Different types of fishing lines are manufactured differently, causing some fishing lines to sink and others to float. The fishing line’s buoyancy influences the line’s sensitivity and the bait’s action and presentation, affecting your fishing performance.
Understanding which fishing line floats or sinks in the water will increase your chances of landing a fish.
So, what fishing line floats? Of the three most popular types of fishing lines, only braided fishing line floats. Braided fishing line is made from various artificial materials that don’t absorb water, like Dacron, Spectra, or micro-Dyneema. A braided line has a special coating that repels water and increases its buoyancy.
Read on to learn why some wishing lines sink while others float. This article will also tell what types of fishing lines sink and what lines float.
Why Does Some Fishing Line Float or Sink?
To understand why some fishing lines sink while others float, you need to learn what buoyancy is. Buoyancy determines whether a fishing line will sink or float.
Buoyancy is an upward force exerted on a fishing line or any other object that’s partially or fully immersed in the water. A fishing line will float when the upward force is greater than its weight. The line will sink when the line’s weight is greater than the upward force.
Higher buoyancy increases the line’s ability to float. But the lower the buoyancy, the more likely a line will sink.
The buoyancy of a fishing line depends on the line’s and water’s density. A fishing line with a higher density than water will sink, but a fishing line with a lower density than water will float.
The water’s density varies depending on its salt content. Saltwater has a higher density than freshwater, and objects tend to float better in saltwater than in freshwater.
What Fishing Line Floats?
Of the three most commonly used types of fishing lines, the braided line is the only one that floats. This is an important consideration, especially if you’re targeting bass.
A braided fishing line is made from fibers of artificial materials like micro-Dyneema, Dacron, and Spectra. None of these materials absorb water.
A braided fishing line is made by braiding smaller strands of fibers. When these fibers are woven together, they create tiny air pockets, allowing the braided line to float in the water.
During the manufacturing process, the braided fishing line is covered with a special coating that repels water and preserves these tiny air pockets. As the braided fishing line ages, this protective coating slowly wears off, decreasing the line’s buoyancy.
Many experienced anglers use the braided line’s buoyancy to determine whether they need to replace that line or if they can use it for a few more fishing trips. Replace your braided fishing line as soon as you notice it’s beginning to sink.
A fishing line that floats allows skilled anglers to present their lure just like largemouth bass like it. So, bass fishermen prefer using braided fishing lines.
What Fishing Line Sinks?
There’s much misinformation regarding the floating ability of fluorocarbon and monofilament fishing lines. Despite common beliefs, monofilament fishing line sinks in the water, as well as fluorocarbon fishing line.
Monofilament is the most popular type of fishing line. Mono is made from a single fiber of plastic and is produced in a range of diameters that have different tensile strengths.
Monofilament fishing line is also produced in different colors, such as white, clear, blue, green, red, and fluorescent. This makes mono suitable for fishing in various conditions.
The Monofilament line has a 15% heavier average density than freshwater and a 12% higher density than salt water. Because the fishing line’s density is higher than water, the monofilament line will sink in freshwater and saltwater.
How fast will a monofilament fishing line sink depends on the thickness of the line? A thicker monofilament line will sink more quickly than a thinner monofilament fishing line.
Now that you know that a monofilament fishing line sinks, you’re probably wondering does a fluorocarbon line sinks or floats.
The fluorocarbon fishing line is made of fluoropolymer PVDF and has a similar reflective index as water, which makes it less visible to fish. Fluorocarbon is extruded in a single strand, similar to nylon monofilament.
Fluorocarbon molecules are tightly packed, creating a denser and heavier line that is even less buoyant than monofilament.
The average density of fluorocarbon fishing line is 78% heavier than freshwater and 74% heavier than saltwater. The Fluorocarbon fishing line will sink in both freshwater and saltwater because the line’s density is heavier than water.
Fluorocarbon fishing line sinks approximately 2.5 times faster than monofilament fishing line. This is worth considering if you plan to use fluorocarbon as the main line. But the fluorocarbon line’s sinking rate isn’t as important if you use fluorocarbon as a leader material with a braided line as the main line.
Conclusion
A braided fishing line has a lower density than water, which cause it to float. Among the three most popular types of fishing line, braided line is the only kind that sinks.
Contrary to popular belief, a monofilament fishing line sinks in the water. Mono has a higher density than freshwater and saltwater and will sink every time you cast the line.
Fluorocarbon fishing line is denser than monofilament and sinks even faster than mono. However, this isn’t very important if you use a braided line as a mainline and fluorocarbon as a leader.
Knowing what fishing line floats and what line sinks increases your chances of attracting and catching the type of fish you’re fishing. The braided fishing line’s buoyancy makes it ideal for targeting largemouth bass and increases your odds of attracting a bass with surface lures.