Best glue/sealant to glue connectors permanent in Vetus bladder tanks?

[Franziska]

Hi,

I have to replace two large bladder tanks on my boat. Vetus are far better quality than the Plastimo tanks I had.

So I am almost set on them.

I'd go for rotomolded but they are to expensive. I checked with several manufacturers in Europe.
Please let's not discuss other hard options like plywood or other.
It will be bladders and the Vetus tanks themselves are pretty bullet proof.

So it will be bladders again.

So far so good, but there is the issue, that the Vetus tanks tend to leak at the connectors after a while, no matter how strong I tighten them.

To remedy this, I'd like to glue the connectors permanently into the new tanks.

Can anyone be so kind to recommend the best product to do this?

I tried already with Sika, which was not a clever idea, the water tasted horrible after this.

Instead of glueing I also tried with armature grease which did not work well either.

I'd really appreciate a recommendation as to what type of sealant sticks best to the tank material.

I wrote to Vetus as well to see what they say.


Thanks so much.

Btw, boat is in France.

Welcome to the Woods Mira 35 - Catamaran Lady Rovers Website!

[peghall]

If the fittings are threaded, a thick wrap of Teflon tape will povide a good seal without making it impossible for the fitting to ever be removed.

Btw...did you check Tek Tanks Tek Tanks Boat Tanks in the UK?

Peggie
http://www.amazon.com/New-Get-Rid-Bo...dp/1892399784/
"If you can't explain it to a six year old, you don't completely understand it yourself." --Albert Einstein

[Franziska]

Many thanks, the remaining Plastimo ones are threaded. I will reattach those with Teflon tape after removing the grease.
The Vetus ones rely on pressing two plates together to create the seal.
Their material is great, as are the welds.
Only this fitting connection sucks.

That's why I need to glue these in. Can still remove them by detaching the hoses.

Ideal would be Vetus tank with the Plastimo fitting attachment...

I'd look into the ones you suggest too, had not checked in UK as stuff seems pricy there.

Thanks.

www.ladyrover.com

[peghall]

[QUOTE=Franziska;2237797]Many thanks, the remaining Plastimo ones are threaded. I will reattach those with Teflon tape after removing the grease.
The Vetus ones rely on pressing two plates together to create the seal.
Their material is great, as are the welds. Only this fitting connection sucks.
That's why I need to glue these in. Can still remove them by detaching the hoses. /QUOTE]

In that case, this MIGHT be one of the few places on a boat where 3M 5200 would be the right choice. But I'll let others who have more experience with permanent waterproof sealants advise you 'cuz there's not enough use for those in a sanitation system for me to have enough experience with 'em.


Peggie
http://www.amazon.com/New-Get-Rid-Bo...dp/1892399784/
"If you can't explain it to a six year old, you don't completely understand it yourself." --Albert Einstein

[Cheechako]

Vetus should provide you the answer to the leak problem, or don't buy from them!

[Franziska]

Anyone has glued the fittings successfully?

www.ladyrover.com

[Jim Cate]

Our previous boat had Vetus bladders. They were built in 1973, and were made from Hypalon material very similar to what old Zodiac dinghies were made from. Dunno about newer ones...

At any rate, ours had the fittings glued in with 5200 and they never leaked... but could not be removed from the bladders non-destructively. The boat was 10 years old when we bought her, and at that time there was no taste issue from the glue. Dunno about when fresh, though.

Those bladders lasted until 1990 when they began to leak at the seams (glued like dinghy seams). We were unable to source successful replacement bladders and eventually had custom s/s tanks built... for just about the same cost as the unsuccessful bladders!

Jim

[DeepFrz]

There was a very recent thread talking about bladders. Doesn't seem like they are a very good idea. I don't think there was one endorsement in the thread.

[hpeer]

Once again I'll be the guine pig. I have a 40 gallon Vetus holding tank. I would rather have a rigid tank but I had to remove that (15 gal) because the PO installed it over top of the bilge pump. Of course the surveyor didn't notice that, or many other issues.

Anyway, after several years of good service something happened ( that's code for I screwed up) and allowed the tank to be over filled, twice! That stressed the top fitting. Is not leaking (it did, eeeeewe!) but it ain't good, so I gooped it up with 5200.

Now it's a matter of time to see if it will fail or hold up. I only did this last week. And we are hauling shortly for 6 months so it will be a while.

I MAY break down and buy a new one, just to be safe.

My second thought concerns venting, Peggy you still here? We have a Lavac toilet. Smell has been an issue. I'm starting to using some KO which seems to be helping. My thought is to leave the lid up and pump the bowl dry periodically, like twice a day. The thought is to inject some air into the tank to feed the KO. Any thoughts?

My third thought would be to use some aircraft two part fuel tank sealant on the joints. If anything is stickier and stronger (and messier) than 5200 it is that. You can buy it at aircraft online stores (FlameMaster or 3M) or pay a bit more and buy the same stuff from Boatlife. In fact that's what I'll likely do, seal the fittings with that goop in the fall. It's wicked tough.

[Meanderthal]

Are the press fit connectors plastic? if they are, then depending on the type of plastic, there is probably a solvent that plastic fabricators use to 'weld'. It would be permanent. from then on, the two pieces would be one.

[HopCar]

It's been a long time since I installed fittings in a bladder tank but as I recall they don't need any sealant. They are designed to pinch the fabric in such a weigh that they won't leak.