I am about to build my first multi level rack for my boards for the van. I am seeking advice from those who have learned from their builds please I will be trying a PVC pipe build to hopefully have an easily removable rack. as the topic says, I am seeking the best gap to leave between levels to maximise the number of racks but make it easy to use. I have a slalom, freerace, fsw, foil and wind wing foil board ranging from 85 cm to 60 cm width. All good advice of things to do or avoid is appreciated.

The thickness of your board plus height of foot straps, between 150 and 200 depending on the board

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John340 said..
The thickness of your board plus height of foot straps, between 150 and 200 depending on the board

Plus thickness of the padding over the pvc tubing.

Thanks guys

I have allowed a bit of space to slide a boom on top of boards when I want. I'll take a measure of the rack heights tonight.

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Tony Wills said..
I have allowed a bit of space to slide a boom on top of boards when I want. I'll take a measure of the rack heights tonight.

Thanks Tony

I will hold off cutting anything!!

PVC piping is the go ,, easy to put in and take out :) fits 8 boards no worries. Add a couple of brackets around the pipe into side of van to stop any wobbles. Rock solid.

Go pool noodles that are hollow. $9 for 3 vs $$$$

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kato said..
Go pool noodles that are hollow. $9 for 3 vs $$$$

Pool noodles up to 25 mm or they will split.
or split and gaffa tape an the world is your oyster.

The internal distance between my crossbars is 250mm.

250 Centers works best when pulling boards through the racks. The foot straps pass easier

You can tell if you have water in your board by how much they bend.

No two board types, are the same thickness... you gain racking space if the rack-separations is different for each board type.

How does PVC pipe go cost-wise. Is it a cheap solution?
What diameter pipe are you using?

Mathew said: No two board types, are the same thickness... you gain racking space if the rack-separations is different for each board type.

I use a standard rack spacing of 250mm. Of the 6 boards I have, only one was being used 6 years ago when I built the racks. The boards are a mix of Fanatic FSW, JP FSW, Starboard slalom, JP slalom and Starboard foil. The 250mm spacing has easily accommodated all of the different types of board.

Hope this helps.

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Shifu said..
How does PVC pipe go cost-wise. Is it a cheap solution?
What diameter pipe are you using?

32mm pressure pipe. Very cheap if you stick to the basic stuff that Bunnings stores. Have driven Nowra NSW (north) to Burrum Heads & return and (south west) Beachport SA & return. Only very minor issues that were easily fixed for about $5.

If I was to do it from scratch again, I would give these guys a go noting their slightly cleaner looking (and more expensive) joiners:

Klever Cages: PVC connectors to make anythingwww.klevercages.com.au

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WindmanV said..
Mathew said: No two board types, are the same thickness... you gain racking space if the rack-separations is different for each board type.

I use a standard rack spacing of 250mm. Of the 6 boards I have, only one was being used 6 years ago when I built the racks. The boards are a mix of Fanatic FSW, JP FSW, Starboard slalom, JP slalom and Starboard foil. The 250mm spacing has easily accommodated all of the different types of board.

Hope this helps.

Lets use the polypipe example... it isn't hard to adjust the lengths of a $1 piece of vertical tube, say once per 3 years.... [ the pic shows the pipes are screwed, not glued ]. If the racking is bolted to the vehicle, then adjustable spacing is possible too (though obviously more complicated to setup initially).

Since safety is important, the biggest/heaviest goes at the bottom -> my van rack-spacing (not adjustable): 260 for SUPs and Formula, 200, 170, 170