Esquif L'Edge Lite Whitewater Canoe

The primary ingredient of our rotomold canoes is polyethylene. Polyethylene is a tough, waxy-textured material that is unaffected by water and many chemicals. Additives are used to give UV and weather protection, prevent colour fade and protect the plastic during processing and throughout the life of the canoe.

Ideally your canoe should be stored inside, upside down on racks in a cool and dry environment. If you store your canoes outside it should also be upside down on racks and the wooden gunnels should never touch the ground. Do not store it where it will be exposed to ice and snow loads as this can distort your canoe. See the wooden gunnels section for specific care instructions.

There are a variety of opinions about cold cracking. During extreme temperature fluctuations, T-Formex has a thermal expansion factor different than wood, it can expand or contract faster than wood which can cause cracks from where the wood trim has been screwed, this results in cracks in the hull generally located near the saddles. Ideally, you are better off storing your canoe in an attached and insulated or heated and weatherproof storage.

If stored outside, we suggest unscrewing the screws from the deck plates over a distance of 36 inches without touching the seat hangers or thwarts to prevent cold-cracking.