How stringent are weight limits?

September 20, 2022 2:49 PM

My wife and I are shopping for an inflatable tandem kayak. A good number of them have a 400 lb. weight limit. We just happen to weigh exactly 400 lbs when you put us together. So, just how hard and fast are those weight limits? We don't want to sink in the middle of a lake, but there are some really nice kayaks out there with 400 lb weight limits.
posted by furtheryet to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (14 answers total)

Solid engineering practice has a safety factor of 3.
posted by hwyengr at 2:51 PM on September 20, 2022 [2 favorites]

I can't speak to the adult ones specifically, but I have some kid kayaks rated at 150 lbs, and it's basically unusable for me since I weigh more than that. It doesn't sink, but I really can't use it. Given their expense, I'd not push those weight limits, unless of course you can try it out and return it for yourself.
posted by The_Vegetables at 3:00 PM on September 20, 2022 [1 favorite]

hwyengr, I can't tell if you think they should get a kayak rated at 1200lbs, or you expect an inflatable kayak rated at 400lbs to support 1200lbs.

Personally, I like my boats with some safety margin, so I'd look for a slightly bigger kayak. Also I wear clothes and shoes and life preservers and I'm probably carrying a paddle, etc... So, maybe 30% more than I need? In your case that would be 533lbs.

To answer specifically: I'd treat the number as a hard limit.
posted by Horkus at 3:07 PM on September 20, 2022 [7 favorites]

When I was foolishly in the market for a kayak several years ago, all of the advice I read said that you should get a kayak with a weight limit for your weight plus a margin of 30-35% - without that extra margin, your kayak is going to sit too low in the water and be difficult to maneuver.
posted by Jeanne at 3:09 PM on September 20, 2022 [12 favorites]

I'd not so much be worried about safety margin as I would about maneuverability and handling. Most of my paddling experience has been whitewater, and things like freeboard on an inflatable kayak on those circumstances don't matter too much because they're self-bailing, but if the boat sits low it's gonna be sluggish, not track well, and the paddling experience will be suboptimal.

Get yourself an opportunity to paddle the boat you've got your eye on to experience it and make sure you're actually going to enjoy it in the conditions you're planning on using it in.

On preview: what Jeanne said.
posted by straw at 3:12 PM on September 20, 2022 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: Thank you. Very helpful information. I can focus my shopping more intelligently now. I find all of this very overwhelming. I wish I was more like my sister, who bought a $400 hard shell at Tractor Supply and has never looked back.
posted by furtheryet at 3:38 PM on September 20, 2022 [3 favorites]

Also leave some tolerance for gear. I agree the handling will be your issue if you can, rent some and try them out first!
posted by warriorqueen at 4:19 PM on September 20, 2022

I'd not so much be worried about safety margin as I would about maneuverability and handling.

Same, the first question I'd ask about is "what happens if I'm too heavy?". Because usually limits like that aren't a binary "400 pounds you're fine, 401 the whole thing suddenly sinks", they're a continuum with some arbitrary line drawn. At exactly the listed limit, something is getting sucky about the experience, even if it's not intolerable yet. I'd go with something that has a limit you're not near.
posted by ctmf at 5:40 PM on September 20, 2022 [2 favorites]

My concern would be their insurance, should something go terribly wrong. You put an ounce over 400# in that kayak and the manufacturers lawyers point to the weight limit and blame user negligence.

I would treat the limit as an absolute, not as a suggestion.
posted by bilabial at 6:32 PM on September 20, 2022

We have one of these.

We are, together, north of 400 pounds, and this thing works fine for use in the paddling we do around city lakes. It handles fine and I haven't felt like its on the verge of sinking or something.

I wouldn't take it somewhere where sinking in the middle of the lake would be a major problem, but it's been fine for us. It's usually the two of us and maybe a backpack with lunch, so not much gear.

I'm not sure where the lawyers or the kayak manufacturer's insurance are getting involved, but maybe that's just me. If this thing sank on us, my thinking would be "well, duh, we were overloading it." not "You'll hear from my lawyers!"

If you're near Minneapolis and want to try it, let me know.
posted by chazlarson at 7:42 PM on September 20, 2022 [6 favorites]

I recently had to do a small amount of flat-water kayaking in a double person inflatable. We were probably 100 pounds over the rated limit, with two large guys and some gear. It stayed afloat but as others have said, you can feel it in the maneuverability for sure.

I was ok with being that overweight because we were using the boat for short distances in water that was slow-moving and shallow, so swamping or sinking would have been funny rather than dangerous. I would not have done this in deeper water or conditions where weather or waves might come in. It's indisputably safer and more fun to use gear that is actually rated for your use.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:26 AM on September 21, 2022

I wouldn't go too close to the limit in an inflatable. Not because it's dangerous but because it's less fun. Inflatables are already sloppy and slow to begin with. Overweighting them will make them worse.

As an aside, have you rented kayaks at whatever local lake is around you? Try out a few before buying. And definitely try both tandems and singles. The experience of tandems is very different and I personally would kayak very rarely if I was limited to a tandem.
posted by jclarkin at 8:21 AM on September 21, 2022 [2 favorites]

I have a SeaEagle with an 800lb limit. It is super easy and fun with just me (220lb), acceptably fun at 500lb, and slow and wet at 700lb. I'd only consider using it at 800lb if it was a survival situation.

That said, I highly recommend the kayak! I also have a 385ft (600lb limit). If you are in the Seattle area you are welcome to borrow and try them out.
posted by Diddly at 9:19 AM on September 21, 2022 [2 favorites]

We got a 3 person inflatable kayak; it has a 650lb limit. We love it - and the extra space means we can happily do a day trip with all our stuff (including the hockey bag we move it in to go point-to-point).
posted by jb at 6:01 AM on September 22, 2022