Let’s face it. Storing a kayak is always challenging. It’s even a bigger challenge when you have a big kayak and don’t have space on the ground to store it. However, you will always have space above your head.
That’s right, in this article, we are going to build a kayak or paddleboard hoist made out of stuff that can find online or at any big box store. Let’s get started.
Here is the Supply List
- 1 ¼-inch pulley (5)
- 4-inch spring clips of carabiners (2)
- 100ft ¼-inch nylon rope
- Cleat (1)
Now, you are probably saying this to yourself, why would I build my own kayak or pedalboard hoist when I could go to any big box store, buy the complete kit, and install it, and be done with it.
Well, the primary reason for that is I’ve been down that road. I purchased one from a big-box store, and it was super janky. The rope didn’t feel tight, the pulleys were made out of plastic, and it didn’t feel like it was going to hold my kayak the way I wanted it to.
In fact, I go the feeling that it might fall down on my head and possibly turn me into a vegetable, leaving me a burden on my family.
So, in this article, we are going to build our own robust, stainless steel and rope kayak and paddleboard hoist, which you know, it can guarantee that it will not fail on you.
When you yank on that rope, and you pull the thing up to the ceiling of your garage or your workshop, you’ll know that it’s safe and that it’s not going to come down unless you wanted to.
Hanging Kayak From Ceiling
So, what I’ve done is put together a list of everything you need. If you want to buy all this stuff online, you can find them pretty much anywhere. Almost all the hardware store carries all the pulleys, all the ropes, chains, whatever you need to mount it to your ceiling, garage, workshop, or beams.
Anyhow, I’ve taken all the guesswork out of this, so you don’t even have to think at all. All you have to do is follow these steps and do what you do best.
Understanding The Hoist
Okay, so here is everything you need to make it happen. You will need five pulleys. For this, I will use an inch and a quarter pulley. Then you will need two spring clips. These clips will be for down and around the straps.
You will also need some nylon rope. In my case, I have beams above my garage, so I will use a chain to wrap the pulleys around the beams. You may not have that, so you may need something a little bit different.
You may have drywall or something along those lines, so make sure that whatever you use to attach this stuff to your ceiling is really strong and can handle the weight of whatever you are pulling up.
The rope is kind of important. In my case, I’m using a hundred feet rope because my ceilings are so high. For this hoist, I will be using a quarter-inch rope, and you really need to make sure that it’s not twisted. You want to make sure you get all the kinks out of it.
Take a good look at the image right here. On the left is the wall, and you are going to have the cleat down here somewhere. You will need four connection points on the ceiling.
And if you have a very long kayak or a paddleboard, you will need some overhangs. Those will be your connection points. The purpose of the first two pulleys is that the first one will be just a pulley, and the second one will a pulley and a termination combination.
Inserting The Rope
Now, you’re going to take that hundred feet of nylon rope, and you’re going to cut it in half because you need two lines for this. You can always trim the excess later on.
One line is going to go up from the cleat through the first pulley down to the floor and through another pulley, and then it’s going to terminate right at the second pulley.
The second line is going to go up through both pulleys across through the second pulley at the top and then go down through a pulley down there, and then it’s going to terminate at the top.
Essentially what you have just built is a huge mini blind. So, when you put downforce on the cleat, you are going to have up force from the ground, and both pulleys are going to go up at the same time.
The Bottom Loops
Where the bottom loops meet the kayak, it’s just a pulley in a spring clip. It connects to the handhold right down there, and it feels really good and solid. You may want to improve on it.
You can use a carabiner, or you can use another string of rope that goes through there to create a kind of locking mechanism. In my opinion, I think it’s actually really strong, and it makes it easy to take on and off.
Cleat
Now, I just want to briefly discuss the cleat I used to tie this thing off once the kayak was up in the air. I grabbed an old cleat from a boat project I had going on a couple of years ago, and I mounted it down into the concrete on my floor.
Suppose you decide to mount this on a wall; you really need to hit a stud. A metal stud is recommended. You really cannot go into drywall. That will never work. The kayak itself will have enough force to pull it right out of the drywall. So, make sure you mount it to something safe and secure.
A lot of people question how to store your boats properly and to keep them looking nice and out of the weather, so here’s my solution. In fact, it’s a pretty inexpensive solution with all the common parts that can be found at any local hardware store.
Also, this setup isn’t specific for kayaks. It can be used for canoes as well as a large variety of battle crafts. You can safely use it to store those large and heavy fishing kayaks as well.
Final Words
Alright, so that’s is the answer of the frequently asked question -How To Store A Kayak In An Apartment The Right Way? Now your canoe or kayak is stored in a spot that would just be dead space. It’s also out of the elements, and it’s safe from prying eyes. And it’ll be there nice and clean for when you’re ready to go out again. And that concludes our article on hanging kayak from the ceiling.
Leave a Reply