Lifespan of Inflatables

Hello all. I'm a day or two from pulling the trigger on the i11s. This comes after searching for about a year for the perfect personal watercraft for my needs. I've read all the info I can find about these Hobie inflatables and just really have one final question. (for now harhar) Has anybody had a Hobie inflatable (any model) for a few years with no serious degradation issues? I realize these are relatively new to the market.....

I plan to keep it indoors in a heated environment and maintain it very well.

My fishing buddy wants one too. He got so excited when I showed these to him that he's likely to pull the trigger before I actually do!

So, do they hold up well?

If you do a search online there are a couple reviews from different folks. One used one as their secondary exploration boat on their sailboat trips and for camping. Although they loved it, they talk about having to fix leaks at different times and would suggest a hard shell kayak instead.
I would agree. As attractive as these inflatables look. A light Hobie kayak like the Revolution 11 in my mind is still the way to go. Far more versatile and safe for rougher conditions. The only time I would consider an inflatable a solution would be for air travel to far away destinations. But even then it would be a pain to travel with all the necessary equipment for fishing. So not much of a solution in my mind, better to find a rental.
I guess if you don't have the space for a hard shell kayak to store. Or you have absolutely no way to access a location by carrying a hard shell in special circumstances. Then you would might find the inflatable the solution. I'm looking for someone to tell me otherwise???
I love this photo of a Revo 11 being transported in the back of a car.

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Mark
Tandem Island- 2013
2 - Sports - 2014

Thanks for the responses. I do have a garage, and I have a 19 foot Champion bass boat in it. The thing that attracts me to the i11s is that I also have a 1991 Honda CRX that gets 50 mpg. I thought it would be neat to go harvest a basket of bluegills on a thimble full of gas. I used to do bass tournaments and that sport will put you in the poorhouse real quick. I just think it would be fun to catch fish on the cheap once in a while. After the initial expense of the Hobie, that is.

Well, I'm going to sit in a Revolution 11 tonight. I guess it would be light enough to put on top of my Tahoe. I think its 57 lbs without the drive in it.

2 - 2009 i9s that have never had a puncture or leak. Take care of them and they will take care of you.

The i11 is a durable product, however here's some tips for prolonging the life of your iSeries kayak:

* Store in a cool/dry place. Storing in extreme heat and/or high humidity conditions may cause the seams to delaminate.
* Clean surfaces of saltwater and sand before storage.
* Deflate before storage.
* Apply UV Hobie UV Protectant:

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Howie Strech
Parts & Accessories Product Manager
Hobie Cat USA

How often would one apply the UV protectant?

Applying UV protectant once monthly is a good rule of thumb.

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Howie Strech
Parts & Accessories Product Manager
Hobie Cat USA

So, in my case it was 4 seasons. I live in ct. The seam around the well detached, and a big seam under the hobie emblem went the same day. I have pictures posted under " catastrophic seam failure" . Having said that, it was a great kayak while it lasted. Cheers, brianc

just to clarify, "4 seasons" means 4 years as you reported buying the boat new in 2012 and having the seam failure in 2016. I'm not sure what model you have but based on the pictures the construction around the drive well doesn't look anything like that of my i11s.

i11s hull bottom at drive well:


cheers, roger

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

Hi roger, No, my kayak does not look like yours. It is an i12, and it has been fished heavily. I have a friend who bought the identical kayak, on the same day. His is still pretty too, takes it out a few times a year. Hobie has my kayak, there is no dispute over provenance. If you take a knife and open open up the bottom, you will find a 3/8 inch seam that holds the floor to the well. They are all built like that. On the same day that went, the big seam under the hobie decal went. So, in talking to hobie i have learned that moisture is not good for inflatables. And taking it out in the sun is bad too. I try to keep it dry, but i love the water, what to do?. Having said all that, it was a great kayak. Incredibly stable in rough water. saw more sunsets than anyone deserves. The kayak has had other problems, but My feeling was that these kayaks are an experiment we all participating in. That 3/8 inch seam is a huge design flaw that severely limits the life of that boat. Cheers, brian

I would also like to say, Kudos to Hobie for being so open about the problems with the inflatable kayaks. When I bought it, I knew i was participating in a design experiment, and was happy to do so. I Caught so many fish, saw so many sunsets, explored so many estuaries. A really great boat. But had i known about that seam, i never would have bought that boat, and cheated myself out of a lot of great fishing. love you Hobie, your like a bad hot girlfriend i can not trust. I miss you. cheers, Brian

assuming your drive is still fine, maybe Hobie can make you a deal on a new hull and seat..they have clearly made serious improvements in these inflatable boats

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2019 Outback360 'Fish Retriever'
2016 i11s 'Go Cougs!'
2012 Oasis and 2012 PA12 (moved on but not forgotten...)

I think our 2008 i14T is dead. I was excited to have this Hobie i14T tandem kayak given to us last month by my father in law. We thought it would be perfect for the RV! When we unpacked it there was a small leak in the center and starboard tubes. We did get on the water once for ~20mins before we had to turn back due to the leaks.

Now it is literally falling apart at the seems. Not one of the 3 air tubes are holding air now (not very inflatable...) and the bow section has completely come apart (older model with the front hatch). I thought I'd only have to glue back on all of the attachments and patch the leaks (I did), but over the last month everytime I inflate it, another leak shows up. Its worse now, 3-4 inches of seams are opening up.

We contacted Hobie but since we didn't have the receipt from 2008 (father in law couldn't find it) they wouldn't help (would have only helped alittle anyway I bet, probably like 10% off a new hull). At least ACK (Austin Canoe and Kayak) said they would help recycle the hull... what a waste.

The older i12s and i14t with the bow hatch have a weakness in the design. Part of the tube seam is glued rather than welded to the side wall of the bow hatch and will fail over time. When this seam fails, it cannot be repaired. I have also heard from Hobie dealers that the center floor tube the holds up the bow hatch will fail over time too, but I did not personally encounter this. The Hobie i12s and i14t both make nice fishing boats, but get the 2015 or later models that have the forward bungee area rather than the bow hatch. The bow hatch was a nice idea for fishing because it made a great place to put both the transducer and the battery for a fish finder, but it also was a design weakness that would eventually lead to the end of the boat.