Why a six foot inflatable snowman fails, and how to keep one up
A tall inflatable is a sail on a fan, and most winter failures come from the ground, the cord and the closet. Here is what gives out first and the simpler habit that prevents it.
The wind finds the one loose tether
A six foot figure made of thin coated polyester catches wind the way a sail does, and it is held down only by whatever its tabs are tied to. The usual mistake is staking two or three of the loops and calling it done. The load then concentrates on those few points, the stitching around them tears, and the figure folds over at the first gust.
Use every tether point the maker provides. Drive each stake at a slant, leaning away from the figure, so the pull works against the soil instead of straight up out of it. After a rain the ground gives way easily, so press on each stake again the next morning. If the lawn is soft, a longer stake or a heavy object on the line does more than an extra loop of string.
Moisture and the cord
The fan inside never stops, which means it draws in whatever air is outside, including damp night air. That moisture condenses on the inside of the fabric and drains toward the fan housing. A figure that sags every morning is often a figure that is wet inside, not a figure with a leak.
The cord is the other weak point. Indoor cords crack in cold, and any connection lying on the grass sits in dew. Choose a cord marked for outdoor use, keep the plug connection lifted off the ground, and let the cord dip below the joint before it rises to it, so water runs off the low point instead of into the plug. A coiled cord left on a shelf, as in the picture, is the right idea: loose loops, hung up, never kinked into a tight bundle that stiffens in cold.
Putting it away damp
Most inflatables do not die in December. They die in a January closet. Folded while damp, the coating sticks to itself, and when it is pulled apart it peels. Mildew follows, and the creases crack the next time the fabric flexes.
Run the fan for an hour on a dry afternoon with the opening unsealed, then fold the figure loosely along the old creases and store it in a bin with a lid, away from heat. Wrap the cord apart from the fabric. Ten dry minutes in the closet will do more for next year than any repair kit.
The figure we point to elsewhere, the snowman for the first dark evening of December, lives by exactly these rules.