Paddle floats - styrofoam vs. air bag - which is best?

[Guest guest]

Which type of paddle float is best: the styrofoam block or the plastic blow-up type? This is for coastal, harbor/bay, sea kayaking.

Thanks for your feedback.

[Guest guest]

I prefer the air bag, if only because it stows flat on the back deck. As far as which one works best for a rescue, I have never tried the foam kind, but I can say a hundred times over that the air bag does the trick every time. The airbag only takes a few breaths to blow up, and it hold a lot of wieght.

Also, with all the gear you carry from car to kayak, and back, it is a lot less bulky than foam, so you can cram it in a bag, or whatever you keep all your stuff in.

-Bri

"We are all 80% salt water, aren't we?" - Anonymous

[Guest guest]

Greenland paddle + technique = No paddle float needed

[christopherG]

an inflatable paddle-float may do double-duty as pillow when camping, temporary back-rest in the cockpit or splint for a fractured limb.

now what benefits can you think of for the foam ones? i cannot immediately think of any, myself...

[markstephens]

Advantages of the foam float:

1.) Quicker to deploy, which may be a factor in cold water or when drifting near a danger zone.

2.) You can use it to roll up with (some say easier than rolling with a paddle.) For this, it needs to be where you can easily grab it while in your boat, upside down. (Hint - this is probably NOT on the back deck.)

3.) Equipment failure unlikely (an inflatable float can get a hole in it, rendering it useless)

Disadvantages of the foam float:

1.) Bulky, and may contribute to weathercocking if stored on deck (which is where it is going to be if the advantages listed above are to be in effect.)

I must be missing something, because I almost never see people carrying foam floats.

[Guest guest]

Hard Foam floats have to be stored on the deck. If you store them on the back deck they get in the way of assisted rescues, making it harder to do the required "belly flop" on the back deck. If you store them on the front deck they can interfere with your stroke.

Blow up floats are easier to stow. Although they take a little longer to deploy, I prefer them. You can adjust the amount of buoyancy depending on the situation. However, all blow up floats are not created equal. I prefer those that have two separate chambers in case one is punctured or fails. The really nice two chambered floats have much more buoyancy than the hard floats in my opinion.

Jill

[glenn]

I'm still accumulating basic gear, so for my birthday some friends got me a paddle float. It's a variant I hadn't seen before, a single-chamber inflatable one you can attach a CO2 cartridge to (before you leave), and then inflate instantly with a pull-cord when you need it. This seems kind of cool, yet kind of overkill and underkill at once.

I guess if I had it on the front deck and ended up upside-down without my paddle or my not-battle-tested roll I might be able to pull it out, yank the cord and use it to roll up. I'm not entirely sure I have more confidence in this maneuver than I do in an extended-Greenland-paddle roll, but there's some comfort in redundancy.

As for using it as a *paddle* float, it's totally pointless for a Greenland paddle, since the untightenable closure mechanism will only keep it on a Euro blade. Beth's foam float seems to have at least a prayer of staying on the end of a twig long enough to do a paddle-float self-rescue if I couldn't manage a roll, so that might be another small advantage for the foam ones. Obviously it's deeply uncool to use a paddle float with a Greenland paddle at all, but at my current skill level I can certainly imagine conditions in which I'd rather be back in the boat than cool. But arguably I shouldn't be in those conditions in the first place.

glenn

Impex Montauk, red with white scratches over white with white scratches.

Former owner's silly name still on hull while I see if I grow fond of it.

[Guest guest]

>...you can attach a CO2 cartridge to...

I suppose nitrous oxide would also work...

>*paddle* float...Greenland paddle

As was demonstrated at Greenland pool sessions one can use the paddle without paddle float. At least one boat had outfitted a loop to help hold the paddle in place for self rescue.

[Tom Miner]

Wayne Horodowich , one of the excellent speaker/instructors at the 2003 Gulf of Maine Sea Kayak Symposium last year said that the foam paddle floats were standard issue in certain Canadian waters where temperatures were just too cold to make an air tight lip lock on a blow-up padde float. Having been so cold that almost nothing works, including my lips, I can see where the foam floats could be a life saver. Personally, I paddle when the weather/water is tolerably warm and so use an air bag paddle float. If I paddled in the winter, I would use a foam float for obvious reasons.

Tom

Pumkin/white Explorer

[Guest guest]

I have used (and own) both types of paddles floats. In warm water situations, I prefer the blow-up air bag because its easier to store and transport. In really cold water, the rigid foam is much faster to deploy. If you are comfortable and confident under water, the foam can be pulled off your front deck, attached underwater and used to roll-up. It does take some practice to do that.

I have recently switched to another device for cold water and when I paddle alone. The Back-Up roll aid is an inflatable bag that uses a 68 gram CO2 cartridge to automatically inflate when deployed. It stores in a canister slightly smaller than the size of a tennis ball cannister and attaches to the deck. We tried it out at a pool session recently and the bag deployed in about 4 seconds (80 lbs of air) and was very easy to right the kayak. The major disadvantage is it's a one time deployment until reloaded. (not something you could do in rough conditions at sea) It has a clip so you can attach it and just pull it along for use until it can be reloaded. The other disadvantage is cost. $125 for the unit and $12.50 per CO2 cartridge. Still, I think this is a great safety device for those of us with a less than perfect roll or who paddle alone.

[Brian Nystrom]

While I can see some utility for the Roll Aid, I have to say the reliance on ANY piece of gear for rescues is a poor substitute for developing the necessary skills. With all the training opportunities that the NSPN offers, any member should be able to develop the skills they need to paddle safely.

I'm not sure why, but we are often more willing to plunk down a credit card for a "quick fix" device of limited use (e.g., Roll Aids, sponsons, stirrups, etc.) than to invest the time to learn skills with broad application that will last us a lifetime. I'm a serious gear junkie, but even I have to ask myself if most of this stuff is worth it. More times than not, the answer is "No".

[Brian Nystrom]

>Hard Foam floats have to be stored on the deck. If you

>store them on the back deck they get in the way of assisted

>rescues, making it harder to do the required "belly flop" on

>the back deck. If you store them on the front deck they can

>interfere with your stroke.

Good point, Jill. I'll take it one step further and state that IMO, paddle floats, pumps, water bottles and whatnot belong in the boat, not on deck, for the same reason. Inflatable paddle floats stow very easily behind the seat, especially if you put a couple of loops of bungee on the back of your backband. Pumps fit well either under the foredeck or behind a cheek plate. These items are readily accessible when you need them, but they're securely stowed against loss and won't impede rolling or assisted rescues. The same can be said for spare paddles. Carry it on the foredeck and you'll be likely to actually grab it (or at least half of it) and roll up if you lose your main paddle and capsize. If you carry it on the aft deck, you're far more likely to swim than use the spare.

>Blow up floats are easier to stow. Although they take a

>little longer to deploy, I prefer them. You can adjust the

>amount of buoyancy depending on the situation. However, all

>blow up floats are not created equal. I prefer those that

>have two separate chambers in case one is punctured or

>fails. The really nice two chambered floats have much more

>buoyancy than the hard floats in my opinion.

Again, good points. Dual chambered floats are more reliable and they're also easier to deflate after use. Most of the time, they work just fine with only one chamber inflated.

[Guest guest]

I'd like to add a couple of points about inflatable floats.

The ones that have the valves that twist open (similar to those used on float bags) are much easier to use and particularly to deflate, than those where you have to push a little cap, or your finger on a button to release the air. If you can squeeze the air out of the float by using one hand and rolling the float, rather than having to use two hands, you are ahead of the game if you are in conditions.

The quality of the buckle which creates a collar and holds the float on the paddle is also important. The fastex buckle type is the easiest to use with cold hands. The kind with a little hook clip can be difficult if not impossible under those conditions (I speak from experience). Some even have a long string which you are supposed to tie off -- Please!!!

The float shown here is the type I like the best - it is tough, well made, large chambered and easy to use:

http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail....3Eprd_id=133689

The float shown here is the type I don't like. It is single chambered and has a clip that is difficult to use, particularly in colder or fatigued conditions.

http://www.jerseypaddler.com/shop/iproduct...id=bladeaid.voy

Please know that I used these links to show these items not because I have anything for or against the manufacturers or the retailers whose addresses I've posted.

Jill

[Guest guest]

Brian:

I certainly did not mean to imply that a paddler should not aspire to develop their skills. Devices like the "Back-Up" are just what they imply.....a back-up when other things fail. It's certainly a personal choice, as is any piece of equipment.