Hi,
Just wondering what I need to do to keep my kite in good condition. I have heard its a good idea to rinse the lines with fresh water every time but do I need to rinse the whole kite down? Other than Pack it dry is there anything else I need to do?
No. In terms of maintenance, packing it clean and dry is all you need to do.
By far the greatest cause of damage to a kite is dragging it around on the beach, snagging it on bushes and stuff, crashing it on hard stuff, leavingit flapping in the breeze etc.
By far the worst is dragging it over a hard surface like a path or rocks. That will immediately rub a hole in your kite.
Just don't do any of that stuff. Ride it hard until you can't ride anymore then pack it up and put it in the bag. Don't dick around with it on the beach.
Wash everything (including kite) in fresh water is the way to go. Salt crystals are sharp and abrasive and will eventually damage your kite, lines, stitching etc.
However you'll find us kiters a lazy bunch and a lot don't. We justify our laziness by saying the salt water prevents the kite going mouldy which may be true but I've also been windsurfing since the 80's and never had a sail go mouldy. Just make sure it's all dry before you put it away.
ff
the worst part of kitesurfing is the packing up, i just throw all my gear into the bag, take it home re-inflate my kite and hose it down and leave out to dry, wash my board and harness, wash and then walk out my lines to dry(i live in a culdesac and everyone very nice about my ** being everywhere lol) the once completely dry pack it all away. I have instilled that in my kiddies too and they even do it with their trainer. Its an expensive sport and god knows i need everything to last as long as possible:0)
Washing your kite is not a good thing to do. You will cause more wear and tear through handling and abrasion on hard surfaces and exposure than salt.
Salt has no serious effect on kite fabric. The salt crystals are softer than the fibres and the kite material is coated in silicone.
I have washed kites and not washed kites. Not washing wins.
Dipping it in the sea from time to time will wash off any excess salt build up. (ie. your kite will still have some salt on it but no crusty accumulations)
It's not so bad to wash your bar and lines and wetsuit and harness. You can do that without doing any damage. It can be a bit pointless getting your gear all wet just to dry it off so you can make it wet again the next day.
The most important thing is to dry your gear before storage. I have a rack made of 50mm plastic tubing hanging from my garage roof. It's easy to hang damp kites there and wetsuits and towels and stuff. It's out of the way and gear can go straight from car to rack and back again. I made it 12 years ago when I started kiting with non-relaunchable foils ( and used to think I had to wash kites all the time).
I use my gear hard and I use it a lot. That's what it's for. It becomes obsolete much faster than it wears out. My most used kite had 285 hours on it when I retired it. (I keep a log of kiting sessions.)
The best way to take care of your gear is to get good at kiting.
Get assisted launches and landings where possible.
Get really good at self-launching and landing so you can do that without dragging your kite all over the beach.
Pump up and get out on the water as soon as possible. Think twice about where you put your kite down and even more about where you are carrying it inflated. Don't drag it through bushes or across paths.
Ride hard and only crash your kite in deep water so it doesn't get damaged.
Spend the last 15-20 minutes of a session cruising so you can warm down and dry off your kite before landing.
Gorgo,
Awesome advice... Really awesome.
On self launching and self landing, is it something hard to master. More so, will you do more damage to your new kite learning how to do this?
I ask because I also asked this on my last lesson with my kite instructor. He said that 'officially' he wasn't able to teach me as his kiting employer didn't think this was something a beginner should learn. His rational was that until one is 90% comfortable with their kite and how to use it they should never be on a beach alone. Get someone else on the beach to launch and land it for you.
kiteboardingtom.blogspot.com
After riding your kite in salt water you can pack it up in its bag and it will be fine as long as it is not wet with fresh water. Fresh water causes bachteriour and will make your kite mouldy if left for a period of time. It is a good idea after every couple of sessions to wash your bar and lines and clean any sand from moving parts like your safety's and make sure everything is clean and free, but let it dry out. The same goes for your harness. Salt water crystals are not big enough to damage your kite. I have my gear in my car pretty much all the time and it is as good as new. I kite after work when there is wind and the kite at times gets packed up salt water wet for a couple of days before being used again. Never a problem. But yes self launching and landing or putting your kite over hard or abrasive surfaces will eventually damage it.
Tom,
Every beginner should be taught how to self launch and land. Especially landing, what happens if everyone packs up and leaves the beach, how are you to get your kite down, if you havent been taught. Self launching is a necessary tool,and i would have to say i self launch atleast 50% of the time, as when i knock off work, everyone is out on the water, and know one is around.
to me the only reason of not teaching these valuable skills, would be if the beach is crowded, or Not enough beach to adequately teach the necessary steps. But at a minimum should of went through the basics, and demonstrated these to you.
Dont wash your kite as fresh water on a wet kite will grow mould. Mould doesnt grow in salt water.
KR
Back in the 80's when I was sailboarding I washed my sails religiously after every sail and had a lot of trouble with stiching falling apart. eventually the sailmaker told me to stop using fresh water on them because it was rotting the stiching. they felt dry when I rolled them up but apparently the water stays in the seams longer.
Since then I've only washed sails and kites when for some reason they've come home crappy and wet and it doesn't look like blowin for a while, and I leave em up hanging for 2 or 3 days in a dark shed and out of the sun. Longer in winter. The sun can be quite evil on yer gear and be carefull of hot cars in summer (not souped up ones)
ok well this is probably a stupid question but being a newbie when packing up my kite is wet and full of sand, ive always thought it best to wash it all off, should i just pack it up and leave all the sand on it?
Your kite will dry ok if you can leave it sitting for a half hour or so before you pack it up. Give it few whacks to knock the sand off.
If my kite is wet and mega sandy and the weather is crap I might wash it in the sea then carry it to somewhere clean to dry off. It's easier to deal with a wet kite than a sandy wet kite.
Sometimes I have deflated the leading edge and rolled up the kite in the water (being careful to not get water into the bladder).
If it's wet and sandy then put it somewhere safe to dry. The sand will fall off when the kite has dried.
If you have somewhere safe to hang it then that is good. Preferably clean grass and a non-wearing hanger like a plastic pipe or plastic coated clothes line.
If you have to drag it around on concrete or gravel or haul it over a wire clothes line then you are likely to damage your kite or get it more dirty.
You don't have to hang it up to dry it and you don't necessarily have to open it right out. Leaving it sitting loosely bunched in a dry, shady spot works fine. I have some old carpet in my garage and I can leave stuff sitting on that if I need to.
If you have got your kite hung up, and if it is in a convenient place, you could wash it if you want. Don't blast it with a high pressure hose. A mist spray works well and doesn't use as much water. Make sure the water and sand don't pool in folds in the fabric.
Best way to dry a kite, when it is wet. Fly it for another 15 minutes, it will be bone dry.
When packing a kite up and it is wet. Unpack it when you get home lay it on the lawn. When the kite dries, the sand dries as well, and you can shake the sand off. I do this whilst drinking a cold one.
seriously .... packing up then repacking, inflating it at home, rinsing is all a waste of time ..... from day one my kites have gone straight back into the bag wet and sometimes a little sandy....besides they are usually out again later that week...... I upgrade about every two to three years and all my kites have been fine with no signs of adverse effects.
FResh Water = mould
Self landing doesnt damage the kite,
Self launch can - especially if your kite drags across concrete ie: foot path as the contact points ( usually the stitching in the leading edge joins ) tend to drag and burr the stitching ...creating a weak point so the next heavy kite slam sees the edge blow out.
I would not be practising self launches with a new kite ..... once you have had plenty of practice you can set/ position your kite for a self launch with very little or no dragging required and therefore very little wear.
Rinsing your kite every sesh is complete overkill IMO.
If I have been unlucky enough to roll my kites in the surf or even dropped them into the still ocean a few times in a sesh then they get a full wash (inflated next morning - or next opportunity) and hosed out and left to completely dry.
Agree that too much washing can be bad but leaving salt crysltals and worse - sand crusts - all over your kite (speshly under the LE and around struts) where it will be super abrasive, is a ticket to an early retirement and equipment repairs.
Salt is bad but sand is worse.
Wash if needed - otherwise leave alone.
Oh - I always try to deflate/pack away on grass too. Saves heaps of sand getting into the kite on pack up. 
To check your kite is dry, open up the zipper on the leading edge and stick your hand in there. The kite exterior dries very quickly but you'll be surprised how long it takes to dry inside the LE and strut casings.
btw both myself and my mates have numerous windsurfing sails from the late 80's early 90s. We always religiously washed them in freshwater and thoroughly dried them if not being used the next day. Apart for normal wear and tear they are all in excellent condition (including all stitching intact).
The marine environment is very harsh. I always have washed my fishing gear, diving gear, boats, wetsuits etc etc in freshwater immediately after use.
IMHO the real reason people don't wash their kites is they see it as a real PITA and can't be stuffed so they come up with all kinds of excuses to justify not doing it.....IMHO...
not washing your kite tends you to neglect your pulleys...periodically wash and dry the kite thoroughly....carry some water and wash pulleys after every sesh...works for me....pulleys hate salt and sand!
By all means wash your kite if you think it needs it.
...if you have a place with plenty of clean grass or similar non-abrasive surface to spread it out on and pack it up on.
...if you have somewhere to hang the kite that won't abrade it or put point loads on where you hang it from, that is in the shade and out of the wind.
...if you can hang it so the water and sand washes off and does not pool in the folds or the seams.
...if you think it worth unpacking your already dry kite, spreading it out, hanging it up, washing it, drying it, packing it up again.
...if you're not going kiting the next day.
...if you can be bothered and have good reason to think that not doing will cause damage.
PS. I still have my first kite from 12 years ago. It's still fine. I keep thinking about going kiting on it but I prefer not to waste a good kiting day when I've got all these nice new ones to ride. The old one is from the days when kites would try to kill you if you were not careful.
PPS. A kite is not a sail. Monofilm and dacron in a flat, battened, relatively compact structure are not the same as dacron and polyester in a big, floppy, fragile structure. It is far easier to manage a wet sail than to manage a wet kite (especially if the sail is sitting on a mast.) Sails generally end up wet where a kite is usually dry at the end of a day of riding. Mylar and dacron are far more abrasion resistant than polyester.
PPPS. I have used pulley equipped kites since 2001 (yes, long before bow kites appeared). I have had one pulley failure in that time. I am fortunate to be able to kite on beaches with gritty sand that is too big to get into the pulleys. I do clean wet sand off the pulleys if I am at beaches with fine powdery sand. If the sand is dry I usually just blow it off. I always check the pulleys are turning smoothly by clamping it in a loop of bridle line and working it back and forth. If the kite is all wet and sandy I will ride out and park it on the surface and lets some minor wave action rinse it clean.
PPPPS. I am a bit obsessive about kites and kite care. I do give the leading edge a gentle wipe with a damp chamois cloth to get mud and sand spots off it before packing.
PPPPPS. I have also flown paragliders for over 20 years. We used to wash them because of all the worry about salt and dust and stuff. We don't do it any more. My current glider has 250 hours on it and is still going fine.
PPPPPPS. There are two things I love about kiting, apart from the riding itself. Packing away a clean, dry kite after a good session at the local beach. Having the kite perfectly rolled and folded with no wrinkles and neatly zipped into the bag and slotted perfectly into it's spot in the car and everything locked neatly away. The other is after a really good session down the surf, pulling the kite out and seeing all these little drifts of sand in the bag reminding me of how good it was ... then I clean out the sand and dry off the kite if necessary.
