So just picked up a zodiac dinghy tender with a PVC floor and have noticed that the floor is pulling away from the sides although not leaking yet. I thought these things were supposed to be welded not glued although it appears that that only pertains to the transom and inflatable sides. It is not Hyperlon but PVC. Has anyone sourced a cheap PVC glue that actually works long term?

grich62 said..
www.glueguru.co.nz/shop/BRANDS/BOSTIK/BOSTIK+999+HR+Polyurethane+Adhesive.html
this is the best glue,but i canot find a aus supplies of this,you can normaly by small quantity of pvc repair glues from chandler ,you will have to repair regularly

So what about good old Liquid Nails from Bunnings?

actiomax said..
Clark rubber have pvc glue for above ground pools.
But I reckon the pvc glue plumber use would work great but you would have to be really fast & I would test a bit just in case
prime it with the red primer

Thanks I didn't think to check Clark Rubber not that they are usually cheap. I would be concerned with the blue plumbers liquid stuff because it melts the plastic to some extent and there is very little thickness in the Zodiac plastic compared to a pipe not to mention that a Zodiac needs to remain flexible rather than go hard.

Would suggest looking if 3M 5200 fast cure permanent bond white meets the specs as regards handling pvc but I have not used it in this application. Buy from Classic Boat Supplies Belrose cash or card. Clean the joint with acetone. A very strong adhesive good in peel and shear strength if it is suitable for pvc.

Anedotal but i understand product like Permatex Ultra Grey Rigid High-Torque RTV Silicone Gasket Maker is "not bad" and can do a good job .
I will see if i can find the reference .

julesmoto said..

grich62 said..
www.glueguru.co.nz/shop/BRANDS/BOSTIK/BOSTIK+999+HR+Polyurethane+Adhesive.html
this is the best glue,but i canot find a aus supplies of this,you can normaly by small quantity of pvc repair glues from chandler ,you will have to repair regularly

So what about good old Liquid Nails from Bunnings?

no liquid nails wont work,the proper glue is a 2 pack product the glue that lazzz showed you is the one that you can get in aus

i used that up here in the north,only lasted 8 months,i now have stoped repairing the dingy and i am building a new one

grich62 said..
i used that up here in the north,only lasted 8 months,i now have stoped repairing the dingy and i am building a new one

That's a good point - heat and UV are the killers, so my success with Azbonddown here at the South Pole (aka Melbourne) is not necessarily the universal solution. ymmv as the kids say

your mileage may vary...

its origins date back 40-50 years...

wongaga said..

Achernar said..

ymmv as the kids say

Your mother manufactures vinyl?
Yttrium's molecular mass varies?
Yellow makes mauve violet?

Please enlighten me.

I guess you're not a kid

I tried to keep up with the times, but it was exhausting.

Used the same recently. Repaired the bit that holds the transom in place and two of the beefy handles pulled of the side.
Stuff we used was 45383 INFL AZBOND PVC 250 for $47 and 45389 IN P/M PVC PRIME 250 for $27

Been a few months and while not used much seems to be holding very well. Usual materials handling caution, not indoors and wear a good mask. This concerns me as I get older and have sensitivity to more "stuff"

My mate has on Avon that is still sound after about 25 years.

I have rebuilt a couple of Zodiacs (ie Zodiac brand).
1. Clean off old glue using scraper and /or MEK.

2. Prep and final clean the surfaces to be glued with a cloth pad soaked with MEK which raises the bloom of the material.

3. Prepare timber battens as clamping pads for each side of the join to be made, as long as possible. If the join is for the whole of the bottom it will need to be done in sections. If it is for the transom to pontoon join, roll bent aluminium strips are recommended.

4. Apply Zodiac brand glue with accelerant mixed with it ( a 750 ml can with 3 small bottles of accelerant costs about $80 with precise instructions on the can), to both surfaces to be joined and allow to dry for 5 or 10 minutes depending on temperature and humidity. The ideal environment is air conditioned about 25 degrees with low humidity. Apply the glue with a short bristled brush. A 30 mm brush with bristles trimmed to 30 mm is ideal. If the glue goes milky it is too moist. A heat gun may work and apply another thin coat of glue.

5. Mate the two surfaces together accurately ensuring the edges of the floor coincide with the pencil marks that you previously placed on the pontoon.

6. Immediately clamp the joint with the timber battens and clamps no more than 100 mm apart. If you do not clamp the joint, you are wasting your time. Allow to cure for 24 hours.

If you are reglueing the whole bottom, the process will take about 3 days. If you have a section that has let go peel it back as far as it will go because if one section has let go, more than likely more will let go later.

This is the method the professional use. Anything less is a waste of time.

I've got a Walker Bay I've just replaced as it wasn't worth fixing anymore. Just as an experiment, I'm going to try and take out the valves and fill the tubes with expanding foam.