Repairing a bouncy castle thing

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 14:04

Not a bouncy castle so much as a bouncy water slide ... It's similar to a bouncy castle, in that it is continuously inflated by a fan.

Anyway, a neighbour gave this to us the other week as his own children are a bit old for it now, and we had it up in the garden yesterday. It was great fun, but when we switched the fan off, then inflated it again later in the afternoon, it wouldn't fully inflate. What seems to have happened is, the PVC airtight layer behind the nylon outer shell has become brittle with age and has separated away. The air is able to leak through the nylon, not very fast, but just enough to prevent the thing getting up to full pressure, and it starts to collapse when it gets climbed on.

This seems to have happened only on one panel so far, the one at the very front next to the air outlet. It is a fantastic piece of kit and I really don't want to have to throw it out, not least because we will never be able to afford to buy one ourselves.

So, has anyone got any repair ideas? I'm thinking that spraying or painting something onto the nylon outer to make it airtight might do the trick, but what?

---------- Post added at 14:04 ---------- Previous post was at 13:57 ----------

It's one of these ...

danielf · 03-07-2011, 14:13

Inflatable boat repair kit kind of thingy?

**Kymmy** · 03-07-2011, 14:18

Inflatable boat paint... You need the Nylon one and NOT the Hyperlon paint.. Not sure though how good it'll be on the slide portion..

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 14:31

Well, at the moment it's only the panel at the very front where the yellow nozzle is that has been affected, so maybe nylon boat paint will do it...

---------- Post added at 14:31 ---------- Previous post was at 14:21 ----------

Something like this?

http://www.ribstore.co.uk/shop/catal...00ml-p-37.html

**Kymmy** · 03-07-2011, 14:47

That stuff works internally and seals from the inside.. It could work but might be a pain to apply.. Also on inflatables it relies on the pressure of the chamber to force it through the cracks..

It will be too sticky feeling to use on the outside.

If it's just a small area then try ebay with a "Inflatable repair kit" search

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 14:54

The panel in question is probably about a sq. Metre in all ... Glueing something to the outside of it could be tricky. Thanks to the air vent it is possible to get a hand inside at that point ... I guess I could inflate the slide and then sponge sealant onto the inner surface.

I don't think I need to improve the airtightness by very much in order to get it back up to operating pressure. Given that it's already very old, and heading for landfill if i can't fix it, maybe just a simple layer of gloss paint on the outside of the affected area would do? Even if it needs re-applied every so often it may be better than simply chucking the whole lot away.

**Kymmy** · 03-07-2011, 15:17

Gloss will crack as it inflates, deflates.. You could try brushing on a layer of evo-stick and let it dry..

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 16:03

Well, for the moment everyone is highly amused by a large plastic tarpaulin spread out at the bottom of the regular garden slide. Add a hosepipe and a wee dash of Fairy and it's near-lethal.

Scrubbs · 03-07-2011, 16:05

I might try PVa as it is water proof and flexi bubble

and cheap or email the maufacturer?

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 16:06

Funnily enough mrs T suggested PVA but I thought it might be water soluble even after drying. It is a cost effective solution to at least try though. I may get myself a jerrycan of the stuff and give it a go.

Scrubbs · 03-07-2011, 16:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris

Funnily enough mrs T suggested PVA but I thought it might be water soluble even after drying. It is a cost effective solution to at least try though. I may get myself a jerrycan of the stuff and give it a go.

the main problem you might have is making it stick, I think I would roughen up the material if it is shiny but it's definitelyworth a go

**Kymmy** · 03-07-2011, 16:29

PVA is water soluble over time. hence I suggested the evo-stick

**Chris** · 03-07-2011, 16:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scrubbs

the main problem you might have is making it stick, I think I would roughen up the material if it is shiny but it's definitelyworth a go

It's woven nylon, definitely not shiny.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kymmy

PVA is water soluble over time. hence I suggested the evo-stick

I guess I'll see which is cheaper down at B&Q. It's not going to get used very often in this part of the world so cost is probably more important than the permanence of the repair...

budwieser · 03-07-2011, 18:36

What about a vulcanised rubber glue? That would be waterproof Chris.

**Kymmy** · 03-07-2011, 19:01

Vulcanising solution isn't exactly a glue, it's a rubber solvent that melts the two parts together. Doesn;t work too well on anything but Rubber to Rubber