Inflatable dinghy repair question

[BobnLesley]

We've sprung a 'slow' puncture leak in our XM inflatable, which is on the inside of the starboard tube at the point where it 'turns' to form the bow; even worse its right at its junction with the floor - I suspect it may be the seam itself which is leaking. In any event, fixing a patch is impossible. I've tried 'gumming-up' the area with rubber cement (complete failure) and with great dollops of mastic sealant (worked for a while, but 3x the leak has then escaped elsewhere, I suspect the escaping air is tracking between the tube and floor in search of a weakness - we have now achieved a leak from the starboard tube, which actually exits beneath the port tube!).

I'm considering trying to inject one of the automatic repair fluids like I used to put in motorcycle tyres years ago (OKO or similar) has anyone tried this? Indeed are they still available? or can someone offer an alternative/better suggestion.

 

[davidpbo]

I believe there were some posts relating to this matter fairly recently which suggested it was not a good idea. Sorry, cannot find the thread.

 

[ShipsWoofy]

Are you prepared to part with some readies. Companies like Avon or near me, on the Wirral is Beaufort / Dunlop who may (I don't know, they may not take on small jobs) but they may re-weld the seam for you for less beer tokens then a new inflatable.

I personally would stop and find out if someone would weld it before doing anything else and righting it off. I have one small patch on one of my Narwhal tubes but luckily it was in the middle of sponson so was easy to apply. In fact it is the temporary patch I applied on the slipway so I could get to the boat to get my full repair kit! So it is a small black patch with the edges not glued (so I could pull it back off) instead of the proper coordinated grey.

OTOH you may have to remove a section of the floor to sponson weld, apply patch and re-attach the floor. Lets be honest, it's gonna leak if not done properly. I don't think you can do this without welding.

 

[Guest]

I had a Narwhal 240 .... nice one that developed small seam leak.
Bought tenners worth of special for the job sealant to be put into chambers .... pump up a bit .... roll it round .... pump up more etc. Leave for so long.
I saw little beads of white here and there where it was finding the pin-hole leaks .... It sealed and I did as instructions said. Pumped up and leave to stand for x hours.

Great .... did exactly what it said on the tin ... then couple of hours later - I left it on the lawn while I went to pub !! Whoosh !! The seams let go.

Took it to Repair centre .... guy was straight out - stuff dissolved the remaining seams glue and now - impossible to repair ! He reckoned at that stage of seam leaks anyway - its a never ending chase game ...

So I took his advise ... got myself an old s/hand Redcrest / start .... and that has survived just about everything I can do to it for last 7 years .... left out on deck with no cover, never rinsed or washed off .... expected to pump up and stay up ....

So my advise ... if you want to kep the XM - give it to a repair centre - forget the liquid stuff.

 

[silvertop]

Gloop @ £8.00 and Ultraseal @£24.00 is what would be used on Motor cycles or as I use On my trailer. Available from any good motor cycle shops.

 

[gjeffery]

Tyre sealants are spread inside the circumference of the tyre by centripetal force.

Sealant inside the tube of an inflatable dinghy would slop about randomly, so unlikely to provide adequate cover at the puncture.

May be better to spend the money on a repair.