reproofing.

[crazydave]

Spent yesterday checking the groundsheets on my lightweight old but servicable tents and no surprise they leak quite badly and rather than shell out for new I looked again at either reproofing or sewing a new on in to the pair of them. In the past I've looked at thompsons waterseal and fabsil but this time I decided to re-google and see where it took me.

solution - quick,cheap and cheerfull a home made silicone based paint.

1 part clear silicone and 2-4 parts white spirit, whisked up in a jam jar with a tent peg gripped in a battery drill. the dilution can vary depending on what you want to do - coat or penetrate. it dries matt

I did one last night which had failed completely and this morning I filled said tent with water and newpaper underneath as a tell tale. perfectly resealed so I'll do the other one today.

the recipe isnt mine and is apparently a trade one for doing seams so no reason why it shouldnt work on boots(lundhag style), rucsacs, tarps, 58 ponchos or german sniper bags with bubbled coatings and maybe even chutes as I painted a sheet of newpaper to see how it penetrates and how supple it would become.

a bit smelly (dont sniff the jar whatever you do) but if I only have to redo it every year or longer then I'm happy as it saved chucking out 300 quids worth of tentage

I might even do a failed goretex bivi bag with it as you could either find the leaks and patch it, just do the base or make a fully sealed bag you can canoe in.

 

[Tony]

Col, thanks for the tip

 

[Retired Member southey]

Cool, i've been trying to reproof my old 58 poncho but with little success, was it a clear silicon such in the calk gun tubes?

 

[Teepee]

More than you could ever wish to know about reproofing fabrics with thinned silicon sealant here.

 

[crazydave]

hadnt seen that page on hammocks before so thanks. yes plain old low mod silicone from screwfix, the good thing is that it will soak into the fibres or like I did I worked it into the leaky bits with a brush so even permeable fabrics can be done as I did with a US butt pack this afternoon. if only I knew this back in the days I wore 58 webbing for a living I would have done the lot. the fack that it dries a matt means you could do both sides of something like a 58 poncho.

the test piece of newspaper is interesting

the only thing I cant decide on is how to clean the brush!

 

[Retired Member southey]

Brilliant cheers.:You_Rock_

 

[Teepee]

Throw the brush mate if its set, theyre not worth cleaning. White spirit/petrol (cheapest), meths, acetone, brush cleaner will get wet stuff out but water will make it set quicker. The best plan is to use throwaway brushes or foam roller sleeves as they are far, far cheaper than the solvent used to clean them.

 

[crazydave]

one query I do have if anyone knows a solution, I stuck the missus under a 20 year old aussie hootchie at the weekend (which has spent most of its life in the stores or wrapped up) and it leaked unlike the even older OG one I have which has no sealing at all. it seems they used that manky yellow gunge to seal the seams and its gone brittle and flakey.

anyone know what to remove it with or do I have to sit and scrape it off with a fingernail?

 

[crazydave]

well did some more today as per teepees suggestion I used a sponge roller which does work very well, the only issue I have is there seems to be no way to keep it fresh for use it as you make it or you get lumps as the silicone clings to the container.

for those redoing 58 ponchos as I did three this afternoon I would say do both sides but rub the outer down with a cloth afterwards to remove the surplus as it will stop the fabric wetting out to start with. it dries a bit darker and should help reduce UV damage as well.

I tried everything to get rid of the old yellowed sealant which i assume to be a pva base to no avail so painted over it on both sides.

next step is to patch some leaky issue bivvy bags with it.