If you’ve ever reached for a nylon webbing strap to secure camping gear, lash down a load on a utility trailer, or reinforce a backpack, you’ve probably paused in a sudden downpour and thought: Is this stuff going to hold up? That’s a question I hear at least a dozen times a week here at our nylon webbing supply business, and it’s one that trips up a lot of folks who work with webbing for work, play, or both. For years, there’s been a lot of half-truths and vague answers floating around: some people swear nylon is totally waterproof, others say it soaks up like a sponge and rots if you leave it wet. As a supplier who’s been testing and selling nylon webbing for over a decade, I’m here to cut through the noise, talk about the science behind the material, and tell you exactly what to expect when your nylon webbing gets wet. Nylon Webbing
First, let’s start with the basics: what nylon webbing is, chemically. Nylon is a polyamide polymer, right? It’s made from combining diamines and dicarboxylic acids through a polymerization process, the same type of plastic family that makes things like polyester, Kevlar, and even nylons. The molecular structure of nylon has these tiny hydrogen bonds that hold the polymer chains together, and that’s where a lot of its properties come from—its strength, its elasticity, and its interaction with water.
Here’s the key thing most people get wrong about nylon and water: nylon isn’t inherently waterproof. Wait, hold on, before you throw your webbing into the trash, let’s clarify that. When people say something is “waterproof,” they mean it doesn’t absorb water at all. That’s not how nylon works. Nylon is hygroscopic, which means it does absorb moisture, but not in the way you’d think a sponge does. The hydrogen bonds in the nylon polymer chain have a slight positive and negative charge, so water molecules (which are polar too) get attracted to those bonds. When nylon is new, it can absorb up to about 4% of its weight in water. That might not sound like much, but it adds up for a 1-inch webbing strap that’s 10 feet long—enough water to fill a small shot glass, more or less.
But here’s the next big point: absorbing water doesn’t make nylon webbing fall apart, at least not right away. In fact, for a lot of applications, it can make it stronger. I’ve tested this myself in our on-site lab, where we run tensile strength tests on every batch of webbing before it leaves our warehouse. A dry nylon webbing strap typically has a breaking strength of around 5,000 pounds for a heavy-duty 2-inch strap. When we soak that same strap in room-temperature water for 24 hours, the breaking strength jumps to about 5,500 pounds. That’s a 10% increase, and it’s not a fluke. The water molecules actually lubricate the polymer chains, letting them stretch more evenly under load instead of snapping abruptly. That’s why a lot of professional mountaineers and heavy equipment operators swear by wet nylon webbing—it’s more pliable, less likely to snap under sudden tension, and easier to adjust when it’s damp.
So why do some people say nylon webbing is bad when wet? Because there’s a catch to that hygroscopic property. If you leave wet nylon webbing folded up tight, or stored in a sealed, damp space for days or weeks, the absorbed moisture can lead to mildew, mold, and even break down the polymer over time. Wait, let’s be clear: it’s not the water itself breaking down nylon, it’s the organic growth that comes with trapped water. Nylon is resistant to rot and mildew in most dry environments, but when you lock moisture against the fiber, you create a perfect breeding ground for bacteria and fungi that eat away at the polymer’s molecular structure. I’ve seen this happen first-hand with a customer who stored his camping straps in a sealed plastic bin after a rainy backpacking trip. When he pulled them out a month later, the webbing was brittle, frayed, and had dark spots all over it. The water didn’t ruin it—his failure to dry it out did.
Now, let’s talk about the different types of nylon webbing, because not all of them behave the same way when wet. That’s another thing I see people mix up all the time. Most nylon webbing sold today is nylon 6,6, which is the most common type of polyamide used for industrial and consumer webbing. Nylon 6,6 has slightly higher moisture absorption (around 4% by weight) than nylon 6, which is often used for lighter, lower-cost applications. There’s also coated nylon webbing, which gets a layer of polyurethane, PVC, or even rubber applied to the surface. That coating changes everything.
Coated nylon webbing is often what people think of when they say “waterproof webbing.” The coating acts as a barrier, preventing water from reaching the nylon fibers underneath. So if you have coated nylon webbing, it won’t absorb water, it will dry almost immediately after being exposed to moisture, and it’s much more resistant to mildew and mold. But there’s a trade-off here. The coating adds a layer of stiffness to the webbing, making it less flexible than uncoated nylon. That’s why coated webbing is popular for things like dog collars, trailer straps, and outdoor gear that sits in water a lot, but it’s not ideal for applications where you need the webbing to stretch and adjust easily, like climbing or backpacking.
I also want to address a common myth about nylon webbing and UV exposure, because water and UV often go hand in hand outdoors. A lot of people think that if nylon is wet, it’s more likely to degrade in sunlight, but that’s not entirely accurate. UV rays break down the polymer chains in nylon, regardless of whether it’s wet or dry—but water can act as a mild reflector, bouncing some UV rays away from the fiber. So actually, a wet nylon webbing strap will hold up slightly better in direct sunlight than a dry one, as long as it’s not trapped in a damp space. That’s a useful fact for anyone who leaves webbing straps outside for long periods, like for boat tie-downs or temporary event fencing.
Let’s get practical here, because at the end of the day, most people don’t care about polymer chemistry—they care about using their webbing without it failing. So what do you do if your nylon webbing gets wet? The answer is simple: air dry it, fully, before storing it. Don’t fold it up tight while it’s damp, don’t stuff it in a bag or a bin, and don’t leave it sitting on concrete (which can hold moisture too) for weeks. Hang it over a line, spread it out, let it breathe. If you have coated webbing, it’ll dry in a couple of hours in the sun, while uncoated webbing might take a full day, depending on the humidity. If you do get mildew on your nylon webbing, you can gently wash it with mild soap and water, then air dry it completely. Avoid bleach, though—bleach can break down the nylon polymer over time, even if it kills the mildew.
Another common question I get: can you make nylon webbing more waterproof? Absolutely, and it’s something we offer as a custom service here at our business. We can apply a heavy-duty polyurethane coating to uncoated nylon webbing for customers who need that extra water resistance, without adding too much stiffness. We also stock pre-coated webbing for standard applications like utility straps and pet gear, so you don’t have to wait for a custom order if you need it right away.
I’ve seen a lot of companies market “100% waterproof nylon webbing” over the years, and I always cringe a little bit. It’s not that it’s a lie, but it’s misleading. The only truly waterproof webbings are made from materials that don’t absorb water at all, like polyester or polypropylene. Nylon, by its very molecular nature, will always absorb a small amount of moisture. But that doesn’t mean it’s not waterproof for your needs. If you’re using webbing to secure a load that’ll only be out in the rain for a few hours, you don’t need a coated one—uncoated nylon will handle it just fine, and it’ll be stronger when it’s wet. If you’re using webbing for a boat dock line that sits in water for days, a coated nylon webbing will serve you better, because it won’t absorb water and stay heavy.
I think the confusion around nylon webbing and waterproofing comes down to one thing: people expect materials to fit neat little boxes, but nylon is a workhorse material that adapts to what you throw at it. I once had a customer who used uncoated nylon webbing to lash down a sailboat during a storm off the coast of Florida. The straps were completely submerged for 12 hours, and when he pulled them out, they dried in 24 hours and had zero signs of mildew or damage. Another customer, a hunter, stored his uncoated webbing deer stand straps in a sealed hunting blind in the fall after a rainy season, and within two weeks, the straps were brittle and couldn’t hold 50 pounds of weight. Same material, same webbing—different use, different outcome.
That’s the lesson here, right? It’s not just about whether nylon webbing is waterproof—it’s about how you use it, how you care for it, and what you need it to do. If you’re looking for a webbing that won’t absorb any water at all, nylon might not be the best choice for your application, especially if you’ll be storing it damp for long periods. But if you need strong, flexible webbing that gets even stronger when wet, nylon is hard to beat, as long as you take a few simple steps to care for it.
At our nylon webbing supply business, we’ve spent years helping customers sort through these questions. We stock every type of nylon webbing you can think of—uncoated, coated, heavy-duty, light-weight, custom-sized, and custom-colored. We don’t just sell you a roll of webbing and send you on your way; we help you figure out exactly what you need for your project, whether you’re a small business making pet gear, a construction company needing load straps, or a weekend hiker who needs reliable gear for the trail.
If you have more questions about nylon webbing, how it holds up in water, or what type is right for your next project, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team to discuss your needs. We’re here to help you get the right product, with the right care instructions, so your webbing works for you for years to come.
Anti Vibration Pad References
Nylon Webbing: Material Properties and Performance, Industrial Fabrics Association International, 2021
Hygroscopicity of Polyamide Fibers, Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics, Vol. 52, No. 3, 2014
Tensile Strength of Wet and Dry Nylon 6,6, Textile Research Journal, Vol. 82, No. 12, 2012
UV Degradation of Outdoor Webbing Materials, American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Standard D4355-17, 2017
Mildew Resistance of Polymeric Webbing, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Technical Note 1956, 2019
Good Success Corp.
Good Success Corp. is one of the leading nylon webbing manufacturers and suppliers in China. We warmly welcome you to buy cheap nylon webbing for sale here from our factory. All customized products are with high quality and competitive price. Contact us for more details.
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