-
Welcome to the DeeperBlue.com Forums, the largest online community dedicated to Freediving, Scuba Diving and Spearfishing. To gain full access to the DeeperBlue.com Forums you must register for a free account. As a registered member you will be able to:
- Join over 47,943+ fellow diving enthusiasts from around the world on this forum
- Participate in and browse from over 531,990+ posts.
- Communicate privately with other divers from around the world.
- Post your own photos or view from 7,455+ user submitted images.
- All this and much more...
You can gain access to all this absolutely free when you register for an account, so sign up today!
Fixing a split wetsuit
- Thread starter Manny_OCF
- Start date
Thread Status: Hello
, There was no answer in this thread for more than 90 days.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
Super glue wont work because it isn't flexible...
You can buy (black neoprene contact cement) online and at most dive shops. it works very well.. I put my foot straight through the bottom of my brand new 3mm smoothskin pants and made a foot sized hole. Ever since repairing it i've done at least 30 dives with it and it hasn't reopened or even hinted at begging to reopen..
The cements come with instructions (they sometimes vary) but the process is very simple;
-1. Completely dry your suit
-2. Put a small layer of cement around the entire edge of the rip/tear (dont use 2 layers)
-3. keep the rip/tear open and let the cement dry for 5-10 mins. (I go for 10+ mins to make sure it is fully dry)
-4. push the tear back together with your fingers (lots of pressure along the whole area) and after 5 mins you're ready to go..
You can buy (black neoprene contact cement) online and at most dive shops. it works very well.. I put my foot straight through the bottom of my brand new 3mm smoothskin pants and made a foot sized hole. Ever since repairing it i've done at least 30 dives with it and it hasn't reopened or even hinted at begging to reopen..
The cements come with instructions (they sometimes vary) but the process is very simple;
-1. Completely dry your suit
-2. Put a small layer of cement around the entire edge of the rip/tear (dont use 2 layers)
-3. keep the rip/tear open and let the cement dry for 5-10 mins. (I go for 10+ mins to make sure it is fully dry)
-4. push the tear back together with your fingers (lots of pressure along the whole area) and after 5 mins you're ready to go..
Thanks heaps! I'll definitely try it. I'm a bit sentimental to my wetsuit, so I want to see if it can last a bit longer.
Which brand did you use?
I've used McNett Aquaseal urethane repair adhesive & sealant with great success. It's reasonably runny so I've found it a little more difficult to work with than other neoprene cements but once cured stays super flexible and stretches as far as the neoprene of the suit does.
We do not recommend the use of aquaseal for wetsuit repairs that involve any significant linear damage. If you have a small gouge from a barnacle or something, you can fill a hole with aquaseal on the outside of the suit. If you try to use aquaseal for a significant repair in any portion of a suit which experiences significant stretching, then the reduced flexibility of the aquaseal will tend to cause additional tearing on the periphery of the repair. I think we stopped carrying aquaseal for this reason.
Wetsuit glue is far superior, is flexible, not too expensive and really not difficult to work with. You want to make reapirs ASAP. If you continue to use the suit, dirt and body oils etc, will find their ways to the tear and this may be detrimental to adhesion.
You want the tear clean and dry. I generally coat each side of the repair with a thin coat of glue, making sure to include the nylon liner as well. I let it dry completely for a few hours if possible. Often you will need to stretch or position the suit, so that the pieces don't touch as the glue dries.
Then apply a second thin coat on each surface, allow to dry for 5 minutes until tacky and then carefully press the sides together.
Very gently initially as you confirm proper alignment, you MAY be able to adjust or re-position if you misalign, but you really want to try to avoid it. A little trick, if you need to reposition and it is a little stuck, sometimes application of a LITTLE bit more glue (and the solvent it contains) will help unstick the pieces and allow a realignment.
So, once you have the pieces of the suit pressed together and the alignment is good then squeeze and push the pieces together firmly for a few minutes. A decent repair may last the lifetime of the suit.
It makes sense to have some glue on hand and periodically fix every little nick or cut, before they expand and start to leak.
Also if you accidentally sever a sewn seam, you can apply a dab of wetsuit glue on each side of the seem break and this will often lock down the thread and prevent it from running and opening up.
We also offer an iron on seam tape strip that can be used over a damaged seam, if you don't want to sew it. The material works quite well and will adhere for a season or two of hard use.
Wetsuit glue is far superior, is flexible, not too expensive and really not difficult to work with. You want to make reapirs ASAP. If you continue to use the suit, dirt and body oils etc, will find their ways to the tear and this may be detrimental to adhesion.
You want the tear clean and dry. I generally coat each side of the repair with a thin coat of glue, making sure to include the nylon liner as well. I let it dry completely for a few hours if possible. Often you will need to stretch or position the suit, so that the pieces don't touch as the glue dries.
Then apply a second thin coat on each surface, allow to dry for 5 minutes until tacky and then carefully press the sides together.
Very gently initially as you confirm proper alignment, you MAY be able to adjust or re-position if you misalign, but you really want to try to avoid it. A little trick, if you need to reposition and it is a little stuck, sometimes application of a LITTLE bit more glue (and the solvent it contains) will help unstick the pieces and allow a realignment.
So, once you have the pieces of the suit pressed together and the alignment is good then squeeze and push the pieces together firmly for a few minutes. A decent repair may last the lifetime of the suit.
It makes sense to have some glue on hand and periodically fix every little nick or cut, before they expand and start to leak.
Also if you accidentally sever a sewn seam, you can apply a dab of wetsuit glue on each side of the seem break and this will often lock down the thread and prevent it from running and opening up.
We also offer an iron on seam tape strip that can be used over a damaged seam, if you don't want to sew it. The material works quite well and will adhere for a season or two of hard use.