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Vent: found out my climbing rope loses 10% strength if it sits wet in the truck bed overnight
So I was cleaning out my gear bag last Saturday and pulled out my 150 foot Yale rope, and it had this weird stiff feel in one section. Took it to the shop and the old timer there Dave asked how I store it. I said it lives in the truck bed during the week. He just shook his head and told me that moisture plus UV sitting on a rope can knock down its strength by around 10 to 15 percent over time, and it is not something you can see. That is huge when you are 60 feet up a red oak with a chainsaw hanging off you. I never once thought about it beyond keeping it out of the sun, and I have been doing this for 9 years. Anyway I am now looking at a rope that is three seasons old and wondering if it is trash. Anyone here actually send ropes in for testing or do you just go by feel and years?
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emery_taylor10d ago
10 to 15 percent? That is wild. I always thought keeping a rope dry was about not getting it nasty and moldy, not about it actually getting weaker. The part that gets me is Dave saying you can't even see it. I have hung my rope over the same metal hook in the garage for years and it always felt fine, but now I am second guessing every rope I own. Three seasons on yours does not sound crazy, but if it sat wet in a truck bed that whole time I would at least ask Dave if he can poke around at it. How does the stiff section feel compared to the rest, like does it bend the same or is it crunchy?
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