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| The Right Fabric: Hypalon or PVC? | 2010-1-17 2:44:23 | The location where you intend to use your boat is the primary factor in deciding which hull fabric to choose. The choices are PVC coated polyurethane cloth, or Hypalon (neoprene-coated nylon). Both fabrics are rugged, durable and dependable under virtually all conditions. But if you will do most of your boating in tropical conditions, a Hypalon boat will last longer because of its better resistance to UV degradation.
Construction of PVC and Hypalon boats is often different, too, but both are utterly reliable in use. Some manufacturers use a thermobonding technique to literally 'weld' the PVC fabric panels together, producing airtight seams stronger than the fabric itself. Also, since the PVC coating is more airtight than Hypalon, inflation pressure doesn't need to be topped off as with Hypalon boats.
Hypalon inflatables (and some PVC boats) are glued together using high-strength, two-part adhesives. This is a more labor-intensive process than the automated 'welding' of PVC and is a common weak point of 'bargain-priced' boats, so it must be done properly.
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