how to patch a tiny hole in a BCD?

[Hank49]

What method is best to patch little pinholes? There is no damage to the canvas material outside but there are about 4 little leaks. Before I go trying to dump a bottle of tire patch or something stupid......any suggestions? Thanks

 

[Humuhumunukunukuapua'a]

I hear good things about Aquaseal in that application...

 

[H2Andy]

i'd second Aquaseal

 

[redacted]

Aquaseal seems do do a good job on a pinhole. Clean it up good, rough up the fabric a little, and rug in about a small amount of AS into & around the hole. Make sure you don't glue more than you want - a little air in the bladder will keep the sides seperated. But how do you get 4 holes? As long as it's not just old (as in orange) material, it should work.

 

[scubaclimber]

I had my old BC lying in a pile of gear I was packing when our cat jumped onto it, I found out later that day he put a tiny hole into it. I used aquaseal and never had another problem with it.

 

[Hank49]

Aquaseal seems do do a good job on a pinhole. Clean it up good, rough up the fabric a little, and rug in about a small amount of AS into & around the hole. Make sure you don't glue more than you want - a little air in the bladder will keep the sides seperated. But how do you get 4 holes? As long as it's not just old (as in orange) material, it should work.

So lemme get this straight.....inflate, submerge and pin (no pun) point holes and mark with crayon or something. Let bcd dry thoroughly. Rough up material with.....coarse sandpaper? or....?. Apply Aquaseal (assuming I can get it in Belize) while deflated. I think even I can handle that. ?

Regarding how I got the holes....I think they were there all along. I never noticed it until I had it partially inflated and submerged it while washing. Then I saw little bubbles. I mean small. Like too small to have made the hole with a sewing needle. I think the method of applying the liner material inside is faulty. But I'll patch these and see if any new ones develop. I'm 99% sure I didn't puncture it. It's only been used about 30 times and I've been extremely careful because I was warned that this brand does leak easily.

 

[peterbj7]

A lot depends on why the holes are there. If they've been put there by an external agent such as a cat, and so long as there isn't a separate air bag inside the BC, then Aquaseal will work well. Use a pin to work it into the back of the hole, and be very sparing with it on the outside. If the holes have just developed for no obvious reason it could be that the material is becoming porous, in which case nothing is likely to work well for long. And if the BC is one of the designs with an airtight "polythene" bag inside the fabric outer then it's almost certainly not repairable.

 

[redacted]

So lemme get this straight.....inflate, submerge and pin (no pun) point holes and mark with crayon or something. Let bcd dry thoroughly. Rough up material with.....coarse sandpaper? or....?. Apply Aquaseal (assuming I can get it in Belize) while deflated. I think even I can handle that. ?

Regarding how I got the holes....I think they were there all along. I never noticed it until I had it partially inflated and submerged it while washing. Then I saw little bubbles. I mean small. Like too small to have made the hole with a sewing needle. I think the method of applying the liner material inside is faulty. But I'll patch these and see if any new ones develop. I'm 99% sure I didn't puncture it. It's only been used about 30 times and I've been extremely careful because I was warned that this brand does leak easily.

Coarse sandpaper is overkill. I use fine just to break rough up the fibers and givr the patch a little more to adhere to. As a final surface prep, I use toluene (cotol is the name used by the mfgr of aquaseal) to clean the area. If you have access to the inside, a little tape on the inside will keep the AS from going where you don't want it. Otherwise, apply the AS and then add or move around just enough air so than any AS that might have gone thru can't glue the bladder together. It isn't very pretty, but it stops the bubbles.

While you are trying to find AS, I'd bet a well placed piece of duct tape would do the job. But you may have to clean it well with cotol befor you DIR.

 

[Hank49]

I don't have access to the inside but I also don't think much aquaseal will go through the hole as they are really tiny. But after application maybe it's good to partially inflate the bc and hang it so the two inner sides don't touch and stick together. Duct tape? Anyway, the leaks are so small that it doesn't affect the way it dives. I'm just getting persnickety in my old age....Thanks a lot for the tips.

 

[spectrum]

Are you sure this isn't air coming from other material's like padding?

My wife's Seaquest DIVA LX looks like it is leaking until it saturates. It gave me quite a scare the first time I saw it happenieng in the rinse tub. It looks kist klike it could be rom the bladder.

Does it hold air when hanging between dives?

Pete