Is it worth doing your own drysuit repairs, or are you better off sending them to the professionals? Kirsty Andrews gets sticky with it
KIRSTYANDREWS
DIY drysuit repairs
Is it worth doing your own drysuit repairs, or are you better off sending them to the professionals? Kirsty Andrews gets sticky with it
At some point during the heady diving days of last Autumn, I noticed that my drysuit was leaking. Specifically, in the crotch area. Some wear and tear in the derriere, if you will. It was mildly irritating rather than catastrophic, and the source of some amused remarks from my fellow divers. I would tend to remember it as I got into my drysuit and then immediately forget it again when I packed it into the car after a trip. There are those divers who are fastidious about such things, insist on a drysuit being what its name suggests. I’ m more of a make do kind of person and as long as I’ m broadly dry and happy, that’ ll do.
Using soap to locate the leaks
Mixing the solvent
Solvent application
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For a seemingly endless period at the end of last year and at the beginning of this, I didn’ t get a dive in- mostly due to rubbish sea conditions. You will remember I’ m sure. This would have been an ideal time to send the drysuit back to its manufacturer for a service and specifically patching the offending seams. Of course, I never got around to that. Week after week, I hoped I’ d be able to get in the water, so it didn’ t feel like the right time to send my essential wardrobe away.
Eventually I realised, drastic steps were
Ready for action!
“ Eventually I realised, drastic steps were going to have to be taken”
going to have to be taken. I was going to have to try to fix it myself, needless to say with the assistance of my helpful buddy / assistant. We had some two-part glue in the toolbox- what was the worst that could happen?
Since its last outing, so many weeks ago, my suit had been packed away in its box, dry- or so I thought. When I eventually got it out for an airing, the crotch was somewhat musty after four months of non-use, and in fact the leak had made its way to the boot, which was definitely damp- urgh. So job one was to dry it properly, with the assistance of a handy hairdryer.
Next, to find the leak. This was definitely the most entertaining part of the process, for one of us, anyway. We considered blocking the seals and inflating the empty suit, but thought it far quicker for me to don it and blow myself up like Mr Michelin. Then, judicious application of washing up liquid to the offending area, and wait to see where the telltale bubbles appear. At this point my buddy persuaded me, somehow, that a twerking motion was essential in pinpointing the leak. Hmm. It did work though.
Now for the tricky bit- or rather, suspiciously simple but high pressure. I had attempted to watch some YouTube videos but gave up – crikey, those influencers can go on and on. Not like my style, of dispensing only the essential facts. We carefully measured where the leak was so that we could find it on the reverse- measure twice, apply glue once, as the saying goes. I mixed up the two parts of the glue using a sacrificial stick, for several minutes, and applied several layers, before adding the heroic tape, the correct side up, and making sure not to leave any gaps for pesky bubbles to sneak through.
Did it work, I hear you cry? I might leave that to your imagination. Should you give it a go yourselves? Absolutely. I do think these are skills we should have in our personal toolbox. I also greatly appreciate the skilled professionals and will send to them next time. Probably. �