Patch a wing bladder pinch flat and prevent?

[ams511]

If you want the best patch, quick, easy, and permanent, try this:

TEAR AID TEAR-AID® Fabric and Inflatable Repair Patches | West Marine

There are two different ones, the tan box is the one you want.

The tan box is type A, which is what Zeagle puts in their repair kits.

---------- Post added March 24th, 2015 at 04:44 AM ----------

Aquaseal has a life and will start peeling sometime in the future. When it does, peel the whole patch away and cover the hole and about an inch out with 3M Marine 5200. That's it. It's real simple, no buffing, no hoping, just put it on and leave it until the next day.

I looked it up at Amazon and it says it takes 7 days to cure. Is there some type of additive that speeds up the process?

 

[lemke]

I attached a length of clear 1/2" nylon hose (slit lengthwise) with some zip ties to the bottom of my plate.

@Tobin... 50 bucks to repair a singles wing? You charged me over a $100 a couple months ago, damn.

 

[stuartv]

I inflated my wing yesterday morning, as full as I could with the oral inflator. It was still fully inflated this morning. I think my patches worked.

Lessons learned:

It is very easy to get a pinch flat, even when you know how they happen and you try not to let it happen. This is the most common type of damage that happens to wing bladders. Dropping the corner of a steel back plate onto a wing from a height of more than 6" will very likely damage any wing's bladder.

It is very easy to patch a pinch flat quickly and cheaply, if the wing provides access to the bladder. So quickly, in fact, that one doesn't even have to miss a dive.

Conclusion: Only buy wings that give access to the bladder so that I CAN do a field repair if it happens again and if the damage is amenable to a field repair.

I'd rather have 5 pinch flats that I'm able to fix and keep diving than 1 pinch flat that requires me to seek a replacement BC (or buy and carry a whole spare wing - especially when I'm traveling by air to my dive destination) in order to continue with my dive plans.

 

[cool_hardware52]

I attached a length of clear 1/2" nylon hose (slit lengthwise) with some zip ties to the bottom of my plate.

@Tobin... 50 bucks to repair a singles wing? You charged me over a $100 a couple months ago, damn.

You must have needed something *other* than a bladder. Check your invoice. Our bladders have been $50 for a long time.

Tobin

 

[stuartv]

When I called, the lady I spoke with quoted me $50 to replace the bladder and, I *think* she said $100 if it needed a shell. She didn't make it clear whether the $100 included shell and bladder or just shell. Since I knew I only had a bladder problem (LOL), I didn't attempt to clarify, and assumed that shell and bladder would be $150. After all, that's almost a whole new ($305) wing.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I attached a length of clear 1/2" nylon hose (slit lengthwise) with some zip ties to the bottom of my plate.

@Tobin... 50 bucks to repair a singles wing? You charged me over a $100 a couple months ago, damn.

Exactly what I was thinking.. DIY for $2,,

 

[buddhasummer]

When I called, the lady I spoke with quoted me $50 to replace the bladder and, I *think* she said $100 if it needed a shell. She didn't make it clear whether the $100 included shell and bladder or just shell. Since I knew I only had a bladder problem (LOL), I didn't attempt to clarify, and assumed that shell and bladder would be $150. After all, that's almost a whole new ($305) wing.

$150 is less than half the price of a new wing. There's not much more to a wing than the bladder and shell. Even if that was the price seems cheap to me for an almost new wing. Anyway glad you got it sorted for pennies hope it holds up, sounds like it might.

 

[stuartv]

$150 is less than half the price of a new wing. There's not much more to a wing than the bladder and shell. Even if that was the price seems cheap to me for an almost new wing. Anyway glad you got it sorted for pennies hope it holds up, sounds like it might.

That was my point. That you're getting almost a complete whole new wing that normally costs $305, for $150.

 

[buddhasummer]

That was my point. That you're getting almost a complete whole new wing that normally costs $305, for $150.

I apologise, I misread.

 

[lemke]

You must have needed something *other* than a bladder. Check your invoice. Our bladders have been $50 for a long time.

Tobin

"Inspect and repair a pinch flat with new bladder and new wing locator push tabs."

I didn't realize the push tabs were $50. I remove them anyway, and use something a little different.