Emergency Rip & Tear Repair - Kenyon's Klear Repair Tape
Written: Jul 15 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: quick and easy to use, lasts long enough to get you out of the woods
Cons: not a permanent solution
The Bottom Line: It might not permanently solve the problem, but it’s more than enough to salvage a camping trip from disaster
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| jps246's Full Review: Kenyon Klear Repair Tape |
If you need something for an emergency repair of almost any smooth material like a tent’s rain fly, the tent itself or your rain shell, then Kenyon’s Klear Repair Tape, should be somewhere in your backpack.
For about $3 at most outdoor gear stores (and at some general department stores), you get a 3 inch by 18 inch roll of the repair tape which should be more than enough for most minor emergencies that you come across while in the outdoors. At three inches wide, the tape is wide enough to hold together torn pieces of material and with 18 inches, you can patch a rip that is about a foot and a half long. However, since most tears are significantly smaller than that when you notice them, the repair tape should last for quite some time in your backpack before you need to get a new roll (unless you’re always tearing something).
The tape is made up of an abrasion resistant urethane tape that works on just about any smooth fabric surface. It can be used to repair tears in synthetic materials like nylon or vinyl and will also work on natural fibers – though it’s much harder to keep tightly attached on a material like canvas or cotton.
The tape is clear and while it is noticeable on the repaired material, doesn’t stand out too much because the color of the original fabric comes through the tape.
Putting it on the fabric is easy. You should dry off the area you are taping up, make sure the edges are as close together as possible and then lay the tape over the area, smooth it on and voila, you’ve got a repaired tear. To make the repair even stronger, you can run a piece of the tape on the underside, as well as the topside of the tear – this gives you a double layer of tape to keep the tear from getting bigger.
The lifespan of the tape on the fabric it’s holding together depends a lot on how you’re using that material. If you’re simply repairing a tear in a tent fly that will be over a tent and won’t be exposed to much wear and tear, jostling and movement – then the tape could last for several seasons worth of trips, but if you’re taping up a tear in say the elbow of your rain shell, it’s constantly flexing and moving and the tape tends to stretch, wear out and fall-off after several bouts of heavy use.
The real use of the repair tape is for instant fixes when you don’t have anything else available to fix your tear. The tape itself is very light (a roll is only a few ounces) and it’s easy to pack in your backpack to always have with you. Then no matter where you are, you can pull it out and fix a tear that could otherwise ruin a good camping trip.
Then what you want to do is when you get home, get out a more permanent fix such as a patch and mend the tear that way. Kenyon’s Klear Repair Tape will finish out your trip and get you out of the woods, but really isn’t made for permanent fixes.
Ever since I had a torn and leaky rain fly on one camping trip, I’ve made sure I keep a roll of this tape with me. Now if I notice there’s a small tear or leak, out comes the tape and the problem is solved for the moment. Plus when I get home, it’s a lot easier to find these tears and holes with the tape and repair them more permanently.
Final Thoughts
Small and light enough to easily pack and at only $3, Kenyon’s Klear Repair Tape is something that every camper should have in their pack to take care of unexpected rips and tears in a multitude of fabrics.
It might not permanently solve the problem, but it’s more than enough to salvage a camping trip from disaster.
Recommended:
Yes
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