Can you over inflate a kite?

Just wondering if you can over inflate a kite?

Any stories of pumping them up and letting go on the beach?? pretty embarrassing and annoying haha.

I understand the only problem is crashing a kite and as it folds it can over inflate and burst?

Yeah don't think you have to worry about it using a hand-pump. Your arms are more likely to fall off first.

disregard most if not all the above posts.

you can easyily over inflate your kite.
you must allways be aware that gas when heated expands.

if you pump your kite up as mutch as it allows and then its left on the hot sand for any period of time it will heat and BANG!

sounds like gunfire on some beaches.

allso older bladders thin out and become weaker as stretched and can be easily popd via hand pumping to much.

anyways hope that helps and everyone doesnt try jump down my throat now.

Any info that gives any cause to anyone NOT to inflate their kite to the max. is simply selling poor kiting experiences.
All of the big brand kites today rely on a tight LE as a part of the integrity of the design. The tighter they are the less the deformity under varying loads. When the pressure is low it becomes easier for the kite to give in at the edges. It behaves sloppy and slower and also gives less power at any point of the window.
Anything below 8 in any of the current, 2011+, model kites will not deliver the performance it it designed to give. And they are at their best if you pump to 10+. Especially the deltas.
For a bladder to blow on the beach during, or having just been pumped, is a bladder about to go - better on the beach than on the water.
From the many reports I get to hear about that is where it usually happens. And its always 1) a brand new kite with a factory fault bladder or 2) its a very well used older kite. In this case its just one possibility of the ways your kite will be telling you its probably hit its 'use by' date.

My guess is this lighter & tighter era of kites is producing reduced longevity of 'good quality' flying time to be had out of any kite. Time will tell.
Hard as rock is definitely the way to go.

I took my Rebel out last weekend and had a kitemare partly because the kite was under inflated and it turned itself inside out...

I'll be aiming for 30psi next time!

A bit off topic....

I changed out a bladder not too long ago and forgot to tuck in one end of the bladder into the wing tip of kite and secure the velcro (Cab Vector). Hence when I went to pump up again the bladder popped (A straight shear rip in the bladder at the end, ie. 90 deg to the leading edge), it popped at a pretty low pressure. The bladder was new.

I'm guessing by the bladder failure occuring at a low pressure and due to forgetting to secure the bladder into leading edge at wing tip, that the bladder had too much pressure at the tip (at the exposed area), and that it relies on the structure of the kite leading edge to stop it balooning and rupturing. Am I right in assuming this?

Anyways it was a rookie mistake that I hopefully won't be repeating any time soon

Select to expand quote

SaltySinus said..

Oh, follow up, when I pump up my kite with my North pump, The pressure gauge flicks up but doesn't hold to show the pressure. If I press hard it shoots upbut I can't really tell how much it's pumped up. Is that just my kite?

Depends on the valve in the kite - Cabrinha valves are those big one-way things and only show pressure when you are pumping air in. The smaller "traditional" valve in my OR Flite also has a one-way flap, but continually shows pressure.

Gauges are pretty much a waste of time - go with the "folding the LE" technique... then you'll get the best out of it.

I've always pumped up my kites hard - certainly a lot more than the locals do with their electric pumps - but I can still invert the kite or bend the LE if I goof up...

Hi Guys,

Do not over inflate your kites. Inflate to the manufacturers recommended figure and don't go beyond. A kite that needs more than recommended pressure to maintain structural integrity is poorly designed. There are a couple of brands come to mind that pucker their wingtips due to design, they tend to need P-Lines.

Here is a couple of things to keep in mind:

1/ When you are pumping, you are compressing air, which creates heat. The hot air inside the LE will cool. As gas cools it contracts.

2/ When you leave a kite inflated on a hot beach, the air in the LE expands and increases pressure.

3/ When you crash your kite in the water on a cool day and then relaunch it, you get an airconditioning effect as the water in the fabric evaporates in the wind. This cools the air and contracts effecting the pressure.

4/ The gauge that comes with most kites retails at about 8 dollars, that means it probably costs about $1 to manufacture in China. They're not that accurate! Learn to feel what the pressure in your leading edge feels like when correctly inflated and stick to the feel/squeeze method to back up your gauge.

This is why you only inflate to manufacturers recommended pressures, it should allow for all of these extremes. Cheaper kites can be destroyed by over inflating. DON'T pump your kite up "To the MAX"

DM

I like to ride my kites pumped hard. The gun kiter of our group has them really soft.
It's up to you. I popped a rev pumping it till the pump wouldn't go down any more.
I turned it over ran out the lines, connected up, an' BOOM! it was all over down at
the LE last strut valve. Off to Moti.
I just go the "drum test" on the LE - it should sound "tinnie" , the ol' squeeze the main strut test - it's gotta be "sillocone firm"lol,
- and if you're not sure try and bend the LE somewhere up near the last strut If it bends too easy = keep pumping