Rafts are a big investment and there’s some important points learn for long term care: how to protect against UV / sun and how to inspect your air bladders. Luckily, both of these tasks are straightforward and you don’t have to do them too often.
This article gives you some starting points to help protect your raft against UV / sun exposure, and inspecting the air bladders.
Raft UV / Sun Protection
Preventing damage from UV light from the sun is the number 1 thing you can do to protect your raft against long term wear. Your raft, especially if it’s made of PVC, will suffer constant sun exposure while you’re on the water, which is why it's the main destructive factor to protect your raft against.
We recommend 303 Aerospace Protectant to guard against the sun. Make sure you put a good layer on your raft. How often you need to re-apply depends on how much you're gonna be using it. 303 protectant is a really inexpensive way to defend against harmful UV rays, kind of like Armour-All for your raft.
303 Aerospace Protectant
$25.95
303 Aerospace Protectant is the most powerful UV screening protection ever made. Use it on lots of boating and household gear. Originally developed for aerospace and aviation applications, 303 repels harmful ultraviolet radiation and is really helpful in prolonging the… Read More
Raft Air Bladder Inspection and Care
It’s worth it to take your raft air bladders out and inspect them every once in a while.
Make sure the material still feels supple and isn’t getting “crispy” or looks like it’s degrading. Raft air bladders are typically good to go as long as they’re holding air. It’s recommended you bring a roll of Type B Tear-Aid with you on the river.
That's one of the main great things about inflatable rafts – if you get a bladder leak, you can yank it out and slap some Tear-Aid. Then you're back in business in literally a matter of minutes!
And if the raft air bladder is degraded, they are replaceable. You just need to get the serial number and we here at AQ Outdoors can get you matched up with the right replacement bladder.
Tear-Aid Patch
$13.95
You'll be amazed at the range of materials you can fix with Tear-Aid Type A repair tape. Gives you a durable, flexible, airtight, watertight, puncture-resistant patch. No muss, no fuss, no mess. The matte finish polyurethane tape is exceptionally tough… Read More
If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us below or visit us in store!
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AQ Outdoors Contact
Edmonton: (p) 780 463-4892 (e) info@aquabaticsedmonton.com
Calgary: (p) 403 288-9283 (e) info@aqoutdoors.com
