Fixing leaky Hypalon

[Chotu]

Holy cow, everyone is trying to steal from me in NC.

One of the problems is I bought that Caribe from a pretty wealthy and nice seeming guy in Oriental.

It leaks everywhere! There are these areas where an outer rubber type coating is coming off leaving a fabric weave showing.

I can HEAR air coming out of these.

He has assured me that it was the same air since March in the dinghy. And that he’s never tried to fix it. It’s pretty clear he has since you can see where he put the goop on the fabric weave in the second picture.

The first picture is one of the leaky holes. You can actually hear air hissing out of this.

The second picture is one he fixed with I don’t know what. It doesn’t seem to leak.

What’s the best way to fix this? There are tons of holes like this. And they are all leaking. The thing is falling apart.

Out another $750 on top of everything else that was stolen from me here.

[jamhass]

The "sloshing" compounds worked very well for us. After many seam and fabric leaks, chasing them ad-infinitum we went with one, there are many and I don't recall which we used.

Using the stuff draws on-lookers!

you remove the valves (careful to not loose the inner parts) and hoist the dink. Put the goop in, half in both chambers if so designed, and raise the dink. Rotate it, flip it (2 halyards help) jiggle it around etc to get the goop EVERYWHERE. Let dry according to the instructions and all should be good. Stuff I used remained flexible, so inflate/deflate cycles no an issue, so check the specs for this feature as some do harden.

[chrisr]

relatively easy to fix small spots like this on hypalon

get the patch

get the glue

apply

job done (there are a million video in Utube if need more explanation)

only thing to really watch is humidity when glueing

good luck

cheers,

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by jamhass

The "sloshing" compounds worked very well for us. After many seam and fabric leaks, chasing them ad-infinitum we went with one, there are many and I don't recall which we used.

Using the stuff draws on-lookers!

you remove the valves (careful to not loose the inner parts) and hoist the dink. Put the goop in, half in both chambers if so designed, and raise the dink. Rotate it, flip it (2 halyards help) jiggle it around etc to get the goop EVERYWHERE. Let dry according to the instructions and all should be good. Stuff I used remained flexible, so inflate/deflate cycles no an issue, so check the specs for this feature as some do harden.

I did this many many years ago and it worked for a while. It ended up leaking again later. But it did work for quite a while.

Maybe I’ll try it again.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by chrisr

relatively easy to fix small spots like this on hypalon

get the patch

get the glue

apply

job done (there are a million video in Utube if need more explanation)

only thing to really watch is humidity when glueing

good luck

cheers,

OK. So the patches are good? I didn’t think they were very good. If that’s the case, I should be fine. I was thinking of doing what the other poster said as well because I have done that in the past and it did work for a while.

[chrisr]

Originally Posted by Chotu

OK. So the patches are good? I didn’t think they were very good. If that’s the case, I should be fine. I was thinking of doing what the other poster said as well because I have done that in the past and it did work for a while.

i've tried both, and did not have any success with the internal stuff. not saying it does not work...just did not fix it for me

on the otherhand, i've probably done a dozen patches on hypalon over the years (i'm sure others have done many more) and never had any trouble with one of them

just follow the steps...no rocket science

cheers,

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by chrisr

i've tried both, and did not have any success with the internal stuff. not saying it does not work...just did not fix it for me

on the otherhand, i've probably done a dozen patches on hypalon over the years (i'm sure others have done many more) and never had any trouble with one of them

just follow the steps...no rocket science

cheers,

Maybe I’ll try the patching first. It’s a little bit easier. Can be done a little here and a little there.

[chrisr]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Maybe I’ll try the patching first. It’s a little bit easier. Can be done a little here and a little there.

as i said, there is a milion videos on youtube about this, and many are worth watching

cheers,

[JPA Cate]

Chotu,

When the hypalon is worn off, the scrim shows, and that is nylon, and quickly deteriorates in the sun. If there is intact hypalon in such exposed areas, then you need to patch with more hypalon--we've used SC 4000 for the glue, and it works well. We never tried the sloshing methods, so can't comment on those.

However, when the hypalon is really thin, the UV gets into the scrim through the little dark holes (old bubbles, maybe?), and the dinghy is really toast.

Good luck with whatever you decide to use on it, or even replace it. When you're cruising, your dinghy is both your Ferrari and your pickup truck, get the best quality you can and then take care of it.

Ann

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Chotu,

When the hypalon is worn off, the scrim shows, and that is nylon, and quickly deteriorates in the sun. If there is intact hypalon in such exposed areas, then you need to patch with more hypalon--we've used SC 4000 for the glue, and it works well. We never tried the sloshing methods, so can't comment on those.

However, when the hypalon is really thin, the UV gets into the scrim through the little dark holes (old bubbles, maybe?), and the dinghy is really toast.

Good luck with whatever you decide to use on it, or even replace it. When you're cruising, your dinghy is both your Ferrari and your pickup truck, get the best quality you can and then take care of it.

Ann

This one sure was a Ferrari. I have to admit. It was nice running it.

When the air was in the tubes and you opened up the 9.9, this thing really moves and it feels absolutely stable in the water.

It’s a Caribe L10.

So I guess I will try to fix it. Because if it’s fixed, it would actually be the best dinghy

[George_SD]

If you want it to last - do it right.

0 - ! do it in low moisture and warm temps !
1 - clean the area, rubbing alcohol or even acetone work well
2 - scuff it up lightly with some 400-600 grit sand paper (boat and the patch)
3 - use hypalon specific glue like Clifton Hypalon Adhesive FA4844, ideally with accelerator as it will make the bond stronger
4 - do 3 thin coats on both surfaces, waiting about 10 minutes in between. The glue should be sticky to the touch, but not transfer to your hand (it should pull away clean, without any glue).
5 - press two surfaces together thoroughly (squeez all air out) and let cure under pressure

If you do this properly, those patches will last the remainder of the dinghy's life. I've done several patches and using this methods will give you a bond as goo as it was from the factory.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by George_SD

If you want it to last - do it right.

0 - ! do it in low moisture and warm temps !
1 - clean the area, rubbing alcohol or even acetone work well
2 - scuff it up lightly with some 400-600 grit sand paper (boat and the patch)
3 - use hypalon specific glue like Clifton Hypalon Adhesive FA4844, ideally with accelerator as it will make the bond stronger
4 - do 3 thin coats on both surfaces, waiting about 10 minutes in between. The glue should be sticky to the touch, but not transfer to your hand (it should pull away clean, without any glue).
5 - press two surfaces together thoroughly (squeez all air out) and let cure under pressure

If you do this properly, those patches will last the remainder of the dinghy's life. I've done several patches and using this methods will give you a bond as goo as it was from the factory.

This is a really good post with all of the details involved. Thank you very much for it.

I’ll be sure to follow your instructions when I get to this patching

[Franziska]

Strongly suggest using G/Flex 650 epoxy. It's better suited to do repairs outside of a controlled workshop & less humidity depending. Additionally it's a bit gap filling if need be.

Before using the dinghy, let it cure as required.

As a first thing you can paint the old Hypalon with a specialized elastic paint to prevent further UV damage. Can be done on a beach.

Then get some chaps.

Good luck Chotu. Looking forward seeing you sailing eventually. Guess your boat is very cool once it's ready!!


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[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Franziska

Strongly suggest using G/Flex 650 epoxy. It's better suited to do repairs outside of a controlled workshop & less humidity depending. Additionally it's a bit gap filling if need be.

Before using the dinghy, let it cure as required.

As a first thing you can paint the old Hypalon with a specialized elastic paint to prevent further UV damage. Can be done on a beach.

Then get some chaps.

Good luck Chotu. Looking forward seeing you sailing eventually. Guess your boat is very cool once it's ready!!

Sent from my MHA-L29 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Thank you! I cannot use epoxy.

But I think the rigging will go pretty well now. After two riggers have failed (for different reasons), I’m done. I’m not hiring this out at all. It’s a rip off.

I’m going to get everything together myself. Will be much faster. Believe it or not.

It’s taken 7 months now to get exactly nothing done and I’ve spent $34,000. I do have a fair amount of parts however. Not all of the $34,000 was lost. Just a good amount of it.

If I had done this myself I would be already sailing and for less money lost. Now that I am away from the tremendous heat in Florida, I can work on things with plenty of energy and good spirits. The heat really diminishes my ability (and motivation) to speed through work like I normally do.

I built it down there because it was the right environment for using epoxy. That’s really the only reason.

So no more. Only thing I am hiring is the crane.

And even with the crane I have been trying to see if there is one that I can use without hiring someone ha ha

[Franziska]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Thank you! I cannot use epoxy.

But I think the rigging will go pretty well now. After two riggers have failed (for different reasons), I’m done. I’m not hiring this out at all. It’s a rip off.

I’m going to get everything together myself. Will be much faster. Believe it or not.

It’s taken 7 months now to get exactly nothing done and I’ve spent $34,000. I do have a fair amount of parts however. Not all of the $34,000 was lost. Just a good amount of it.

If I had done this myself I would be already sailing and for less money lost. Now that I am away from the tremendous heat in Florida, I can work on things with plenty of energy and good spirits. The heat really diminishes my ability (and motivation) to speed through work like I normally do.

I built it down there because it was the right environment for using epoxy. That’s really the only reason.

So no more. Only thing I am hiring is the crane.

And even with the crane I have been trying to see if there is one that I can use without hiring someone ha ha

Uups, forgot about your epoxy issue.

Maybe someone close bye in the anchorage could do it? I'd do it, but I'm in Spain. Haha.

Regarding rigging, nothing done, but I have the impression you have a much clearer concept how things will need to be and how to do them.
So little physical progress might be true but know how gained is also good.

Cross my fingers for good success.

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