Leaky Exped Synmat

[Quixoticgeek]

At the bushmoot I discovered my beloved Exped Synmat 7UL has a leak. It can't be a very big leak as if I pumped it up before bed, it was still mostly inflated come morning.

So now I'm home I have to somehow find where the hole is so that I can patch it.

Any ideas how I go about finding the hole? On a bike inner tube I would inflate it and then run it through the sink looking for the bubbles, but the synmat is a bit too big for that.

Thoughts?

J

 

[Goatboy]

Do you have a bath in the house? If so just use that instead of a sink. Failing that make up some soapy water and douse the mat in sections (the soap makes the leak bubble) 'till you find it. Concentrate on the valve and seams first as they are most likely to fail.
Good luck, used to patch a lot of them for customers over the years and it can be a PITA to track down sometimes.
How did you get on with Luna at the Moot?
GB.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Do you have a bath in the house? If so just use that instead of a sink. Failing that make up some soapy water and douse the mat in sections (the soap makes the leak bubble) 'till you find it. Concentrate on the valve and seams first as they are most likely to fail.
Good luck, used to patch a lot of them for customers over the years and it can be a PITA to track down sometimes.

Just examined the mat closesly and noticed that there was some insulation poking out the deflate valve, have got it back in and realigned the valve. It's inflated to working pressure, will see what happens come morning.

How did you get on with Luna at the Moot?

I didn't take her in the end. I managed to get a lift so didn't need her for the final leg from bridgend to the moot.

J

 

[mikedefieslife]

If it's still in warranty (aren't they 5 years?) just send it back. Especially if you saw some of the lining coming out of the valve.

Otherwise it's a game of hide and seek with the leak.

For some reason I seem to see a lot of leaky or failed exped mat reports online. Mainly the downmat though.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Well, she seems to have held pressure over night. I think that's sorted it.

Cheers

J

 

[Goatboy]

Good news, it's always good when it's a simple fix.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.