What to do with a old hard bottom inflatable?

[Reefdog]

I have a 13 ft caribe hard bottom inflatable that can not be fixed. I took it to the manufactures in Homestead FL and they said it cant be fixed. It needs a new tube which would be $3,000. I then tried to fix it my self and it worked, kinda. I can use it for about 45 min before I need to pump more air into it. I most recently tried the internal sealer and that helped a lot but today they are flat. So I have tried to sell it with no luck, tried to fix it no luck, tried to give it away free with no luck. What can I do? Do I have to pay someone to take it away? I hear the foam trick doesn't really work, but if some one has actually done it please let me know. I have read everyone opinion on the matter but it doesn't seem anyone who has tried it has actually chimed in. Thanks for the Ideas.

[neilpride]

We talk about pin holes , valves leaking , a major hole, ? 2 parts glues designed for hypalon work very well if the prep is do it right , the soap test work, if you can made the tubes watertight and are worth the repair the next step like gluing the tubes again in the hull can be done right and well to, in other words , dont waste your money in things like foam internal sealers, 5200, fiberglass, and other stuff not designed for hypalon, the proper glue and the proper patch work, my caribe have 2 patches and today are 2 years old and holding very well, if not and the dingy is not worth the repair , throw it to the trash, here the kids made hard dingys with the hard bottoms .

[Reefdog]

Thanks, I have used the proper glue and that part is holding. The problem is the seams came apart to the point that i could stick my head into them. I glued them bat together and patched but it still leaks in place, for example under the rub rail. I think its a lost cause.

[zeehag]

when mine did that i sold it for 500 dollars and started over. the new owner filled each space with foam and still uses it, now is 5 yrs after sale.....

[capngeo]

Foam is great.... Until you bump into something and crush it!

FWIW, I have seen re-tubed RIBs which look new at half the price of new; not a bad option if you have the budget.

[Jim Cate]

G'Day RD,

Don't know where you are or what type of dink we are talking about, so it is hard to be specific for you. But, a few years ago our fairly new Gemini RIB was pinched while we were in Hobart. The idiots who stole her removed the clapped out 12 YO Suziki 15 from the 5K$ dunghy, then poured some petrol into the boat and set it afire. We recovered a scorched aluminium hull and some charred tatters of tube. Cleaned it up and sent it off to Gemini who re-tubed it for just under half of the cost of a new boat. If the original mfgs for your boat won't do that, independent repairers will.

So it can be done, and you end up with a basically new boat.

Hope that you can resolve your situation.

Cheers,

Jim

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by zeehag

when mine did that i sold it for 500 dollars and started over. the new owner filled each space with foam and still uses it, now is 5 yrs after sale.....

I have wondered about that approach in the past (more for a cheap harbour dink than for anything boat based)......do you know how it was done / what with? (the idea for me being to acquire (buy !) something like OP has with little or no value and then fill with foam).

Nearly gave it a go a few years ago, but the Avon I got for free was just too good to risk scrapping with a failed experiment (cost me Father a couple of hundred quid to get fixed though - the only reason he bothered was because it was an 8 foot and he is getting old, he / we have got 3 (or 4?) 9' footers of varying vintages - when selling a boat the Avon always gets kept ).

[sdowney717]

how about trying this.
Take some fiberglass or dynel cloth.
(Dynel has a stretch to it. I dont know if stretch is better.)

And some Black PL polyurethane roof flashing in a tube.
Loctite PL 10 fl. oz. Black Polyurethane Roof and Flashing Sealant 1402254 at The Home Depot

Notch trowel it onto the tube and force the cloth into the goo and spread goo over the cloth saturating it and bonding it to the inflatable.

It will turn into a tough rubbery skin which will likely be well attached. The cloth will give it added strength needed to resist air pressure.
Depending on how far you could go with it, could the cloth go all the way spirally around the existing tube?


Yes, I can vouch that this is really good sealer and very adhesive.

Loctite PL Polyurethane Roof & Flashing Sealant is a premium quality, commercial grade sealant developed especially for forming permanent, water and weatherproof seals in all exterior gaps and joints. This sealant is elastic and remains flexible to expand and contract with construction material movement to protect and retain the original seal. It provides properties of non-sag, permanent flexibility and corrosion resistance. It exhibits outstanding durability and tear resistance. It usually requires no primer and resists deterioration from weather, stress or movement. It is UV and ozone resistant and does not soften in the sun.

[zeehag]

there are many ways of "fixing" an old dink..if you wish to keep it and cruise with it, there is a choice--either sukitup and pay for new pontoons or buy new and go for it. sell or give old one to someone else or fix it right you have something with which you can use or keep investing in the old pos until ye buy a new dink.....is your money.

remember--is much harder to lift a pos with many repairs adding eight to it than it is to haul up a dink with less weight.

of course if ye arent going anywhere soon isnt bad idea to repair pos and continue on.....

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by capngeo

Foam is great.... Until you bump into something and crush it!

FWIW, I have seen re-tubed RIBs which look new at half the price of new; not a bad option if you have the budget.

I have a 10.2 foot Zodiac Yachtline that used to have PVC tubes...with predictable results.

So I cut them off.

I have a local price to retube them in 17-inch Hypalon (instead of the 16 inch PVC) for $2,700, which is reasonable in context. PVC tubes are miserable unless you are in some place so far north or south that the UV is diminished.