Suitable 'alternative' adhesive for Treadmaster.

Appledore

Appledore

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Just got myself a sheet of Treadmaster for the boat, but the adhesive will cost more than I paid for the sheet.

I wonder if anyone has tried to use a different alternative fixing agent with success? I am thinking of a trial glueing using GRP resin with its hardener. I would think that once it starts to cure and becomes tacky it should glue most things, so why not Treadmaster?

Any suggestions before I buy the real stuff? Thanks.
 
Appledore said:
Just got myself a sheet of Treadmaster for the boat, but the adhesive will cost more than I paid for the sheet.

I wonder if anyone has tried to use a different alternative fixing agent with success? I am thinking of a trial glueing using GRP resin with its hardener. I would think that once it starts to cure and becomes tacky it should glue most things, so why not Treadmaster?

Any suggestions before I buy the real stuff? Thanks.
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Polyester GRP resin is in fact a relatively poor adhesive. Epoxy is much better and I believe the two part Treadmaster adhesive is in fact an epoxy.

There is also a solvent based single pack contact adhesive. Also silly money but I cannot suggest anything that might be a suitable alternative.
 
The 'real stuff' is an epoxy glue so I can't see any reason not to use epoxy resin if you don't want to fork out for the proprietary stuff. You may need a bit of thickener to help it hold form once spread.

I'm currently replacing some Treadmaster on my boat which was stuck with evo-stick. It actually held very well and had been put on by the PO some 10 years ago.
 
I can't remember if I used WEST epoxy or Evostick but whichever it was it has outlasted the Treadmaster, which is beginning to break up at the edges.
 
I used epoxy on the Treadmaster on the companionway steps a couple of years ago and they are perfect still. As someone mentioned just use a thickener in the epoxy and it's absolutely fine. I cannot remember which brand I used, but it was not one of the well known names, just something I found via Google.
 
i used a normal contact adhesive a year ago, so far so good. i also used some of the sticky backed treadmaster. i used "laths"to go between the treatmaster & the panel, this aids alignment & just remove 1 lath at a time for controlled application. i then used a hammer & block of wood to make sure a good bond was made
 
I replaced some Treadmaster years ago, and I'm sure the instructions included the information that epoxy could be used, and no necessariy Treadmaster's own brand (which is probably a general-purpose epoxy which they buy from someone else, anyway). Polyster resin would be a poor substitute.

You'll need lots of fairly heavy weights to keep it down during curing. Mask off adjacent areas. Consider pigmenting the resin to roughly match your decks: better than a brown line around the edge.

Looking ahead, it's not too bad to remove, either, with a heat gun and wallpaper scraper.
 
I used a polyurethane adhesive similar to sikaflex. but supplied by Dev-braven.

Works very well. Don't know how the cost compares with epoxy.
 
Years ago I bought a boat with Treadmaster decks stuck down with Evostik. The edges of every sheet were curling up where seawater had softened the adhesive. It took a whole winter to get the old stuff off, followed by a complete weekend applying the new, using the epoxy adhesive. This is strange stuff to use, it has no grab and its viscosity is low, so the Treadmaster slides down sloping decks and needs to be restrained.

I have seen polyurethane adhesives recommended for the job and, were I to repeat the exercise, I think that is what I would use. I have a Treadmaster competitor material on my cockpit floor, stuck down with a polyurethane. It has been there for many years now, no sign of it lifting.
 
I had some of mine giving up at the edges with the contact adhesive. I used Wet Grab from B&Q as an interim and it's still fine 3 years on.

Someone started painting mine with Toplac years ago, and I'm faced with a choice of removal and replacement, or finding a way to strip that off and repaint with the proper paint
 
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