Wings Icing Up, Does that Damage The Wing?

[lakemichiganwingfoiler]

I usually stop winging once the air temp goes below the upper 30’s, not because I am cold but because I don’t want to damage my wing.

Does anyone know or have experience with wings being damaged from getting iced up. I have mantis wings and I have iced it up once and I thought it effected the coating on the wing. So I usually stop once the wing is in danger of icing.

Can the wings handle that?

[PonoBill]

Possibly. The icing won't be even so it will create hard spots with soft edges that flex. The resulting stress risers will probably damage the fabric fibers. Probably no more than when I stuff a damp, sandy wing back in its bag, toss it in the back of my car, and pile other stuff on it. But yeah, I don't think it would do the canopy any good.

I will never know definitively. I consider cold rain to be an intolerable hardship.

[lakemichiganwingfoiler]

That is my life, our best wind and waves are fall, winter, and spring and it’s usually rainy, snowy, and or cold!

[B-Walnut]

I wouldn't expect the simple act of icing to damage it. However, the fact that it would be iced and then flapping in the wind cracking, rewetting, refreezing, (basically everything about winging) would not do the fabric any favors in my imagination.

It would be great to hear from manufacturers about this. I wonder how dacron, vs super fabrics would compare too. In the climbing world we used dyneema in the ice because it wouldn't absorb water and freeze. We disliked it long term and in summer use since it was so sun sensitive.

[sflinux]

The build of a wing is similar to a kite.  Snowkiting has been going on for decades and I have never heard of icing causing problems with kites.
If you are concerned with the coating of the wing, I have used the product Aerospace 303.  It is a uv protectant that makes the kite/wing look brand new.  Think of it like armor all.  In fact I prefer it over armor all for my car.
Perhaps contact BigWinds to get there input.

[B-Walnut]

I've never tried it but do kites actually get wet and frozen in snow kiting?

[Badger]

The build of a wing is similar to a kite.  Snowkiting has been going on for decades and I have never heard of icing causing problems with kites.
If you are concerned with the coating of the wing, I have used the product Aerospace 303.  It is a uv protectant that makes the kite/wing look brand new.  Think of it like armor all.  In fact I prefer it over armor all for my car.
Perhaps contact BigWinds to get there input.

I use 303 Protectant on all things plastic or rubber. It does make stuff look brand new and protects it from UV. It also prolongs the life of wetsuits both in the sun and in storage. I use it on so many things that I bought a gallon on Amazon. I never thought of using it on my wings. I might give that a try.

In the case of icing, 303 might also help prevent ice from sticking to the fabric. Another non-stick product worth trying is Mclube Sailkote.

[PonoBill]

The build of a wing is similar to a kite.  Snowkiting has been going on for decades and I have never heard of icing causing problems with kites.
If you are concerned with the coating of the wing, I have used the product Aerospace 303.  It is a uv protectant that makes the kite/wing look brand new.  Think of it like armor all.  In fact I prefer it over armor all for my car.
Perhaps contact BigWinds to get there input.

True--the first wings I saw were for Ice skating--well designed and high-performance. Brett Lickle tried one for wingfoiling by attaching floaties to keep it from sinking--no inflatable parts. It worked but wasn't worth the effort.

[Badger]

Icing on the wing only happens on the water where the wing gets wet and then freezes. Temps need to be near or below freezing for icing to happen. I have foiled on a few 35-degree days and had no ice on the wing.  40 degrees is my normal threshold. Below that is usually too cold for me.

[PonoBill]

It occurs to me on reflection that snowkiting is probably not a useful comparison. I'd think in most conditions a kite in snow would never have liquid water on it to freeze into ice. The mental picture I draw is of a fairly thick patch of ice, perhaps on both sides of the fabric. The wind force on the canopy stretches and flexes the canopy, creating a sharp-edged layer that the fabric stretches across. That doesn't sound good to me.

Think about this is making me cold. It's less than 70 degrees this morning in Maui, I'm going to put on a jacket, or at least a long-sleeved shirt. Freezing.