Four habits decide most of a padel racket’s life. Wipe the face after play. Keep it in its cover rather than loose in a bag. Keep it out of heat and damp — a car boot in August is the worst place it can sit. And keep the frame away from the court surround, which ends most rackets that were otherwise fine.
None of it is fussy — about a minute after a match. It is also the difference between a racket that fades within a season and one still playing like itself in its second year.
What Actually Wears Out.
A carbon padel racket is a stiff shell around a soft centre. The face and frame are woven carbon — 3K, 12K or 18K depending on the model. Inside sits a block of EVA foam: Soft in Miami Rose and Monaco Red, Medium in Bel Air Green and Soho Blue, Hard in Tribeca Laser Black.
The carbon is the part you can see, and it is rarely the part that goes first. The foam is. Every ball compresses it slightly, and across thousands of impacts it stops springing back the way it did. The racket still looks new. It plays flat. Players describe a sweet spot that has shrunk, or a sound off the face gone from a sharp report to something closer to a thud.
Damp accelerates it, invisibly. Foam that has taken on moisture loses its cushioning behind a surface that still looks immaculate — a racket left in a wet bag over a weekend is worse off than one that is merely dusty.
Time is the wrong unit; hours are the right one. Played once a week without violence, a racket holds its character for eighteen months to two years. Played four times a week and struck hard, considerably less.
After Play.
Wipe the face with a soft cloth, slightly damp with lukewarm water, and dry it. That is the whole procedure. Court dust settles in the holes and across the honeycomb of the surface, and left there it works against the finish. Leave solvents and household cleaners alone — they attack the lacquer, and on a glossy finish the damage shows at once. Never hot water, and never the racket under a tap.
Matte and glossy ask for the same cloth for opposite reasons: gloss shows fingerprints and fine scratches, matte hides marks but holds dust in its texture. Monaco Red, Miami Rose and Tribeca Laser Black are each made in both.
Where It Lives.
Between matches the racket belongs in its cover. Not for ceremony — a cover keeps the frame edge away from keys, bottles and shoes, where most of the damage on a well-treated racket comes from.
Heat and damp are the two conditions that do structural harm, and a car is reliably both. A boot in summer sun reaches temperatures that soften adhesives and stress the bond between carbon skin and foam. Cold does its own version of the same. A cupboard indoors, away from radiators and the bathroom, is all that is asked.
Our warranty page is direct about this: a racket stored in heat or damp falls outside it.
The Edge, and the Grip.
Most rackets that break do not break from playing. They break against the glass or the mesh on a low ball, or against the ground after a lost point. A hairline crack along the frame edge does not stay hairline. It travels.
A transparent protector strip along the head takes those scrapes instead of the carbon. It costs little, and it belongs on the racket before the first match rather than after the first mark. Replace it once it wears through, before grit collects between the adhesive and the frame.
The grip is the one part designed to be replaced. An overgrip loses its tack long before it looks used, and the tell is in your hand: when you find yourself squeezing harder to hold on, it is finished.
If your racket is engraved, nothing changes. The mark is cut into the surface by laser rather than laid on top, so it does not lift or fade. Details sit on the personalisation page.
The Short Version.
| Habit | How often | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Wipe the face, slightly damp cloth | After each session | Court dust works against the finish |
| Return it to its cover | Every time | Protects the frame edge in transit |
| Store indoors, away from heat and damp | Always | Both reach the foam core |
| Check the protector strip | Monthly | Worn strips trap grit against the carbon |
| Replace the overgrip | When it loses tack | Returns feel and control to the hand |
What the Warranty Covers.
Every Eterna racket carries a two-year warranty against manufacturing defects — a flaw in materials or making that was present before the racket reached you. Where one appears, we repair or replace it.
What it does not cover is stated just as plainly. Ordinary wear from play sits outside it, as does damage from misuse, neglect or accident. A racket struck against the court surround, or stored in heat or damp, is not a warranty case.
We would rather say that in the open than leave it in small print. The habits above are not there to protect a policy; they are the reason a racket reaches its second year still playing like itself. Full terms sit on the warranty page, the shorter answers in the FAQ. What the weave changes, we set out in 3K, 12K, 18K Carbon.
Questions, Answered.
How do you clean a padel racket?
With a soft cloth, slightly damp with lukewarm water, wiped over the face and frame after play and then dried. Avoid solvents, household cleaners and hot water, all of which attack the lacquer. Never run the racket under a tap.
How long does a carbon padel racket last?
Measure it in hours played rather than months owned. Once a week at moderate intensity, a racket generally holds its character for eighteen months to two years. Four times a week and struck hard, considerably less. The carbon shell usually outlives the foam core inside it.
How do I know when my racket is worn out?
The sweet spot feels smaller, the ball leaves the face slower for the same swing, and the sound turns from a sharp report to a dull thud. Look also for cracks running between the holes or along the frame edge. That is structural, and the racket should be retired.
Does a protector strip really help?
For the frame edge, yes. It takes the scrapes from the court surround and the ground that would otherwise reach the carbon. It will not prevent a structural crack from a hard impact, and it is no substitute for keeping the frame away from the glass.
Can an engraved racket be cared for normally?
Yes. The engraving is cut into the surface by laser rather than laid on top, so it does not lift or fade and needs no particular treatment. The two-year warranty is unaffected.