Hi everyone,
This is my first post here so I hope I do not violate any rules.

Since my Warmtex knee pads did not last long enough to justify their price, I am looking for alternatives.
I do like the idea of Velcro straps and material that does not absorb water is also an advantage.

Thanks,
Yuval

Hi Yuval, welcome to the forum!

My personal advice is to stick with the warmtex knee pads. I'm yet to see any alternative that offers the same life span/price. They are expensive, but everything else seems to fall apart much quicker...

I get them without velcro, which I think are a bit cheaper, but not sure if this has any effect on the lifespan. They normally wear out on the knee,not the strap...

The other thing you can do to improve comfort is get Warmbac to sew kneepads into your undersuit. It's not much extra compared to the normal (expensive) price and makes a lot of difference 

Other than that, I am looking at a product at work, that is used for flooring in water parks. I reckon it'd make great kneepads and would probably last very well, only thing is it's not very flexible and costs ?80/m2

My previous pair lasted more than two years so it's definitely worth the money.
But the current pair began to fall apart after three months of not so frequent use.
I do not always use undersuit so sewing the knee pads to it is only partial solution.

PeteHall said:

I get them without velcro, which I think are a bit cheaper, but not sure if this has any effect on the lifespan. They normally wear out on the knee,not the strap...

Click to expand...

Ditto.  The newer ones seem to be softer and wear out faster.  The original yellow Warmbac ones were stiffer and failed at the straps first - in fact I still have some that are usable but have been through several pairs of the pink, blue* and now black coated ones.  * These have softened to the point that they stick together or to other bits of my caving gear when left in storage.

Miners' kneepads were my favourite for long crawls until I started cave diving and then they became an entanglement hazard.

BTW my problem is not with the Warmtex pad which is still in very good condition.
The thread stitching the binding around the pad has worn through.

They always go there for me too.

if you're only looking at soft kneepads, having a slightly stretchy front may help the stitching last longer. e.g. warmbac kevlar

http://inglesport.com/products/warmbac-kevlar-knee-pads

if you're considering hard knee pads, recommend you look at nailers. these are chunky and have lots of protrusions but are more comfy. unfortunatley the staps do give way after a few years

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nailers-Foam-Gripping-Knee-Pad/dp/B000CP2LP0

Thanks marysboy,
I do look for soft kneepads but tring to avoid warmbac.
Has anyone tried landjoff knee pads?
http://landjoff.com/product/86/knee-pads.html

I gave up on Warmbac kneepads several years ago as they kept falling apart at the straps long before wearing through. I still use the elbow pads, but on the latest pair (black) the stitching began to fall apart on the third trip - not good. They're already in a very fragile state, and won't last much longer. I use Nailers kneepads too, but I wish I could get a 'few years' use out of them - maximum of one year for me before the top strap retainer rips out and then they're useless and have to be thrown, despite the rest of the kneepad being fine. Maybe I just go caving too much...?

I've got the Landjoff ones and they are a pocket which you can stick what you like, it comes with aabout 5mm of packing foam which is pretty poor.  I use some inserts I got from aldi a bit like these

The Landjoff straps are sewn with a rubber strips to make them grippy but they still can float around your legs.  I've had the same pair for about 4 years, though I avoid caves with crawling.  I think they are too short so either the top of knee gets sore or the knee cap/shin. 
Best knee pads I've ever had were the Beaver ones Bernies sold with the super hard coating, and better when I glued a strip of neoprene along the top to stop the grit getting in.
I've never tried Warmbac ones.

I've used for years now the Beaver velcro knee pads - find them really easy to adjust and use.

http://www.caving-supplies.co.uk/cgi-bin/psProdDet.cgi/18024

or even better value

http://www.deepbluedive.com/beaver-diving-knee-pads.html

The Beaver pads looks interesting do you use them over or under the oversuit?

Always over, protects your suit knee area as well.