AIRE PVC Kayak Material

A:

Yes, It is PVC-coated polyester base fabric.

A:

I can't say for sure, but this seems to be a single material, rather than coated. I used it to patch several long slashes on my inflatable kayak. As I cut through it with scissors, last year, I think there were some threads, but it looks like a single type of material. The patches are holding up great. Hope this helps.

A:

I cannot answer your questions about the weight but I think your idea about
adding thickness to the botton oif your inflatable is a good idea. Just
make sure the material is compatable with the material on your inflatable.

A:

Hi James;
I got this as a "can you help a fellow shopper" email from NRS.
The 1000 denier is the thread weight of the fabric. It is not exactly the same as fabric weight, since a mesh of 1000 denier will be much lighter than a close weave, but they will both be about the same thickness. The denier only applies to the polyester reinforcement--and is basically there to prevent stretching, and to provide something for the much heavier and stretchier pvc to hang onto. 1000 denier ought to be pretty adequate--strength of thousands of pounds per square inch--its the weight used for heavy duty luggage.
The 24 oz. is more of a kayak weight. The 37oz is probably what you would get on a 100 lb. raft. The heavier weight makes up for the 1 ton weight of the loaded raft vs. less than 800 lbs of a kayak.
I have extensive experience wilderness tripping with my 3 Sevlor Sea Kayaks.. They are built, with I believe, about 24 oz fabric. This has proven adequate to scrape over quite a few rocks and gravel bars, not to mention our usual method of beaching it by running full speed into the beach. The two real enemies of inflatables are hot sun--increases pressure and softens seams--and constant rubbing. We are pretty careful. On noon time stops we keep it at least half in the water to keep it cool. Likewise we pull in out at night only after the sun is pretty much gone. If we are stopping in a rocky area, we anchor the stern out with a bow line to the shore--so it will not be rubbing on the rocks.
i've had two small leaks--pinhole --takes a week to deflate type. One we got by I think a metal latch rubbing on a long trip. The other was a seam leak on a used boat. I suspect previous owner left it out in the sun. I sucessfuly repaired both using Sevylor Seamseal (google it)--which I would highly recommend. You just drip it on until enough builds up to seal the leak. Practically invisible and much easlier to use than a patch which doesn't work well on seam leaks anyway.
I wouldn't try reinforcing the bottom by gluing on an extra layer. I would worry that it would distort the boat. Also there is a real possiblity tthat using all of that solvent might start a seam leak which would be real trouble. Two alternatives if you are really paranoid: 1.making a boot--i.e. a fabric shell which will cover the whole thing. Trampoline cloth might work well. Reasonably cheap and light. Tough and drains quickly. 2. carrying along an extra cheap inflatable. The Tahiti style kayaks only wiegh about 20 lbs and pack in a small bag. They are amazingly cabable and tough--just not very comfortable. Same goes for a cheap raft. I am actually more paranoid about pumps. I always carry an extra.
Hope all of this helps.
Lyle

A:

Hi
I unfortunately dont know the specific answer to the question, but can say
that I had a similar issue with one of my inflatables, that I had ripped a
large hole in the underside.
I stead of just patching, I patched then covered the whole underside with a
protective layer. Besides the skill involved in this process (which was
tricky), the two fabrics did not stetch at the same rate afterwards, which
resulted in distortion of the craft, and pressure on seams some of which
started leaking.
So I would go to various chat forums to get advice before starting the
project