What with all the other things that we all need to think of about our kites I just thought I'd put in my 2¢ as far as upkeep & cleaning of ones kite... After getting Pablo's old "Pumpin" PKD "Buster" 9.0m² kite, I can see why it's probably been some time since it had a real bath or shower... (I know it was loved or it wouldnt look used)

The thing is BIG & takes some effort to get it really clean, but fear not, theres an easy way to clean a BIG kite at least it was easier that 1st expected, (Short story) take the kite to your local self serve Carwash with the Pressure washing wand, bind the bridles together so they dont get in the way before hand...

Hang the kite up TE up, on the Floormat holders that many of these places have on the wall, insert $$$ then wash (quikly) with high spressure soap, followed by high pressure rinse, if you've got a freind to help with all this its really a lot quiker, when done washing fold & roll up the kite to get out any EXTRA water, put kite in a plastic bag & head home with it to dry it whatever way you think best...

"Pumpkin" has been dripped/patted dry as much as possible & is now laying on the frontroom floor with a small fan blowing inside of 1 open cell with the rest, blocked off like a big balloon drying from the inside out...

http://www.geocities.com/nebula_43/Kites2/MVC-574S.JPG

Except for the faded color, its looks like a new kite Nice White & Faded Yellow

There's a couple options for drying the kites out, first if your house has a split level entry or something with a railing, fold the kite in half and hang it over the railing, put a towel under the kite to catch any water that drips off it. Option two, throw the kite in the tub, pull one wingtip up over the shower curtain rod and leave the wingtip hanging back just inside the tub. let this section of kite dry, once it's dry pull it out of the tub, pull the next section up over the rod and repeat, in a day or two you'll get the whole kite dry. Works awesome for really large kites as well.

Been thinking about those options but as I have neither (small bathroom) & no railing, the fan in the cell (blown up like a balloon) is working great, & drys it nice & evenly, plus makes the cats slow down & tread VERY carefully with it blown up taking up the whole room... So it'll be dry tonight...
http://www.geocities.com/nebula_43/Kites2/MVC-575S.JPG

Wow,

I'm new to this kiting thing, all my experience is with paragliders.

I would NEVER use a detergent or any kind of soap on a sail. The silicone coating will scrub off and the sailcloth will become porous. A porous wing doesn't generate the same amount of lift as a crispy new one.

Is there something I don't know?

First thing is, Im dealing with a used kite thats probably lost a lot of its coating to begin with & if its got any LESS lift, Im not aware of it yet... As for being porous, np there either so far, I've got plenty of food grade, silcone spray lubricant to reseal the kite, it drys nice & clear & soaks right into the pores of the material... Just finished spraying it... Done...

If you've got a yard put up a couple fence posts with a line between them. Just hang the kite over the line and wash there and then let it dry there. Pretty simple. Has worked for me for many years.
It also lets me put the nozzle of the water hose into each open cell of the kite and spray all the way back to the trailing edge.
Scott

Wait ... lets get back to this silicone spray. Would you only spray that on if you washed the kite with soap? Or should it be done even if you clean it with water ? This is good to know, because I had no idea. This forum is great.

YAY!! glide guy!!! I like paragliding sooooo muuchh and i really wanna go but its really expensive!!! waaahhh!
(i'm 15 so yeah) And sorry everyone else go back to kite washing, i just had one of my moments.

Food grade silicone spray that you just spray on the kite & the lines keeps them slick, clean. water repellent, but its got to be food grade with "NO" gas/oil by-products that will harm the material or line...

spray like Pam ? is this what we are talking about ?

There's a couple products on the market that work great on kites. I'm curious about the food grade stuff bc it's probably fairly cheap. Currently I have a bottle of Seal & Glide, highly recommended for giving old kites a nice new seal coat or added to a new kite to get that extra little bit of slip through the window.

Just need time to get around to putting it on a couple of kites, at least one old and one new

Could I use food grade spray on my NPW which has no coating? Its just plain old slippery not crispy fabric store rip stop nylon.

I picked up the can of spray I have, at a hardware store, works great for me... http://www.geocities.com/nebula_43/Kites2/SILICONE.JPG

I'm still not convinced that the food grade silicone is the best idea. The carrier and propellants are petroleum based. While the label on the aerosol can says safe on most plastics, the CRC spray bottle says may harm sensitive plastics.
I'd go with Pablo's idea of the SealnGlide, it's made specifically for the purpose.
I stand by my first comments though. GUYS...FOR THE LOVE OF (insert favorite deity here) DON'T PUT DETERGENTS ON YOUR KITES !!!!!!!!
A good way to tell if your coating is gone is to lick one finger (get it really wet) and press it firmly against a tightly stretched section of the sail cloth. If you can press your spit through the cloth your kite is suffering from wear and needs attention.

I've used the silicone spray all summer on my other kites & its been fine so far, plus I got the tip off of another power kite site, (not sure which one)... GG you must be reading from another product, my can says nothing at all about harming any plastics, & I use it on my lines to waterproof them & they dont pickup sand as easily also... But what works fine for some may not for others... Its a thought & works great for me...

Yikes, I'd never use a power washer on a kite. Only water and a soft sponge or cloth. If I must use soap for a stain, a bit of gentle hand soap like Ivory or Dove.
For cleaning, I use a couple of cheap plastic tarps on the driveway, which is sloped for good drainage.

I also do it in the morning when that part is shaded, to avoid the direct UV. then hang, also in the shade.

http://www.coastalwindsports.com/KiteCleaning.jpg

unless the kite is REALLY dirty, I find all it needs is to be attached to 85-100 lines to make it look pretty much like new again from where the pilot stands.

I'm not a fan of using soap on kites and I'm not a fan of scrubbing them.

I have used a gentle spray on them with a soft cloth to remove dried goose poop, but the more you scrub and wash, the moe likely you are to degrade the sail.

Dont everyone have a fit at once, people... The "Buster" is fine, it ONLY got pressure washed the 1 time, I DONT wash my kites like that ALL the time & it was the 1st & only 1... I usually just use a clean washcloth with NO SOAP, & just water to wipe off any Dirty spots... YES its been re-sealed with Silicone & she flys great... Didnt mean to open a can of worms, but it seems were all learning a few things, If I only make 1 point its that "Shes Sparkling... CLEAN" & still flys & looks great now, If the silicone would make it shiny again that'd be great, but not before getting a new coat of "FABRIC PAINT" Made for Silks & such to get back her original Orange Color & then Resealed again with silicone... Unless someones, Got some spare Seal & Glide...

No one's having a fit, we're just exchanging info. I didn't mean to jack your thread or cause hard feelings Pb.
I'm used to handling paraglider sails and we pilots put our lives on the line when we hang under those things.
We follow the manufacture's instructions, we don't use detergents, we keep the sails as free of dirt, sand and salt as we can and we try to limit the UV exposure as much as possible. All good things to make the wing and lines last as long as possible and keep it as safe as possible.
As for the info I posted about the CRC Silicone products; I got it straight off their website. For what it's worth I also looked at some chemical resistivity charts on the Cole Parmer website to confirm what they said.

At the risk of sounding like a @#$%ing know it all....Here's another tip for getting sap or other sticky stuff off your kite..... Sprinkle talcum or baby powder on the sap and carefully pick it off. It takes a while, you'll need to be patient, but it works great.

Everyone have a great day,
Dean

seal and glide

http://www.kitebuilder.com/catalog/index.php/cPath/24_225?os...

Paint master for nylon

http://www.kitebuilder.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/19...

best on untreated ripstop and not permanent fix{it will wear away} and trying to blend the color will look worst that whats all ready been done

best to fly the living day lights out of it and save your self trying to stop fading

dirt , dust and mud is a natural UV inhibitor...so I been told

the only time I might gently hose off a wing is if I find salt built up in the seams that will acted like fine crushed glass and work over the stiching

Dean........

DANG!

I wish I would have thought of the talcum powder thing when me and my wing ended / abducted up on a hotel roof the day after they hot moped it with TAR

thnkx for the paint link, glad I can go buy every color at the nearest craft shop up the road, & for the price of that seal & glide think I'll stick with my silicone...

SLINGER,
That 303 Protectant on the kitebuider site looks like it might be worth a look too. They say you can use it on sails. They have these pre-packaged sponge wipes, (6) for $9.95 that would be convenient.

http://www.303products.com/shop303/index.cfm?fuseaction=cate...

The dealer in my area is a truck accessory shop. I'm going to check it out, just for laughs. The SealnGlide is a bit pricey in comparison and I read on a sailing forum that it can be a pain to mix the two parts in exact proportions if you don't need the whole kit. It's supposed to cover 80m thats 4x as much as I'd need.

Thanks for posting the link for the paint. It might come in handy for making some cheap banners at events.

I've seen 303 at different places, including the craft stores... I think its worth a look... Also I think there are plenty who'll agree, its no fun mixing chemical stuff...

Well, so far the "Buster" is fine after its pressure wash, & subsiquent Silicone treatment, still plenty of Grunt & Pull, with no signs of wing pressure, loss... Got plenty of good scuds today in 5-7 mph winds, its like trying to hold back a "Flying Bus"...

Once you get moving the bus isn't so bad, point it in a direction and leave it there, follow it across the park. It's nice when you get a beach like Sunset Beach and have a big kite, get rocking in the buggy then just hang on for the ride, I've gone over 10miles on that beach without moving the kite more than 10ft up or down in one direction.