Refursbishing inflatable

H

happyhour

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exMember
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Apr 9, 2001
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4143
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I am thinking about refurbishing a Hypalon inflatable including liquid rubber and topcoat. After searching the net I find only two brands of liquid rubber which in reality may just be one brand "inland marine". As for paint I again can only find one brand that offers colors other than gray/black/white. Of course I want blue. I am looking for any and all input on this subject for experiences/brands/sellers and cost. I figure a few hundred dollars is cheaper than a $ Thousand for just 12 years of UV damage (most of the time under a cover).
 
You got my attention will this help with pealing top layer? or just to freshen up the finish or appearance? I too would love to restore a 20 year old but rarely use inflatable.
 
Well Audrey II, Looks like only you and I are interested. I decided to go with Liquid Rubber (Quart online for $19.00 plus shipping.) I will then use Gacoflex H22 paint so I can get it in the color I want. I will let you know how it turns out in a couple of weeks.
 
please let me know also if you can take before and after pictures. Are you having pealing problems?

Good luck
 
This is gonna sound like Maguyver, but a buddy of mine has a Zodiac (red color) and the top was sticky due to someone using a cleaner not meant for the material. He tried everything to stop the bleeding (of the material onto his clothing when he sat on the tubes). Nothing worked. Finally, he found spray paint that was flexible. I dont know the brand, but it seemed to work great and it matches very closely. so far so good as he has been using it for over a year now. To test it, he initially used a balloon and inflated/deflated several times to insure it wouldnt crack or peel. Plus, it was cheap!! like $6 per can. he used 1.
 
Is the Zodiac C or Hypalon There are different products for different materials I'm not sure if any work well but I would love to see before and after pictures and have input as to how well it holds up. My Dink is a 1990 it has gotten very little use but it shows wear and look dirty.
 
Not sure about the material. I have an Avon with Hypalon and his material feels and looks more grainy than mine, so i'd guess PVC. His dink is from 2000 and its an 11.5' model with inflatible floor, not a RIB. Maybe that would help? Honestly, I didnt believe it when he said it, but I checked it out up close and the darn thing looks awesome!
 
Dave, I know a friend who had a similar problem with a red dink. It was all faded and looked pretty ugly. She applied a product called Turtle-wax 2001 urethane enriched car polish. It made the dink brand new! She would reapply it once a year to maitain the great look and it did no harm to the dink.

Truly amazing! I'd try this before trying to paint it........
 
Both mine and Happyhour have ware spots on the dinks that need to be repaired then touched up or a complete paint job. There are several products on the market for this and the pictures on there sites look great. I don't know anyone who has tried this to see real live results. If it works I would love to try it, it's not a lot of money I just don't want to make it worse. It believe it's only $20 a pint I'm not sure how much I would need.
 
Try Googleing [painting inflatable zodiac] they're promoting a product called S R C. Sounds like a great product.I'll give it a try next spring on my Novurania.
 
My 2 year old Walker Bay Odyssey inflatable got a sticky coating on all the top horizontal surfaces this summer. I don't have clue what caused it. I purposely sprayed the spider spray and anodized railing cleaner on it to see if that caused it, it didn't.

It's hypalon with pvc labels and rubrails. The pvc material is still sticky but the hypalon has turned kind of discolored and hard.

I'm going to try calling the factory and see what they say.

I see Petit and MDR both made a coating product for hypalon, both called inflatable top coating. MDR-783 is for gray boats. I think the Petit stuff (6005 & 6006) is meant for underwater surfaces.
 
Just an update. Based on my research and a few comments here.... I have rec'd 2 qts of liquid rubber in gray. looks like it will take forever to apply. One website recommends 4 hours for 2 people. My SO is going to make me pay for this. I have on order two cans of spray on Plasti Dip in blue. Apparently the spray version has UV inhibitors. I will try for the Liquid rubber application this weekend (temperature permitting). I will take pictures and keep everyone updated.
 
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