Any issues with Kayaks tied onto PVC cover

[DannyG]

As the title asks.......We want to strap our Kayaks down on top of our PVC cover on the CT, does anyone see any issues doing this??

I was thinking maybe I should put an old sheet or something in between them to stop the kayak rubbing through the PVC but then I was thinking the PVC is quite grippy so it might be better to have nothing between them so the kayak grips instead of rubbing??

What are your thoughts?

[ant_schomacker]

Danny,

The only issue that I can foresee is that if you're camper is like mine it can be somewhat uneven under the cover.  Be careful how tight you tie the boat down if this is the case!  I'm assuming that you'll be loading a plastic sit-on-top type kayak, so not such an issue, but if you're talking about fibreglass (or even carbon / kevlar - I used to be competitive) there is a good chance to crack or break the hull (think firewood over the knee!).

I would suggest that maybe a couple of the foam pool noodles may be useful to form "raised" mounting points might be beneficial, some companies also sell inflatable roofracks which strap onto anything these could be worth a look too.

I wouldn't worry about the kayak rubbing through the cover, as that would take quite a lot of movement and in my experience the kayak will slide out from under the straps / rope well before the PVC is damaged.

Hope that helps,
Anthony

[DannyG]

Danny,

The only issue that I can foresee is that if you're camper is like mine it can be somewhat uneven under the cover.  Be careful how tight you tie the boat down if this is the case!  I'm assuming that you'll be loading a plastic sit-on-top type kayak, so not such an issue, but if you're talking about fibreglass (or even carbon / kevlar - I used to be competitive) there is a good chance to crack or break the hull (think firewood over the knee!).

I would suggest that maybe a couple of the foam pool noodles may be useful to form "raised" mounting points might be beneficial, some companies also sell inflatable roofracks which strap onto anything these could be worth a look too.

I wouldn't worry about the kayak rubbing through the cover, as that would take quite a lot of movement and in my experience the kayak will slide out from under the straps / rope well before the PVC is damaged.

Hope that helps,
Anthony

Yeh Anthony they are the sit on top plastic kayaks. I love the pool noodle idea, why didn't I think of that!

I wanted to make a rack that is easy to lift off and on but the whole idea of having a CT is to minimise set up and pack up so the less things we need to do the better. Thanks

[austastar]

Hi
  you can tie them quite lightly with a ratchet strap cross ways, BUT do use a strong tiedown forward to hold against the wind, and rear to hold against a sudden stop.


I used to use elastic cord loops in the middle of a rope or on the end of a ratchet strap to keep the tension.


An old bit of carpet can be used between the hull and the PVC cover if you are worried about it.


cheers

[KingBilly]

Danny

The only concern I would have would be anything sharp or hard on the kayak rubbing against the tent bows through the cover.  My RTM kayaks have little metal loops for attaching a seat etc.  The pool noodle idea sounds good as it would provide a little separation between kayak and cover.  I have seen the foam and also the inflatable kayak/surfboard racks but they were expensive from memory.

Good Luck
KB

[faulky]

I towed my soft floor camper 4000 km with the kayak on top with no problems , all I did was put ratchet straps over it then rapped a clothe around the ratchet . Then as the Sapir wheel is on the draw bar I put a pool noodle on top of it to spot the kayak rubbin on the tyre then all I did was put a jockey strap at both end sand I had no problem at all



Faulky

[Gra]

Yeah mate, I've been strapping plastic SOT kayaks to my campers for years, and about to do it again tomorrow. I reckon it's a great way to do it, simpler than racks and I've never had a problem with either the camper or the kayak. Upside down of course.

Gra

[DannyG]

Thanks for all the suggestions gents we appreciate them. We will give it a go on the pvc and buy ourselves some decent straps and see how they travel.