Drysuit Seams - Yeah, I know

[qwertz]

Hi Rob,

unfortunately - too late. I spent hours and hours to get rid of the old glue. See the attached pictures....

After cleaning everything I applied the first layer of glue and, of course, used quite a bit of it.

Instead of applying the patches straight away, I will apply a second layer of glue inf a few hours and will apply them patches tomorrow instead.

Since the patches come with their own layer of glue which is heat activated, I consider it a better option to allow the glue to cure and afterwards apply the patch as protection of the glued layer. This of course, again, is based on nothing but my incompetence. ;D

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Hi Rob,

unfortunately - too late. I spent hours and hours to get rid of the old glue. See the attached pictures....

After cleaning everything I applied the first layer of glue and, of course, used quite a bit of it.

Instead of applying the patches straight away, I will apply a second layer of glue inf a few hours and will apply them patches tomorrow instead.

Since the patches come with their own layer of glue which is heat activated, I consider it a better option to allow the glue to cure and afterwards apply the patch as protection of the glued layer. This of course, again, is based on nothing but my incompetence. ;D

The way that I was taught (via youtube!)is prep, prep, prep.. then layer the glue. DRiS has a pretty good synopsis on their site. Depending on the material it requires different layers. My neoprene suit needed 5 layers with 15 minutes in between each layer where as the PU rings needed just 2.

No matter what, I think with more experience you'll get better at gluing. And if you make a mistake, heat it up and pull it apart and start over, not a big deal.

Knowing how to glue (to me) is like learning how to change a flat tire on a car. It's bound to happen, might as well be self sufficient.

 

[qwertz]

Ok, the project is done.

What did I do?
In short: I got rid of all old patches / Seam Tapes and glue. I used acetone and a heat gun to do so - it took ages.
After cleaning I applied 3 layers of glue, over 18h in total.
After that I attached some new seam tape.

I HOPE the glue makes the seam waterproof, while the seam tape is there to protect the glue only.

Of the 4 seeable leaks in the suit, I tackled the 2 biggest ones. In case I managed to do some kind of good job, I will do the other 2 aswell - after which, I hope, I am able to reseal the seams of a drysuit.

Pics attached for reference.

 

[TheRealScubaSteve]

What type of glue did you end up using?

 

[qwertz]

This Stuff -> https://www.google.com/search?q=gearaid+seamgrip+wp
As stated earlier, for no particular reason. Probably because of the smell - the glue smells like the drysuit after being repaired by a lds.
I cannot say anything about its abilities, since I did not test the suit yet. I will do so over the weekend and keep you updated.
The only thing I can state for sure is that it is quite flexible and seems to not stiffen the suit. I used around 12g of it, which is probably waaaay too much.

 

[TheRealScubaSteve]

Looks similar to AquaSeal in Google images. I keep my first cheap USIA drysuit around to practice on - leaks, seals, rings, etc. I'm sure I used way too much repairing that as well, but it's dry. Hopefully yours is too!

 

[Jcp2]

This Stuff -> gearaid seamgrip wp - Google Suche
As stated earlier, for no particular reason. Probably because of the smell - the glue smells like the drysuit after being repaired by a lds.
I cannot say anything about its abilities, since I did not test the suit yet. I will do so over the weekend and keep you updated.
The only thing I can state for sure is that it is quite flexible and seems to not stiffen the suit. I used around 12g of it, which is probably waaaay too much.

Any follow up report on how the repairs went? I am considering doing the same to one of my suits before giving up on it and salvaging the hardware.

 

[qwertz]

Yes, most certainly.

Those repairs are dry. No leakage so far.
A few notes:
- I cannot recommend the tape. Instead, order this. (Be aware, it comes without glue!)
- Order glue mixing kits'n'stuff there aswell, after hours of research seaskin is the cheapest place online - even WITH import duties.
- The way I did do it, the glue is what keeps everything dry. Due to huge, big af seams, I would go exactly the same way. For other repairs like holes not around the seams, I would recommend a 2-component glue. I ordered this and was immensely impressed by its strength. Reduce on the glue quite a bit, so the actual patch is what seals.
- Do NOT use the "Aquasure stuff" with self-adhesive tape.
- Do NOT use self-adhesive tape anywhere really, I personally cannot recommend it.
- Make sure the area is dry and clean. Really take your time.
- Financially, I made kind of a deal - considering the amount of time I spent with it, this job was a complete failure. Nevertheless, will do it again.

 

[Jasper]

Hi All,
Great info here and I'm also planning to tackle a handful of leaks in my DUI CF200 drysuit. I'm inclined to use E6000 because I like its greater flexibility but DUI specifies Aquaseal for leak sealing. And a couple of the leaks are at seams with the DUI factory urethane seam sealant.

My questions are:
Anyone have positive experience with E6000 on the DUI CF200 material?
Am I better off using Aquaseal because it may adhere better to the existing Aquaseal seam?

Thanks!

 

[Jeff_O]

Hi All,
Great info here and I'm also planning to tackle a handful of leaks in my DUI CF200 drysuit. I'm inclined to use E6000 because I like its greater flexibility but DUI specifies Aquaseal for leak sealing. And a couple of the leaks are at seams with the DUI factory urethane seam sealant.

My questions are:
Anyone have positive experience with E6000 on the DUI CF200 material?
Am I better off using Aquaseal because it may adhere better to the existing Aquaseal seam?

Thanks!

I can say Aquaseal FD with cure accelerator kit worked on my old CF200. The cure accelerator I used not to accelerate drying. I did not need it to be dried quickly. I did not add it to the glue, only to clean the suit area to be patched after roughing up with sand paper. I only used this and no fabric or tape patch over the glue. The glue worked. I gave about 2 inch radius at leak area. Note some leaks on old material leak at a few spots within a few inches of one another. I make just one patch for both combined. Unfortunately more leaks developed after this repair in other areas. 20 year plus old suit was not worth repairing anymore. New replacement suit custom order fit the bill. The old suit is for parts now. If a suit is old like mine was when doing repairs and you see multiple leaks it may indicate it's not worth repairing. What I mean is that the leak test I used was seal suit up. I blocked the neck seal and one wrist. The other wrist seal I used the exhaust of vacuum cleaner to puff the suit up with zipper closed. Soapy water solution on the outside of the suit showed bubbles that would be in an area, but not from just a pinpoint. That should have been a clue that the material was just going to have more and more leaks develop very soon, possibly from just using the suit normally without puncturing it in anyway. It was a good practice for any non-warranty covered work needed on my new suit as a consolation.