Seam sealing

Talk about anything.

Moderators: Bearbonesnorm, Taylor, Chew

Post Reply
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

Quick question as I've not done it before ,thinking about seam sealing my gatewood as it's a thinner material than the old one ,do I need to dilute the silnet before I apply it or does it just go straight on
Cheers
User avatar
Bearbonesnorm
Posts: 23904
Joined: Sun Jun 05, 2011 8:53 pm
Location: my own little world

Re: Seam sealing

Post by Bearbonesnorm »

Either will work fine. Just remember less is more as a big thick line will sometimes pull off.
May the bridges you burn light your way
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Re: Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

Cheers Stu
User avatar
Bearbonesnorm
Posts: 23904
Joined: Sun Jun 05, 2011 8:53 pm
Location: my own little world

Re: Seam sealing

Post by Bearbonesnorm »

Try and work it into the stitching, rather than just laying it on top. The most likely spots for leaks are the end panel tie-outs.
May the bridges you burn light your way
User avatar
benp1
Posts: 4051
Joined: Sat Dec 07, 2013 7:36 pm
Location: South Downs

Re: Seam sealing

Post by benp1 »

When I did it on my TrAliStar I thinned it down a bit and used a cut down sponge to apply. There's a good technique video from one of the US cottage manufacturers - tarptent or mountain laurel designs maybe?
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Re: Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

Cheers Ben just had a quick look at the video ,looks like that's my Friday morning sorted ,just have to keep the dog out of the garden ,the little sh1t eats anything so the Cape and Stu's pole wouldn't be there very long :lol:
ssnowman
Posts: 497
Joined: Mon May 11, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: London

Re: Seam sealing

Post by ssnowman »

Is seam sealing definitely required?

I was going to try mine without it to see how it fared.
May satan walk with you
Bumpy Jonas
Posts: 56
Joined: Tue Jul 09, 2019 5:42 pm

Re: Seam sealing

Post by Bumpy Jonas »

I usually try stuff under the hose or something before I seal it sometimes its not required. Sealed a Lux Octopeak and at the start of a 3 month tour it leaked like a sieve. My mistake was using the crap silicone supplied, putting it on thick even though I thinned it a bit,not pulling the seams taught and not working it into the stitching. I think its Tarp Tent that has a good video on how to do it properly. Cheers
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Re: Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

ssnowman wrote: Wed Sep 11, 2019 8:15 pm Is seam sealing definitely required?

I was going to try mine without it to see how it fared.
Stu said he never bothered ,but it's 20d fabric ours are 15d so for the time it'll take and as I have a tube of silnet anyhow I don't think it'll hurt , especially before the autumn sets in
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Re: Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

ssnowman wrote: Wed Sep 11, 2019 8:15 pm Is seam sealing definitely required?

I was going to try mine without it to see how it fared.
Just pitched mine as I was gonna do it today before the rain started :roll: and from inside you can definitely see the holes where they've stitched it so I'm thinking it's definitely a better bet to do it
ssnowman
Posts: 497
Joined: Mon May 11, 2015 1:38 pm
Location: London

Re: Seam sealing

Post by ssnowman »

middleagedmadness wrote: Thu Sep 12, 2019 11:58 am
ssnowman wrote: Wed Sep 11, 2019 8:15 pm Is seam sealing definitely required?

I was going to try mine without it to see how it fared.
Just pitched mine as I was gonna do it today before the rain started :roll: and from inside you can definitely see the holes where they've stitched it so I'm thinking it's definitely a better bet to do it
Thanks. I'd better do mine then!
May satan walk with you
User avatar
Jurassic
Posts: 1148
Joined: Sat Nov 14, 2015 10:46 am
Location: Helensburgh, Scotland.

Re: Seam sealing

Post by Jurassic »

I seam sealed my Gatewood Cape last night, it was really easy using Silnet diluted with a little white spirit. I've done a few silnylon tents in the past and this was probably the easiest to do thanks to the rear/side panels being all one piece (meaning far fewer seams to seal than usual).
middleagedmadness
Posts: 1799
Joined: Wed Nov 01, 2017 6:37 pm
Location: Tir Na Nog

Re: Seam sealing

Post by middleagedmadness »

Yep done mine yesterday too ,didn't take long ,think I may have over diluted ,but put the hose on and everything is dry inside ,followed Stu's less is more on the basis I can give it a second coat if needed , hardest part was keeping Guinness the staffie from eating the pole and trying to attack the strange looking structure in the back garden :lol:
User avatar
BigdummySteve
Posts: 2974
Joined: Sun Nov 20, 2016 9:16 pm
Location: Somewhere over the rainbow

Re: Seam sealing

Post by BigdummySteve »

Probably ought to do my deschutes at some point. Must have about 10 nights in it so far and no rain yet :-bd
We’re all individuals, except me.

I woke up this morning but I’m still in the dark
Post Reply