Canoes are a terrific investment for you and your family to enjoy the outdoors. However, buyers often worry about shelling out several hundred dollars for a canoe that’ll break in a year or two.
Fortunately, canoes can last you much more than you think, especially with periodic maintenance and proper storage.
So, how long do canoes last?
Canoes Are Built to Last
Generally, canoes are incredibly durable. With proper care and maintenance, your canoe can last for decades!
The average lifetime varies according to the material, but you should be looking at 10+ years, even with minimal care.
There are four materials canoes are made of:
Plastic Canoes
Plastic canoes are made of polyethylene. It’s considered the cheapest material and the first to fall to pieces.
Even if you protect them against UV rays and impacts, you’re looking at 5 to 10 years maximum before they degrade beyond repair.
Aluminum Canoes
Aluminum canoes are some of the best for longevity and durability. They’re much more resistant to heat and impacts. Furthermore, they don’t require periodic maintenance to last a long time.
Aluminum canoes can last 15+ years, especially if they undergo routine maintenance. However, they’re relatively expensive and extremely heavy.
Royalex Canoes
This is the most commonly used material for canoes. It’s much more durable than plastic while it remains lightweight and inexpensive.
These canoes can last 10-15 years. However, since they’re extremely sensitive to UV rays, improper storage can significantly decrease their lifespan.
Kevlar Canoes
This is the go-to material for experienced paddlers. It’s lightweight, extremely durable, and made specifically for long-distance canoeing.
Kevlar canoes can last 15+ years, provided you protect them against UV rays and don’t subject them to a barrage of rocks.
How to Make Your Canoe Last Longer?
Here are five of the best measures to extend your canoe’s lifespan.
Keep Away From Sunlight
Direct sunlight is one of the main causes of degradation. Some materials hold up better than others, but they’re at risk.
If your canoe is made from polyethylene, it’s at the highest risk of damage. The plastic will fade, become more limber, and fracture more easily.
Fiberglass ages noticeably slower than polyethylene, but it’ll also begin to show signs of aging if subjected to a lot of harmful UV rays. Even if your canoe is made from aluminum, the wooden deck plates and gunwales will still be susceptible to damage.
Good Practices
The best way to protect your boat is to keep it away from direct sunlight. Look for a shaded location when storing your canoe.
If you can’t find a shaded spot. Use a weather-resistant cover and make sure it’s suspended over the hull. Covers that come in contact with the hull can promote fungal growths, especially if there’s high humidity.
Another way to protect against sunlight is a UV protectant spray. We recommend TriNova because it works for all surfaces and lasts for weeks. Apply a coating before storing, and make sure you reapply another coating every few weeks.
Protect From Extreme Weather Conditions
Similar to sunlight, prolonged exposure to rain will weaken the superficial layer of your canoe and cause significant degradation.
Similarly, the accumulation of snow inside your canoe will compile weight that can, in some cases, cause crackings that are difficult to fix.
Even with aluminum canoes, some hull materials will be subjected to oxidation if they contact water.
Good Practices
Storing indoors should solve this issue. However, there are a few things that you should also be mindful of.
Before applying a cover, make sure that your boat is completely dry. Even a little water can prevent the canoe from drying naturally. This can cause weak spots in your canoe, especially at the gunnels.
Even if you’re storing the boat indoors, freezing temperatures can cause damage to the joints of the hull. Keep an eye for damage in the wooden pieces of the canoe (deck plates and gunwales), and try to avoid frequent freezing and thawing.
Avoid Uneven Weight Distribution
One of the most common causes of deformation and hull damage is uneven weight distribution.
Aluminum canoes can handle harsh storage conditions, but plastic, fiberglass, and wood canoes can easily be damaged by improper storage.
If the weight of the boat isn’t spread out across the entire length, the hulls will bend and deform over time. You should never support the canoe from the ends. It’s equally wrong to have it standing up on one end as well.
Some people like to hang their canoe from its thwarts. This should be completely avoided since the handles may come out of place.
Good Practices
The canoe should be stored upside down on racks, logs, rafters, or sawhorses, anything that would keep the weight off of the gunwales.
Next, make sure the weight is distributed by adding padded cradles at several points across the boat. If you don’t have padded cradles, you can use nylon straps or angled surfaces. This will take the weight off the gunwales.
Rinse Your Canoe Frequently
Keeping your canoe clean is essential for two reasons. First, you’ll preserve the hull from any water breaching the varnish and ruining your wooden frame. Second, you’ll keep your canoe clean from any unwanted parasites.
If you often paddle in salt water, rinsing becomes a necessity. Salt can easily degrade your canoe and even corrode the metal parts.
Good Practices
It’s best to make sure your canoe is completely dry before storage. If you were paddling in saltwater, rinse your canoe thoroughly with fresh water.
Several types of parasites can colonize your canoe and make you ill, like Cryptosporidium and Giardiasis. We recommend you use a solution of diluted dishwashing detergent and wipe the inside of your canoe.
Varnish All Wooden Surfaces
The layer of varnish or oil over the wooden surface protects the bare wood from permanent damage.
If you notice scratches that have penetrated the varnish, it might be a good idea to re-varnish the hull.
This is especially important for wooden hulls, but it doesn’t mean aluminum and Royalex don’t need to undergo any maintenance.
Good Practices
For wooden canoes, check out this step-by-step tutorial to varnish your canoe back to perfection.
Royalex canoes are a little different. First, you need to remove the old layer of vinyl, add epoxy, sand the area till smooth, then repaint the hull.
Aluminum canoes can be polished using paste wax for cars. Turtle Wax yields incredible results!
In Conclusion
With proper handling and storage, even a plastic canoe can last you up to a decade. Canoes can sustain a lot of abuse before they require major repairs.
Still, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take some precautionary steps to maintain your canoe. If you follow our guide, your canoe can easily outlast your car!