How to Store Webbing

Webbing -- a flat nylon rope used in a variety of climbing, rescue and outdoor situations -- has many important uses. Climbers, cavers and canyoneers trust their lives to webbing. Rescue crews trust other people's lives to webbing. Nylon webbing and ropes are particularly susceptible to damage from things such as sunlight, chemicals, and dirt. Therefore, proper storage practices should be used to minimize exposure to these damaging elements and maximize the longevity and effectiveness of your climbing webbing.

Things You'll Need

  • Storage box
  • Permanent marker
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Instructions

    • 1

      Designate an area in your home to store your equipment. Store nylon-based climbing gear such as webbing and ropes separately from metal climbing gear like carabiners.

    • 2

      Inspect your webbing for fraying and other damage. Any noticeable imperfection may lead to failure while the webbing is being used. Discard any equipment that is damaged.

    • 3

      Separate any dirty webbing from your gear inventory. Clean dirty webbing with lukewarm water. During use, webbing can accumulate dirt and dust. Prolonged use of dirty webbing can cause the dirt to damage the nylon fibers on a microscopic level, weakening the climbing webbing. Allow the webbing to dry before placing in storage.

    • 4

      Coil the webbing with a daisy chain, or chain sinnet, knot. The daisy chain knot loosely coils the webbing and avoids leaving damaging tight knots in the webbing. Uncoiled webbing can easily become tangled with other equipment and takes up more storage space. If you have different lengths of webbing, indicate the length on an attached piece of paper, but do not write directly on nylon climbing webbing or rope.

    • 5

      Place the webbing in a storage box and mark the contents with a permanent marker. Avoid storing other climbing or camping gear with nylon webbing and ropes. Place the box in a cool, dark area away from direct sunlight.