Care and transport

Clean, Drain, Dry After Paddling: Stopping Invasive Species

by Akayak Editors

Clean your kayak and gear, remove retained water before leaving the launch or landing spot, and dry everything before another waterbody. Do this after every outing. If drying is incomplete, check with the destination agency about decontamination—removing or killing invasive organisms—and permission to launch.12

This page summarizes published safety guidance. It is not a substitute for instruction, and conditions on your water may differ. Check the current rules for the state and water you paddle.

Key Takeaways

  • Remove plants, animals and mud before leaving the access.1
  • Drain your boat, compartments and wet equipment before transport.3
  • Follow the destination’s drying and decontamination requirements.2
  • Check kayak inspection and permit requirements before traveling.4

Clean the kayak and everything that got wet

Inspect and remove visible material before leaving, even when your gear looks clean. Do not carry potential hitchhikers home. Use a designated cleaning station when available; otherwise, clean out of the water, away from storm drains and other waters. In New York, moving an uncleaned or undrained boat from a DEC launch to a location on land, such as a cleaning facility, requires a self-certified Watercraft Transport Permit.5 Put removed material in a trash can or invasive-species disposal station. Do not wash it into the water.367

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission’s kayak checklist identifies these places:3

  • Hull: the boat’s outer body.
  • Cockpit: the opening where you sit in a sit-in kayak.
  • Deck hatch: the cover over a storage opening.
  • Deck cords: stretchy shock cord and other rigging that secure gear on top.
  • Handles and paddle.

Also inspect rudders and fins—the steering and stabilizing parts at the back and bottom—plus footwells, drain plugs and compartments. Remove visible plants, animals and mud with a brush or sponge. The Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force recommends scrubbing the hull with a stiff brush.62

Check ropes, anchors and their lines, floats, nets, footwear, clothing, life jackets, leashes and storage bags. If fishing, include your vest, rod, reel, line, hooks, lures and tackle boxes. Include wet straps in this check.236 When portaging between waterbodies, the Task Force recommends wearing quick-dry footwear or bringing a second pair.2

If using a trailer, inspect its hitch, rollers, lights and axle—the shaft supporting its wheels.3

New York’s agency advises feeling the hull for texture changes: a sandpaper-like surface could indicate attached invasive mussels. For equipment with attached organisms, the Task Force strongly recommends professional decontamination; local, state or tribal rules may require it.72

Drain before leaving

Drain every water-holding area, including the bilge—the low interior area where water collects. Open fitted kayak drain plugs. Empty sponges, bailers used to scoop water, footwear and other equipment that retains water, including life jackets. If fitted, drain motor systems and live wells—tanks used to hold fish.123

For a hard-shell kayak, the National Park Service recommends moving to a dry location and tilting, lifting or placing it on its side to drain. For inflatables, drain between layers and around floors that do not drain automatically. Sponge or towel out remaining water.6

Draining matters because nearly invisible zebra mussel larvae can travel in retained water. The Task Force reports young mussels surviving in standing water for 24 days at 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius), 8.5 days at 59 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius), or 4.5 days at 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius). These are survival observations, not drying instructions.12

Drying times depend on the guidance

Agency recommendations have different conditions and purposes:

Agency or protocolPublished drying guidance
U.S. Fish & Wildlife ServiceFor aquatic invasive-species prevention, dry everything for at least five days or towel-wipe before reuse.1
Aquatic Nuisance Species Task ForceFor nonmotorized craft moving between waters, dry at least five days to kill small, unseen species, or towel-wipe before reuse; local or state laws take precedence.2
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat CommissionFor general prevention, dry to the touch, then another 48 hours. Its mudsnail-specific advice says dry gear completely for at least five days.3
New York Department of Environmental ConservationFor invasive-species and fish-disease prevention, recommends at least five to seven days in warm, dry conditions.7
Bureau of Reclamation/100th Meridian historical protocolAn older mussel-prevention program’s guidance gives a quarantine—a holding period for gear from infested water—of five to 30 days depending on location and season. The checked sources do not establish that this protocol currently applies.89

These recommendations are not interchangeable statutory waiting periods. The Task Force expressly distinguishes voluntary guidance from decontamination and quarantine laws. A towel wipe or rinse does not provide legal clearance to launch; follow the destination’s requirements.2

Life jackets and other dense materials hold moisture longer. Hidden compartments with limited sun or airflow need additional drying time. Keep inflatables inflated until completely dry, and completely dry watercraft before storage.3762

The historical 100th Meridian material includes boats, trailers, anchors and lines. Reclamation’s plan calls for cleaning, brushing or hot-water spraying, then complete drying. That older plan directs treatment at the infested source and calls for professional decontamination or launch prohibition when drying is insufficient; check the destination’s current requirements rather than treating this plan as current law.98

Hot water: keep temperature, method and purpose together

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service recommends water at least 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) for invasive-species removal or killing. It recommends high-pressure rinsing for hulls and equipment, but low-pressure hot water for interior compartments. If a motor is fitted, its guidance specifies a two-minute hot-water flush at that temperature, or following the owner’s manual.1

Check manufacturer temperature limits and avoid skin contact; the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force warns that water above 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) can cause irritation or burns. If hot water is unavailable or could damage equipment, the Service recommends tap-water rinsing followed by complete drying.12

Other treatments have specific conditions:

  • New York specifies 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) water or steam to kill attached mussels, followed by brushing or pressure washing. For small equipment that cannot dry before reuse, its invasive-species and fish-disease guidance specifies immersion at at least that temperature for 30 seconds.7
  • Pennsylvania recommends 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) cleaning water generally. For mudsnails, it specifies a soak above 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) for at least five minutes, or freezing for at least six hours. Its general guidance says six-hour freezing kills most aquatic invasive species.3
  • For equipment submerged longer than a day, the Task Force recommends exterior treatment at 2,500 pounds per square inch (17.2 megapascals) and 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) for ten seconds, subject to manufacturer compatibility; interiors receive hot-water rinsing. Reclamation’s historical professional protocol uses at least that temperature on all surfaces and components.28

Pennsylvania recommends hot-water car washes, but the Task Force warns they rarely exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius). Water also cools between heater and nozzle.32

The Service discourages chemical disinfectants such as bleach: they can damage equipment, harm people and the environment, and may be ineffective against many aquatic invasive species. The Task Force limits promoting chemical treatment to situations where its routine is impractical or only partly possible.12

New York requires the clean-and-drain steps before kayaks launch into public waters. A kayak without a motor needs no state boat registration, and the separate Adirondack-area invasive-species certification applies to motorized craft.710 Local requirements vary: New York City water-supply reservoirs have access-permit, boat-tag and steam-cleaning requirements. Lake George exempts cartop kayaks from its inspection program but requires inspection of all trailered boats. The checked sources do not establish a statewide exemption from kayak permits or inspections.511

In Pennsylvania, a kayak needs boat registration or an accepted launch permit from PFBC (the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission) or DCNR (the Pennsylvania state parks agency) at PFBC lakes and access areas and State Parks and Forests access areas. This is a facility-access requirement. No routine mandatory agency invasive-species inspection for a recreational kayak was found in the published PFBC sources checked; confirm local requirements.123

Before traveling, check the destination state wildlife or boating agency and the water manager. Confirm kayak coverage, inspections, permits, decontamination, launch eligibility and station hours. New York provides a steward-location map; stewards ask about your previous waterbody and may direct you to decontamination.74

Yellowstone requires kayaks to pass inspection and receive a permit. After-hours arrivals must wait; failed inspections mean denied launch. Leaving the park triggers reinspection before returning to park waters. Nonmotorized boats are exempt from its 30-day drying requirement, but previously mussel-fouled boats remain banned regardless of cleaning or drying. Other bans include watercraft with evidence of dead or live quagga or zebra mussels, footwear with felt soles, and watercraft equipped with a ballast tank—a compartment that holds water to add weight—or similar areas that cannot be visually inspected.4

If fishing, trash unused bait and fish parts; drain bait water on dry land above the high-water line. Retained live bait needs spring water or tap water with chlorine removed. Never transfer live organisms between waters. Report suspected invasive sightings, and contact the natural-resource agency before collecting specimens.172

Where next

Check the agency sources above and your destination water manager’s current inspection and permit requirements before your trip. For compatible maintenance methods, read kayak cleaners and protectants and kayak care by material. Find related guides in care and transport.

Footnotes

  1. https://www.fws.gov/story/clean-drain-dry ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9

  2. https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Voluntary-Guidelines-Preventing-Spread-ANS-Recreational.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16

  3. https://www.pa.gov/agencies/fishandboat/conservation/species-management/aquatic-invasive-species/clean-your-gear ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11

  4. https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/boating.htm ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. https://dec.ny.gov/regulatory/permits-licenses/sporting-and-use ↩ ↩2

  6. https://www.nps.gov/dino/learn/nature/aquatic-invasive-species.htm ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  7. https://dec.ny.gov/nature/animals-fish-plants/invasive-species/aquatic/prevent-spread-of-aquatic-invasive-species/clean-drain-dry ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  8. https://www.usbr.gov/uc/envdocs/rp/UCDreissenidRapidResponsePlanv.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2024-04/901.pdf ↩ ↩2

  10. https://parks.ny.gov/activities/boating/hin-registrations ↩

  11. https://lgpc.ny.gov/boat-inspection-faqs-forms ↩

  12. https://www.pa.gov/agencies/fishandboat/boating/paddlesports/launch-permit-vs-boat-reg ↩