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Hypalon vs PVC

rwthomas1

Sustaining Partner
I've got an Achilles 10.4 from 1986. Still in good working order. You will be lucky to get 5 years of use from PVC. The worst ones get "sticky" after just a few seasons. That said, if you are short on cash and don't intend on keeping the dink for long then "disposable" PVC is great. Hypalon is amazing stuff. Achilles is, AFAIK, the ONLY manufacturer that actually makes their own fabric. I can't say enough about mine. Great product. RT
 

Captron

Member III
Caribe

We are in the process of selling our 1994 Caribe hypalon dinghy; Still very serviceable and still white when I clean it.

If you want to use it for a few years with salt and sun exposure, get a hypalon boat.

Someone once told me that when it comes to inflatable boats, quality goes from A to Z ... literally, with Achilles and Avon at the top end and Zodiac at the bottom end and everything else in between. I've had very good experience with hypalon dinghies made by AB, Caribe and Achilles and Avon.

While British engineering has always been quite good, their manufacturing has always been a little shoddy. Avon seems to be an exception. One virtue of the Avon is that they're so common that parts are readily available almst anywhere. That said, we see a lot of Caribes down in the islands.

:egrin:
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
One vote for Zodiac

We just retired our '85 Zodiac T-280 roll-up. This was a round stern model and we used it several days each season. Last couple of seasons one side would lose some pressure over 24 hours, so this spring I took it in to the dealer and he soap-sollutioned it for several hours at full pressure and found over 50 pin holes in the fabric. It still looked like new, but the poly composite fabric deteriorated over the many years.

So we bought a new Zodiac model with the wood transom, because there was no round-stern type available. Supposedly the current model is better... I guess that if it lasts 20 years like the last one... that will be good enough for us.
:rolleyes:
Note that we have always stored it in the bag, in our basement, when not on the boat for a week or two. Never stored out in the sun.

I understand that the Hypalon boats are much better for high-UV exposure. Only potential downside is that they are supposedly glued-seam boats. Ours is all-welded seam.
If you wonder why we did not buy one of the many rigid-bottom models with the drop-stitch floor, I know of some that have internally separated and formed "aneurysms."
Besides, we liked the convenience of the slatted roll-up-floor model for our purposes.

Our experiences, for what they're worth, sailing in latitudes 46 to 48. :cool:

Loren
 
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mherrcat

Contributing Partner
Was/is the Zodiac a PVC boat? I saw that Costco (of all places) has a 9' 7" inflatable made by Silver Marine for $600. I believe it is PVC; inflatable floor and keel. I looked up Silver Marine on the web and they have a variety of models in both PVC and Hypalon; some available in either construction. Haven't gotten pricing from them yet..

On Costco.com they also list an 8' inflatable for $500; same inflatable floor and keel, made of PVC. Probably made by the same manufacturer.

Just in the process of researching and pricing dinghies...
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Both our new and previous Zodiac were "poly" boats... but having said that I perceive a quality difference in the real name-brand boats (like Zodiac) and the ones built (down?) to the specifications of big retail vendors like West Marine and other outdoor store and discount retailers.

My suspicion is that all "poly" and all "hypalon" boats are NOT the same.
:nerd:
I too have noticed that some of the old Avon and pre-Chinese Achilles boats seem to have a very long life. Heck, those ancient faded inflatables will be showing up at marine swap meets for another decade or two at least! :)

Loren
 
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Frank G

Member II
My whitewater raft guide friends tell me that hypalon is easily repaired if you get a hole in it, they should know. PVC is very difficult to get a good patch.
 

lbertran

Member III
We're Happy With PVC

We have a 1997 roll-up from West Marine that we've used lots each year and is still going strong. We chose it because when we bought it, weight was a big issue and PVC is lighter than hypalon. Aside from one puncture that I repaired about ten years ago, we haven't had any problems. It hasn't gotten sticky, still looks good after a washing and gets us where we want to go. Between cruises, we store it under a carport. In previous years, we kept it in an outdoor dinghy rack where we covered it with a canvas cover. We roll it up and cover it each winter. I think in the Caribbean and Florida, UV is a bigger issue for PVC. But it's fine on the Chesapeake Bay.
 

rwthomas1

Sustaining Partner
I have a Zodiac PVC that was GIVEN to me. Thats the only way I would bother owning PVC. Even here in RI, there are at least 5 PVC inflatables at my club that have gotten "sticky" in the last 2 years. Maybe that only happens here? RT
 

Maine Sail

Member III
Have had horrible

I have had horrible luck with both PVC and Zodiac the company. In 1998 I bought a Cadet Fastroller within one year my floor was becoming sticky and within two years my tubes got sticky. After well over a year and a half of documented emails, phone calls, dealer visits and even a letter from my lawyer, all beginning in September of 1998, I finally sent the president of Zodiac America a personal email. (If anyone ever needs his email address I still have it;))

In the email I told him I would take my dates, times, name of whom I spoke with, and all the broken & documented promises, the lies and deceit to the internet forums. I listed 20 boating forums where I would post the horror story and enclosed to him what I would write and post.

In 24 hours I had an email directly from the president that a complete new boat was being shipped directly to my door. When I did finally receive my new boat I promptly sold it and bought an AB Hypalon boat.:p

I will never, ever buy any product that is made by Zodiac again and this includes Avon, Bombard, Zoom, Zodiac or the West Marine brand boats made by Zodiac. The companies warranties are not worth the paper they are written on and it takes an act of god to get them to actually honor their warranties. They DO NOT or DID NOT stand behind the product so buyer beware. Perhaps today they have changed but they burned my bridge and lost a customer on ALL their brands for life over it...

My Hypalon AB is now almost 9 years old and looks and performs as good as new. I top her up with air, maybe two to three pumps, about once a year that's it. Achiles, AB and Caribe are great Hypalon brands and I also believe Mercury makes a few Hypalon models too.

I am in the NE and still had a PVC failure in very short order so the only inflatable fabric I will own is now Hypalon.

P.S. My next door neighbor also had the same exact issue I had but with a West Marine / Zodiac. He had the same sticky tubes and floor and never did get a replacement boat from West Marine or Zodiac. They claimed the diesel soot from his sail boats engine caused the sticky tubes and that this was not a "covered" item for warranty replacement... My AB has 40 times the NM's of towing that my Zodiac had when it got sticky and still has zero issues.. Buyer beware!

P.S.S. When buying an air floor Hypalon Avon just be aware that the air floor is NOT Hypalon and is the same PVC material used in the Bombard, Zodiac and Zoom lines is used as the air floor in the EXPENSIVE "Hypalon" Avon's. It could eventually become sticky and could eventually fail! Only the tubes of Avon's are Hypalon NOT the floor. Make sure you get what you pay for..
 
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treilley

Sustaining Partner
Going on my 2nd season with my Mercury PVC rib and still looks like new. I planned on a hypalon but the deal on the Mercury was too good to pass up. Something like 70% off from defender because it was a prior year floor model.

I will be happy if I get 5 years. 4 to go.

BTW, I wash it frequently with fresh water and it is stored(off season) inflated in my unheated garage.
 

ted_reshetiloff

Contributing Partner
Going on my second season with the WM (Zodiak) HP310. Spent a lot of time out in the sun last summer on the Chesapeake. Lots of time towing in my diesel exhaust. No stickyness what so ever. No loss of air. HP inflateable floor. Stows easily in the bag in came with and fits in the cockpit locker. Planes quickly with a 6hp. I wash it regularly and only store it dry. Guess I'm lucky. What do you do if you are cruising in a remote area and need to patch a hypalon boat? FWIW my last dinghy was a calypso(now APEX). A neighbor gave it to me. Was a PVC boat that sat outside for a few years on a dinghy rack. It was a 1985. No stickyness ever. Held air well. Sold it to a friend last summer for $75. He's off cruising with it now.
 

Maine Sail

Member III
What do you do if you are cruising in a remote area and need to patch a hypalon boat? FWIW my last dinghy was a calypso(now APEX). A neighbor gave it to

I pull out my hypalon patch kit that was included with the dinghy and fix it. This is similar to what you would do with PVC only the hypalon kit contains a different adhesive and pieces of hypalon as opposed to PVC and the cement that PVC boats use..
 

Lew Decker

Member III
Anyone interested in a virtually new 2003 Achilles 11.2 with hypalon tubes and inflatable floor??? I also have a barely used (less than 2 hours) Nissan 4 HP, 4-stroke outboard to go with it.

I bought the inflatable for my E39B, but thanks to my bad karma, the danged thing wouldn't fit in the cockpit locker. I stored it below, but it was a 2-man operation to get it out on deck. I finally got PO'd and gave it to my brother-in-law for his Boy Scout troop and their Colorado River trips. Unfortunately, he became the victim of early-onset Alzheimer's and the inflatable stayed packed away in his garage. It was never used.

Make me an offer I can't refuse. Cash works very well. Beware, though...Make sure it will fit in an accessible locker and that you are macho enough to handle a 95-pound inflatable. I failed on both accounts.:egrin:
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
I just spent a tad over a thou on my pvc small Zodiac.
Lew's boat sounds like a lot more boat for what will likely be a great price.
OTOH, it would not easily stow in our boat either.

The compromise between portability and on-water utility is a constant pushing of that imaginary slider along the scale between the extremes! :rolleyes:

We always wished we had a larger boat when out for a row, and then wished it was lighter and smaller when trying to deflate and stow it below decks...
;)
Loren
 
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