Welcome to ScubaBoard, an online scuba diving forum community where you can join over 205,000 divers diving from around the world. If the topic is related to scuba diving, this is the place to find divers talking about it. To gain full access to ScubaBoard (and make this large box go away) you must register for a free account. As a registered member you will be able to:
Participate in over 500 dive topic forums and browse from over 5,500,000 posts.
Communicate privately with other divers from around the world.
Post your own photos or view from well over 100,000 user submitted images.
Gain access to our free classifieds marketplace to buy, sell and trade gear, travel and services.
Use the calendar to organize your events and enroll in other members' events.
Find a dive buddy or communicate directly with scuba equipment manufacturers.
All this and much more is available to you absolutely free when you register for an account, so sign up today!
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact the ScubaBoard Support Team.
Hi. I've got a pair of stealth boots that's I've used maybe less than 6 times diving. Where the rubber at the top of the foot meets the neoprene it has begun to separate. Is this something that is a defect or just a result of use? What can I do to fix it ?
All SEASOFT's products have a minimum 2 year warranty. Obviously, we wish that there was never a defective product but things happen when you make 10s of thousands of products. As much as we hate it, bad stuff can happen. So here is the story, two steps really.
1. If the defect is in the first two years, then the regular warranty kicks in, you send original proof of purchase (to make sure you didn't buy it off ebay, it's stolen etc.) and the defective product to SEASOFT SCUBA, 2801 A Academy Dr., Auburn, WA 98092 We see the defect and repair or replace the product and send it back immediately with a couple of nice gifts in the box with the repaired/replaced product.
2. It has been past the two year period of time and now the "That Shouldn't Have Happened" warranty kicks in. Let me explain. Sometimes we buy products that we don't use as often as we like and a defect shows up past the warranty expiration period. The product looks new or almost new but the warranty has expired and you find the (in your case) the rubber is delaminating.
With most companies it would be to bad, so sad. BUT SEASOFT has the "That Shouldn't Have Happened" warranty. We inspect the product and even if it is out of warranty, if it is defective - we repair or replace.
Once in a great while we get a product back that is simply worn out, someone has dug through gravel to get lobsters and the kevlar has holes through it. These are tough because we want to make the customer happy but sometimes, there is just nothing wrong or defective. In those cases we try to give them a discount on a replacement product. In all cases we have to see the product first.
Occasionally, we get a customer who does not want to send back the product, they will ask if they can just take a picture and then destroy the defective product. Our answer is always no because we learn from every defective product. We NEVER stop trying to improve every product so when we autopsy a defective product we can sometimes find something that helps us do a better job with a different material or the changing of a design.
So there is my exhaustive reply to your question. The last question you ask is what can you do?
I have not seen the product so I always hate to tell you what to do. In my humble opinion, if there is the start of a de-lamination, you have to clean the area around it completely with fresh water first, dry it thoroughly, mix Aquaseal and Cotol to a wet solution or find a good quality wetsuit glue and thoroughly cover UNDER the de-lamination making sure that you can keep the neoprene against rubber until the glue can dry.
The hard part is that your repair will sometimes void the warranty. If you try a good professional repair like I described above, we would never void the warranty BUT we sometimes get products in that have 3 different kinds of glues spread all over and the original problem cannot even be seen. A messy repair like that means we cannot even try to repair it AND we cannot even tell IF it was defective.
Hi. I've got a pair of stealth boots that's I've used maybe less than 6 times diving. Where the rubber at the top of the foot meets the neoprene it has begun to separate. Is this something that is a defect or just a result of use? What can I do to fix it ?
I have the same boots with probably a couple hundred dives on them by now and mine are doing fine. I have SeaSoft boots, gloves, hoods and weights (belts and pouches) and they are some of the most durable equipment I've owned. Sounds like you just had some bad luck on yours like Bruce suggests.
All SEASOFT's products have a minimum 2 year warranty. Obviously, we wish that there was never a defective product but things happen when you make 10s of thousands of products. As much as we hate it, bad stuff can happen. So here is the story, two steps really.
1. If the defect is in the first two years, then the regular warranty kicks in, you send original proof of purchase (to make sure you didn't buy it off ebay, it's stolen etc.) and the defective product to SEASOFT SCUBA, 2801 A Academy Dr., Auburn, WA 98092 We see the defect and repair or replace the product and send it back immediately with a couple of nice gifts in the box with the repaired/replaced product.
2. It has been past the two year period of time and now the "That Shouldn't Have Happened" warranty kicks in. Let me explain. Sometimes we buy products that we don't use as often as we like and a defect shows up past the warranty expiration period. The product looks new or almost new but the warranty has expired and you find the (in your case) the rubber is delaminating.
With most companies it would be to bad, so sad. BUT SEASOFT has the "That Shouldn't Have Happened" warranty. We inspect the product and even if it is out of warranty, if it is defective - we repair or replace.
Once in a great while we get a product back that is simply worn out, someone has dug through gravel to get lobsters and the kevlar has holes through it. These are tough because we want to make the customer happy but sometimes, there is just nothing wrong or defective. In those cases we try to give them a discount on a replacement product. In all cases we have to see the product first.
Occasionally, we get a customer who does not want to send back the product, they will ask if they can just take a picture and then destroy the defective product. Our answer is always no because we learn from every defective product. We NEVER stop trying to improve every product so when we autopsy a defective product we can sometimes find something that helps us do a better job with a different material or the changing of a design.
So there is my exhaustive reply to your question. The last question you ask is what can you do?
I have not seen the product so I always hate to tell you what to do. In my humble opinion, if there is the start of a de-lamination, you have to clean the area around it completely with fresh water first, dry it thoroughly, mix Aquaseal and Cotol to a wet solution or find a good quality wetsuit glue and thoroughly cover UNDER the de-lamination making sure that you can keep the neoprene against rubber until the glue can dry.
The hard part is that your repair will sometimes void the warranty. If you try a good professional repair like I described above, we would never void the warranty BUT we sometimes get products in that have 3 different kinds of glues spread all over and the original problem cannot even be seen. A messy repair like that means we cannot even try to repair it AND we cannot even tell IF it was defective.
Bruce - SEASOFT SCUBA
Awesome response from a manufacturer. I just bought a pair of sunrays after glowing reviews by the gf. They fixed her foot f'in problem.
If the warranty doesn't apply, try Aquaseal......If you dive regularly you'll need it sooner or later anyway......Follow the directions and give it plenty of time to cure........get the pkg. w/the accelerator in it......The repair will last depending on how hard/often you dive and if it's salt or fresh water....I use it on my boots[same spot you have the problem] in both fresh/salt water and it usually lasts about 50+ dives before I have to reapply....Giving it plenty of cure time [the directions say 24hrs. but I give it 3-4 days] is important....The stuff is very sticky and can be messy...Wear gloves and don't get it on anything else, it's a pain to get off...Kinda like super glue........
If the warranty doesn't apply, try Aquaseal......If you dive regularly you'll need it sooner or later anyway......Follow the directions and give it plenty of time to cure........get the pkg. w/the accelerator in it......The repair will last depending on how hard/often you dive and if it's salt or fresh water....I use it on my boots[same spot you have the problem] in both fresh/salt water and it usually lasts about 50+ dives before I have to reapply....Giving it plenty of cure time [the directions say 24hrs. but I give it 3-4 days] is important....The stuff is very sticky and can be messy...Wear gloves and don't get it on anything else, it's a pain to get off...Kinda like super glue........
Great tip! I just picked up a tube of this stuff. How "sloppy" does the repair look afterwards? Is it possible to make it look clean? I just don't want to go through the hassle of a return and warranty claim, nothing against SeaSoft. Plus I've had the boots for probably 1.5 years, so for me it was just how long I've had them vs how many times I've used them. So I'm sure they're not covered anyway at this point.
If you are going to do the repair yourself then listen to j2s. He is a semi-brilliant man, maybe even brilliant. Aquaseal with Cotol is a great way to go. The Cotol is actually a number of things but it is a solvent that will "dilute" the Aquaseal to some degree which is great, it makes it easier to work with and giving it extra time to cure is really a great idea and one that works.
A couple of tips. Aquaseal is a VERY, VERY messy product. So get the Blue Painters Tape and tape off the area that you will be working. When you are done, take off the tape and it looks clean and professional. If a tiny bit of tape stays on, it will come off with water saturation. Also, dilute the Aquaseal down to about 1/2 of its original thickness, this allows you to get it into tight spots and not create "lumps" in the repaired area. The Cotol will evaporate and the Aquaseal will stick very well.
"Coastal Tradition", your boots are still under warranty if you have only had them for 1.5 years, we will do the repair for you if you would like. Send them to us with original proof of purchase and we can fix them and send them back within about 48 hours.
If you are doing your own repairs, the Blue Painters Tape is a wonderful addition to your neoprene repair kit. Thanks j2s for giving great advice.
If you have any further questions, feel free to ask me.
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by CoastalTradition
Cozumel here we come...Somebody call Wet Wendy's!!!!