beaches: SPI, Egypt, Waddell Creek, La Ventana, Hood River
Style: Freeride, big air, waveriding
Gear: 8m, 10m, 12m FS speed
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Laguna Beach, CA
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby discojuggernaut » Fri Jul 22, 2011 5:30 am

More important, wash all moving parts on the bar and release.

If you want your kite looking not so dusty, wash before riding.

clubkite
Rare Poster
Posts: 39
Joined: Fri May 13, 2011 8:28 am
Local Beach: Sanur, Bintan, Singapore
Favorite Beaches: Sanur Bali, Secret beach in Bintan
Style: Wakestyle, freestyle, freeride
Gear: Epic Renegade, Epic Screamer, Flysurfer Speed 3
Brand Affiliation: Epic, Ocean Rodeo, Flysurfer,
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Washing Kite after use

Postby clubkite » Fri Jul 22, 2011 6:54 am

You never need to rinse your kite with fresh water. It's a good idea to carry a large brush in your kitebag and brush off any sand on the kite before you roll it up.

Do rinse your control bar and check the safety release mechanism while you are rinsing it.

I did once wash my kite in about 20 liters of diesel. An oil slick floated by and my student panicked and dropped it into the oily gunk. We wiped it down with diesel, washed it with soap and water. The once pristine white kite is now a nice shade of brown.


Return to “Kitesurfing”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Aberdovy kiter, andylc, DanielorDani, Dirk, htsc, IvanoKite, KVL, nixmatters, rnelias, Sers, xoen, Xtream and 394 guests