# boiling rope to get heavy sap off. good or bad?



## kyle goddard (Aug 7, 2013)

I never done it. Just a thought. Last night i put my lanyard and prusik in my lunch box with hot water and dawn dish soap. I let that soak for a wile. Rinse and hang dry.


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## Pelorus (Aug 7, 2013)

My wife gets angry when I cook ropes on the stove.


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## Appalachian (Aug 7, 2013)

Better keep stirring it or it might stick to the bottom.


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## Redbug (Aug 7, 2013)

I don't think I would do it. I think the boiling water would weaken the fibers. 

Maybe do as mentioned and let it soak but in warm water. The washing machine is good when your wife is out shopping...


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## CanopyGorilla (Aug 7, 2013)

Boiling rope is bad mmm'kay...


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## Guran (Aug 8, 2013)

How do you remove sap from a spruce? Really sticky stuff. Soap and warm water does not do the trick....


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## isaaccarlson (Aug 9, 2013)

I am all ears on this thread. I have a customer who wants some spruce worked on, but I don't want sap all over my nice equipment. I normally don't work on the "sticky sappers" just for this reason.


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## Hddnis (Aug 9, 2013)

Go to store and buy the $0.99 bottles of rubbing alcohol, get several of them. Bring bottles home, place rope in tub, or pot, or bucket, pour rubbing alcohol over it, cover container and let soak till it is done soaking. Pull ropes out and rub them down good with alcohol soaked rag. Hang them up to dry, they'll be good as new. Alcohol won't hurt the ropes, in fact I seem to recall that is how the manufacturers say to clean them. Works on all kinds of sap I've encountered so far.




Mr. HE


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## 2treeornot2tree (Aug 9, 2013)

Just man up and wear the sap off working on hardwoods.


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## kyle goddard (Aug 9, 2013)

2treeornot2tree said:


> Just man up and wear the sap off working on hardwoods.



I do on my climbing line. My lanyard gets so gummed up it cant run through my grillon. Im going to soon make my own ce lanyard when i buy a new hitch climber pulley. That set up may help with thatko.


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## yoyoman (Aug 21, 2013)

kyle goddard said:


> I never done it. Just a thought. Last night i put my lanyard and prusik in my lunch box with hot water and dawn dish soap. I let that soak for a wile. Rinse and hang dry.



Two quotes from the Sterling Tech manual.


"How should I wash my rope?
To clean rope use Sterling’s Wicked Good Rope Wash™ or rinse in warm to hot water. Machine
washing is acceptable. Best is to use a front-load machine. We do not recommend using a top-
loading machine as the rope could damage the agitator or vice versa. The temperature of the water
is not a major concern as nylon or polyester are not much affected by heat until around 300 degrees
and it would be difficult to get a machine that hot."

"What chemicals are bad for my rope?
It is best to assume that all chemicals are bad for your rope. Do not expose your nylon or polyester
ropes to chemicals. That said, much recent data has been collected regarding how substances affect
rope life. Data available from Honeywell Corporation (makers of nylon 6, polyester and Spectra®)
shows that nylon’s strength is not greatly affected by motor oil, mineral oil, salt water, Freon, gasoline,
kerosene, benzene, chloroform, paints, pine oils, or insect repellents containing DEET. Chemicals that
should be avoided at all costs are bleach and sulfuric acid. Still even with this reassurance it is best to
protect your rope from any exposure to any acids or alkalis and to store your rope in a cool dry envi-
environment."

Even though it says the "strength" is not greatly affected", I don't see information on the life of the rope which leads me to concerns about fibers inside the rope that I cannot see.
I'm not sure how alcohol fits into this but a person could certainly be concerned about the long term effects that this might have on the internal fibers of a rope, especially on a kernmantle that gets most of its strength from inside where the fibers are not seen. Double braid also as much of its strength comes from within.
A 16 braid rope might be a good choice if frequent cleaning is an issue as the fibers that give the rope its strength are viable. 

I see this question at times and would like to offer this suggestion.


Dedicate a rope to those hemlocks and other sappy trees.
Change your climbing style when climbing sappy trees by using mechanical devices that can be cleaned with chemicals like alcohol or other solutions that may adversely effect your climbing line.
Use a figure 8 or other descenders that will operate well even with a sticky rope and will not bind up like a friction hitch.


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## summitree (Aug 21, 2013)

I would agree with the "man up" comment, seems to be fine after a good mix of hardwoods and conifers. I have only done dish soap in the tub once in a while, some fibers are built for the outdoor world.


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## formationrx (Aug 22, 2013)

*...*

mix up some tecnu poison ivy soap + luke warm water in a bucket overnight.... then rinse off with hose or in the washer.... hang the line tree to tree until dry... the sappy #### melts right off... put a board over the bucket... you can reuse it...


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## 68 Buick (Aug 22, 2013)

My ropes are 25+ years old and had plenty of encounters with sap, never cleaned them just worked the sap right out of them.


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## treesmith (Aug 22, 2013)

only ever washed my ropes twice, once in a hot bath and other in a machine, machine worked better. My prussiks get the occasional soak after a dirty conifer in the laundry sink with hot tap water and a dash of wash powder then a real good rinse. Krabs go in the dishwasher but ssshhhhhhhh, not a word


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## 2treeornot2tree (Aug 23, 2013)

68 Buick said:


> My ropes are 25+ years old and had plenty of encounters with sap, never cleaned them just worked the sap right out of them.



I would say if your climb lines are 25 yrs old. Its time to replace the 3 strand with some 16 strand.


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## 68 Buick (Aug 23, 2013)

Don't have any 16 strand as of yet. You recommend any certain brand. If I have to start washing them I'll keep what I got.


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## NYTREECLIMBER (Sep 2, 2013)

I don't think boiling it would cause a problem. Most cord melts at 450-900 degrees and boiling water is 200+degrees so I think your good


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free


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## 2treeornot2tree (Sep 3, 2013)

NYTREECLIMBER said:


> I don't think boiling it would cause a problem. Most cord melts at 450-900 degrees and boiling water is 200+degrees so I think your good
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free



Are you willing to bet your life on " I think"


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## Hddnis (Sep 3, 2013)

2treeornot2tree said:


> Are you willing to bet your life on " I think"





Every time we climb into a tree we are betting our lives on a relative amount of "I think" that is based on knowledge and experience gained in the past by ourselves and others.



Mr. HE


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## Hddnis (Sep 3, 2013)

Normal home water heater temps will not hurt climbing ropes. Even boiling water will not reduce the strength, but per most rope makers ropes are to be washed in cold or warm water. Better to be safe than sorry on the temp thing.

Here is a thread about getting sap off a rope. Lots of info to read through and learn from.

http://www.arboristsite.com/arborist-101/42103.htm




Mr. HE


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