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Inflatable fenders: like? Not like?

Discussion in 'Technical Discussion' started by Danvilletim, Mar 22, 2017.

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  1. Danvilletim

    Danvilletim Senior Member

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    starting to look at inflatable fenders. What do you like or not like? Which brands and where do you buy them?
  2. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    They're very nice in a user aspect. Uninflated they fold pretty small and are very light weight which is nice for the user. Sometimes they're too light weight and the wind will blow them around. Not sure which brand is the best these days. They also tend to lose firmness quicker with temperature change than traditional fenders, but in most cases they're an improvement.
  3. Fishtigua

    Fishtigua Senior Member

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    Quite a few large yachts use them for short-term/overnight berthing as they are light and easily moveable in a new place. Long term, everyone seems to go back to traditional fenders (or in some cases, old tractor tyres :eek:) for home berthing.
  4. Wl3175

    Wl3175 Member

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    Hey we have used AERE fenders on both the Huckins and have been excellent thy come in a range of colors and and the covers are really high quality . A friend uses them on his ocean Alexander 85 and has never had a problem .wouldnt use them if you plan on going through the canal system though .buy regular fenders for that then dump them
  5. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    They re nice as they take less space but take too long to inflate and deflate even with an electric inflators. Fine on large boats with a lot of crew, not so on owner operated or with just two crews
  6. Wl3175

    Wl3175 Member

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    Hi pascal

    I would agree your statement for the larger ones but we Have them on a 65ft Huckins which is owner operated with - crew which is a family member and they work fine . They do take a little long to inflate with the pump that the supplier suggests .we use a pump for inflating race marks and it's painless .pump is actually smaller and quieter than most .
  7. Ken Bracewell

    Ken Bracewell Senior Member

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    I'd recommend ProStock over Aere. I've had plenty fail over the years, and the ProStock seem to hold up much better in the seems.
  8. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Speaking of pumps. I recently got a small Ryobi compressor which uses the same 18v lithium batteries as their drills and tools. It has both high volume / low pressure for tubes etc and a low volume / high pressure for tires or regular fenders.

    Works really great, no cords etc.

    Haven't tried it yet on the inflatable fenders
  9. ESSRTEE8

    ESSRTEE8 Member

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    I use Aere fenders and love them. Wife loves them too, very light, very durable.
  10. chesapeake46

    chesapeake46 Senior Member

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    Pascal, did you get the P737, hand held like a drill or the P731 with two different hoses ?
  11. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    It's the shape of a brick, battery goes in under. One end is low press with a3/4" hose, the other end is high press with standard Schroeder valve and hose
  12. chesapeake46

    chesapeake46 Senior Member

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    Thanks, that's the P731.
  13. ychtcptn

    ychtcptn Senior Member

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    If you are using for long term unattended use, make sure you tie a few weight bags on them. I have seen the small ones blowing out of the way when really windy. I think they are better for short term attended use, as noted before, they tend to lose air in cold weather, reducing effectiveness.