Heat and ski Storage

[Golfguy]

Any thoughts about adverse effects of outdoor heat, shaded?

[Horton]

As long as a ski is not in direct sunlight it is fine

[Golfguy]

I agree. Many peole I know are literally sleeping with their ski. I think we assume that if it is hot for humans it is too hot for our fiberglass companions. Molecularly the structural mutation temperature must be > 1000 degrees F.

[ScottScott]

We store in garage. Of course shaded, but usually about the same as the outdoor temperatures (summer afternoon temps around 90-95,) not particularly humid. I like that the warmer temps (compared to indoors) allows vests, gloves, and inserts/boots to dry out quicker minimizing mildew.

[Chef23]

I store my ski in an outside shed where it definitely gets warm. I zip open my ski bag to let the boots dry out but I have been doing this with skis for 30 years with no apparent problems.

[Horton]

Correction to my above comment:

 

Not in direct sun & not in super hot car

[ski6jones]

I try to minimize large changes in temp over short periods of time. In Houston we're between 70-95 all summer (day/night) so ski stays in the garage. When winter comes I keep the ski in the house to prevent potential damage from freeze/thaw if there's any trapped water anywhere in the ski/inserts/etc.

[jercrane]

My original Connelly HP got a gas bubble or something right in the middle of the tip just inside the start of the tunnel when I left it in the car back in the day. Looked like a 3 inch radius blister about 1/4 inch high. Connelly was super cool about it and even out of warranty and basically due to my negligence they replaced the ski.

 

So yeah maybe don't leave them in your car. Of course that was like 1991 so I'm guessing manufacturing tolerances are just a touch better now.

[eleeski]

I use a heat gun to work on skis a lot. With enough heat, I can distort the ski. Resins are certainly not stable to 1000 degrees.

 

A black ski in direct sunlight will quickly hit over 170F (we measured that!). That's enough to soften resin. Even if the resin stays together, thermal expansion of the skin will cause lots of stress on the ski - especially if the side out of the sun is still cool. Warping and delamination are quite possible with a ski left in the direct sun (had it happen personally more than once).

 

My skis do fine left in the boathouse or the container. We hit 50c (125f) (in the shade and no shade!) during most summers. The container gets even hotter. Skis that are slowly and evenly heated to hot temperatures should be fine (environmentally hot, not industrially hot - you can certainly destroy a ski in an oven). Cars can rapidly heat up. If you must keep your ski in a car, wrap it in some blankets to slow and moderate the temperature swings.

 

It is just a ski. Store it sensibly where you will be able to use it most. The skiing is what really matters not the lifespan of the ski.

 

Eric

[Horton]

@eleeski

The skiing is what really matters not the lifespan of the ski.

 

 

 

[cbiski555]

I just accidentally left mine out for 2 days in the direct sun. It’s a D3 Ion. I’m hoping I didn’t do any damage to it.

[cbiski555]

@Gloersen ok I had mentioned it to Terry and he said that it wouldn’t hurt it at all. Of course I’m

A little paranoid about it now when I ski on it thinking something is different but its probably just me.

[cbiski555]

@Horton what can happen if it sits in the direct sunlight for a couple days?

[thager]

Time for the voice of reason here. @eleeski ?

[eleeski]

Direct sunlight IS a real risk for skis. Too many skis are black and black surfaces get HOT in direct sunlight. We cured high temperature carbon prepreg just by putting it in the direct sun. It got to 190F! That is plenty hot to soften resin or affect foam cores.

 

It gets worse from direct sunlight. The part of the ski in the sun gets very hot while the shaded side stays cool. This causes stress from the differences in thermal expansion. Add in a heat softened core and bad things can happen.

 

I had a ski delaminate completely - the bottom skin peeled off the honeycomb core - from driving for a couple hours with it in the back seat of a convertible (that was the last ski I painted black!). Early Goodes had longevity issues - quite likely related to overheating. I have intentionally warped several skis with a heat gun. After an extended time in the sun (stupid storage spot) I've had a (factory) ski develop bubbles in the tunnel. KEEP YOUR SKIS OUT OF DIRECT SUNLIGHT!

 

With that said, the voice of reason must surface. High temperature resins exist and most manufacturers are a long ways from using old room temperature curing heat intolerant materials. Core materials are also much better at handling heat than in the old days. It has been years since I've seen damage that is clearly from leaving a ski in the sun. And that damage is immediately obvious upon visual inspection and a tap test (tap the ski all around and listen for changes in sound to identify delaminations). If everything looks, sounds and flexes OK, a sun exposed ski is not a problem.

 

So @cbiski555 your ski should be fine. A couple days of sun will not UV light degrade a ski - or even bleach its graphics (much). The shape is unlikely to change unless the boat trailer was parked on your ski so as to load it. Structurally, I'd have no concerns skiing that ski -especially if Terry thought it was OK. Believe in your ski and focus on your style.

 

But keep your ski out of direct sun from now on!

 

Eric

[Zman]

@thager You asked, there you go! B)

[thager]

@Zman Anything to irk @Horton!