Boat Building Forum

Find advice on all aspects of building your own kayak, canoe or any lightweight boats

Re: black vs clear
By:Don Beale
Date: 1/8/1999, 1:28 am
In Response To: Re: MAS has a web site (Nolan Penney)

> You might do better with clear plastic then black. Playing like a
> greenhouse, letting the light energy in, heating the boat, and not
> allowing the heat to escape. Greenhouse effect and all. They throw black
> tarps over them to prevent them from getting so hot in the summer.

True. But in a greenhouse, the plastic is suspended above the plants. The heat has a place to build up. I know in my neighbors's greenhouses, it gets up to about 120 degrees in the summer. But if you are covering the boat in black plastic, with the plastic in contact with the boat, I suspect it would get hotter with black because the plastic itself absorbs the light and converts it directly to heat. The heat has no where to go but off the top surface, and into the boat. At what temperature do the epoxies start to break down? Perhaps you dont want it to get any warmer...

Messages In This Thread

Re: MAS has a web site
Nolan Penney -- 1/7/1999, 6:46 am
Re: black vs clear
Don Beale -- 1/8/1999, 1:28 am