Kayak, Paddleboard and Gear Racks
Indoor steel racks for kayaks, paddleboards and paddles, made to your boats and your room.
TrussMetal is a metal fabrication shop in North Vancouver that works across Metro Vancouver. This page is for homeowners, strata councils and property managers with shared gear rooms, and paddling clubs, schools and rental operators who need to store boats, boards and wet gear in a set space. Send us the list of what has to be stored and the room it goes in, and we will confirm the rack layout, how it fixes and what the quote covers.
The standard offer on this page is racks for storing boats, boards and paddles in indoor, dry locations: garages, heated gear rooms and dry storage rooms. Boats and boards should be rinsed and drained before they are racked. Our part is the steel rack and its fixings. The boats, boards and gear, the room, its floor, drainage and ventilation stay with the owner.
Rack Types We Quote
Wall-mounted arms
Pairs of padded arms that carry kayaks or boards, fixed into wall structure that has been confirmed for it. They keep boats off the floor of a garage, gear room or storage room.
Freestanding floor racks
One- or two-sided racks with tiers of padded arms. Their stability, the loads they carry and any anchoring they need are established for the actual configuration before one is offered.
Vertical board racks
Lined slots that hold paddleboards and surfboards on edge, so several boards take up the floor space of one.
Paddle and accessory storage
Slots and hooks for paddles, life jackets and leashes, added to a rack or mounted on their own.
Ceiling hoists and pulley lifts, racks on docks, floats or vehicles, aluminum or stainless steel racks, and published load ratings are not part of this offer.
Three common layouts:
Sizing and Mounting
Every rack is sized from what it holds. We do not publish load ratings; arms, frames and fixings are chosen for the boats and gear you list, so the list matters more than anything else in the quote.
Materials and Finishes
Rinse and drain boats and boards before they go on the rack, and touch up chips in the finish.
Wet Gear Drying Racks: Quoted Per Project
Clubs, schools and rental operators often want somewhere to hang wet suits, life jackets, jackets, gloves and boots after use. A passive drying rack holds gear apart so air can reach it: a hanging rail with spaced hooks or hangers, open mesh shelves for helmets and shoes, and pegs for boots and gloves. Hooks and shelves are spaced from the gear you list and how many people use the room.
This is not a standard offer. A rack that holds wet gear is in regular contact with water, and with salt where gear has been used in the sea, even in an indoor room. We quote one only after a coating system has been specified and confirmed for that contact. Being indoors does not remove the moisture.
What a passive rack does not do
It has no heater, fan or dehumidifier, and we do not quote or promise drying times. How quickly gear dries depends on the room’s air, temperature and ventilation, which the rack does not control.
Wet gear drips and adds moisture to the room. The floor under the rack, the walls around it and anything stored nearby need to tolerate that, and floor finish, drainage and ventilation are the owner’s to decide. The rack does not include drip trays, drains or ventilation.
Who Does What
Responsibilities that affect the quote
TrussMetal: the rack, its fixings and finish, sized from your list. The quote states what is made by partners, what is bought in and what is excluded. Fitting on site can be quoted; see installation.
Owner, strata or club: what is stored and how much it weighs, approval to fix into walls and floors, the floor, drainage and ventilation of the room, and rules for how the room is used.
Building representative or engineer: scanning or confirming walls and slabs where services, membranes, post-tensioning or structure are in question.
Related Work
Bicycles have their own layouts and hardware on bike rooms and bike parking. Lockable storage rooms and tenant lockers are on storage cages. Strata councils can read how we handle building work on metalwork for strata and property managers.
Questions
Can you build a rack for my kayaks?
Yes. Send the make and model, length, width and weight of each boat, how many, and the wall or floor where the rack will go. We size the arms, padding and fixings from that list.
Can a rack go outside or in a parkade?
Racks on this page are for indoor, dry locations. Outdoor, coastal and damp parkade racks are quoted only once a finish system for that exposure has been specified and the applicator confirmed.
Can you make a rack for drying wetsuits?
On request. It holds gear open so air can reach it; it does not heat or move air, and we do not promise drying times. It is quoted only after a coating system is confirmed for the water and salt contact it will see.
Can boats be locked to the rack?
Optional tabs can take your own cable lock. They are not a security rating and do not prevent theft.
Can you drill into our parkade slab?
Only with the building’s approval, and only after the location is scanned or confirmed. Where drilling is not approved, a freestanding rack may be possible, but only once its stability, loading and any anchoring are established for that configuration.
Request a Quote
Send the list of what you need to store and photos of the room.
What to include in your message
- Boats and boards: make and model, length, width and weight of each, and how many
- Any storage guidance from the boat or board maker
- Paddles, life jackets and other gear, and whether any of it will be hung wet (and used in salt water)
- Room layout: size, ceiling height, doors and aisles, or a sketch
- Wall or floor: what it is made of, and whether drilling is approved
- Whether you need fitting on site, and your timing
In “What do you need?”, choose Other Custom Metalwork, or Storage Cages if the racks are part of a storage room project.
Prefer to talk it through? Call (778) 805-5333, Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 5:00.