VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

I'm wondering how essential it is too rinse off sails, etc. after each outing. Also, can I store them wet, rolled in the bag, till next time??

Hey I am new at windsurfing as well and from what I read you should not store your sails wet as it fogs them. Also rinse them if they are covered with grit as this is abrasive to the mono-film/x-ply. My theory is if I am paying for a sail I am going to try to make it last as long as possible.

never washed them and never had any problems.

If you are sailing in salt water it is fine to roll the sail up and store the sail wet. Rinsing it is not necessary. Mildew is not really a problem with the salt content in the water. It's grit that poses a bigger threat to keeping mono looking new. You can try wiping the sail down with a towel to remove the grit if it's a concern. I just make sure I derig in a clean spot free of grit. If you are sailing in fresh water, drying the sail in the shade is ideal to prevent sun damage (not a big problem now!) and mildewing. Most sail makers give this advice.

Soap is very expensive in Mother Russia!! Vodka.....not so much.
HA!! Just funning dood!

Vodka with soap - waisted money. Soap that what makes it waisted.
As my dad told me: never mix Vodka with anything, don't spoil THE product.

And speaking of cleaning stuff with Vodka. That's what we do:
It's called "thin film cleaning". Drink some vodka (100 ml or so). Then breath on a cleaned surface (one breath per shot) and wipe vapor of your breath with the towel. Works great. After a third breath it either looks clean, or you don't care.

Whoa -- so how many bottles do you need to drink to clean a misty 5.0? What about big light-air sails? And kites must be alcohol poisoning material...

As I said after third shot you don't care
And whatever you are trying to clean really looks good. I guess this method saves a lot of energy

well, that gives me alot to think about.... thanks for the info

depending on where you sailed last rinse the salt and sand....rinse EVERYTIME after Willows, masts too if ya can get the damn things apart....if you drive around with your quiver all the time like I do, some of the sails get "sanded monofilm" pretty good otherwise, like on the way to the Nat,
Store vertical on luff sleeve (I lean them against the van mirror in garage) and let drain for a day or so, esp with fresh water to kill chances of mildewing (summer only it seems) the mast sleeves don't bother with the older ones, once things are cloudy who gives a crap?

never noted film breaking any sooner or otherwise failing due to clouding, just sun exp.. still use and impact totally cloudy sail from "91 that hasn't seen much sun, while blowing right through clear 2003's, go figure

I rinse and dry my sails most times and they last forever. Too long, in fact. If you consume large amounts of gear, throwing out that which is no longer cool, you needn't bother as you'll replace things before it really matters. If, on the other hand if you want to use this sail for the rest of your life (like 20 years!) rinsing and drying really makes a difference.
The salt "corrodes" everything; sails, harnesses, wetsuits, aluminum; nothing really escapes the chemical and abrasive aspects of salt deposit. So rinsing anything after the ocean is good. And mildew and other fungii which thrive in any dampness can do some ugly things to laminates. Some black moldy stuff is in my kite forever. So drying is very good. A clothesline or a couple of pulleys somewhere like the garage or even outside will suffice. You can auto rinse in the rain that follows most winter sessions and let it dry when the clearing wind comes from the north. I think even just leaving it hanging outside till the next session would be better than rolling it up wet. (uv damage in winter being minimal)
I ALWAYS make an effort to dry and rinse if I can. But then I'm on a budget so I develope a deep affection for my gear.

don't bother it's going to get wet again anyway