Seam Sealing

[mttgilbert]

I’m about to start sealing the seams of my Telkwa. Because of my schedule I’m going to have to do this in shorter sessions over a couple days. Any tips on cleanup and reusing the brush? Should I just put it in a ziplock in the freezer between uses? Is there a solvent that works well on Seam Grip+WP?

Topic

[zachschiada]

So I got a little carried away with seam sealer and started coating all of my seams with seam grip before fixing what should have been done with my iron when I inflated and found leaks. I read on here that I can go over sealed areas with my iron using parchment paper once it cures, but is that after the 8 days to fully cure or can I do so say 8-12 hours later? I think in retrospect, it would have been wiser to not touch the seam grip at all at this point, but I was excited and a bit foolish.

[Matt (Admin)]

I’ve never tried it, but I don’t think it would be a problem… I would try it in an inconspicuous area and see how it looks, and if it doesn’t melt or do weird things, carry on.

[zachschiada]

I tried today with the seam grip having set about 18 hours. It worked fine. I even tried directly on the seam grip without the parchment paper and it didn’t look too bad after, but I’d recommend with parchment paper over without since I just tried one small area and suspect there’d be some melting if I were to do it elsewhere. Definitely my preferred way of fixing leaks although it’s kind of a pain to pump it up so many times to find the leaks then deflate and iron, but I have a foot pump to make it quicker. I’m pretty glad t it’s not too late to do iron touch ups at this point.

[Uncle Fred]

For me, I used a ton of those dollar-store brush packs. Over the course of building two fully-kitted white-water boats, I must have used 15 packs, each containing 15+ brushes.

[mcpook]

Somewhat related question that I’ll pose here rather than starting a new post.  Has anyone used HH 66 as a seam sealer?  Do you think it could be an effective seam sealer?  Perhaps a sprinkle of baby powder on top to minimize it from gluing to itself when folded?  I inherited a V2 that was 75% built.  It has a double layer floor to give an idea of age.  There’s some sun bleaching of the tube fabric but they are still pliable – not brittle.  I went over the obvious weak welds with my iron, but I suspect there’s going to be a lot of seam sealing required to get it seaworthy.   I’m thinking it’s worth some effort to try and salvage it.

Thanks,

Michael

[Matt (Admin)]

I’m not aware of anyone having tried this, so if you do, please let us know how it goes. Thanks!

[Matt (Admin)]

The freezer might work – I haven’t actually tried it, but Gear Aid does recommend storing opened tubes in the freezer.

I usually toss the screw-on brush after the first use, and then I re-use the metal-handled brush even if it’s totally hardened, but in that case I use it more like a spatula. Sometimes I just use my finger to spread the sealant around (while wearing a disposable glove), or the tip of the Seam Grip tube as I’m squeezing it out.

The brush is nice because you can use the bristles to shove sealant down into cracks and crevices, but it’s not absolutely required.

Cheers

[Author]

Replies