How to Repair Inflatable SUP Board: Here’s How to save It!

When you go out on an adventure, it is inevitable that you come across new environments or territories that are unknown to you. These new places may have rocks and other sharp objects that can potentially damage your SUP board, even those that are inflatable. While your SUP boards may be vulnerable to damage, you can certainly prevent small leaks from getting in the way of your adventure.

In this post, we will be discussing everything that you need to learn about how to repair an inflatable SUP board. Hopefully, you get to apply this new knowledge for when the need arises. This article contains very easy to follow and comprehend step-by-step instructions so that you would not have a difficult time repairing your SUP board. Read on if you want to know more.

Materials for Repairing an Inflatable SUP Board

To be able to repair your SUP board right the first time, you would need the following tools:

        Patches 

• Brushes
• Tool Pen
• Glue
• Scissors
• Soap
• Piece of cloth

Step-by-Step Guide on How to Repair an Inflatable SUP Board

Inflatable SUP boards are tough. However, it is deemed important that you know how to repair one if you do get a tear or hole on it. For SUP boards that are made of urethane-coated material or PVC, there are certain glues that you can use as a patch. Oftentimes, the damages take the form of abrasion, especially in the coating. If that’s the case, you can easily fix this damage by painting a coating of urethane adhesive or any kind of abrasion-resistant and flexible urethane material. Here are the steps that you should follow:

• Find the hole simply by listening to the sound of escaping air. You may also try spraying on a soapy-water solution, then look for bubbles.
• Make the patch a couple of inches away from the said hole, in all directions. It should be noted that oval patches are the best ones for this scenario. You also should avoid using sharp corners, as they tend to peel over time.
• Gently buff the surface using fine sandpaper.
• Clean the surface using a solvent. You may opt using methyl ethyl ketone, along with alcohol or acetone.
• Ensure that loose drop-stitch strings have been pushed down below its surface before you begin applying the patch.
• It is very important to note that if the SUP board catches water inside, you need to get rid of it. To do this, simply remove the valve but be very careful not to lose the inner valve portion. When you see liquid, pour it out and as a preventive measure, dry it using a blow dryer to be sure that you have dried the remaining moisture.
• All solvents and adhesives contain toxic and flammable components. Therefore, it would be wise for you to wear eye and hand protection. It is also essential that you work in a well-ventilated area. In addition, we do recommend that you wear an organic solvents respirator.
• Apply about three thin coats of the urethane adhesive.
• Wait for at least three to five minutes between coating. This is to make sure that the solvents have evaporated before you apply another coating.
• Carefully roll the patch on the SUP board’s hole.
• Using a roller, thoroughly press the surfaces.
• You can also use a coating of the urethane adhesive to protect a scuffed or abraded area on your SUP board.
• Buff the area using fine sandpaper and clean it using acetone, alcohol or methyl ethyl ketone.
• Outline the area using masking tape.
• Paint a thin coating of the urethane adhesive.
• Apply a cure accelerator to make it easier for you to spread, as well as shorten the amount of cure time.
• Remove the masking tape after you have applied the urethane adhesive.

You may also follow these steps to repair your SUP board:

• Once you have gathered all the necessary materials for repairing your SUP board, clean the surface of the leak.
• As mentioned earlier, you can find the leak just by applying water to the area and noticing where bubbles seem to appear.
• Cut one piece of the patch that you can find in your repair kit if you have one.
• Depending on the area of the leak, it would be attractive and less noticeable if you match the color.
• Use scissors to cut the patch, which should be big enough for you to cover the leak entirely.
• Once you have cut it, you may clean it once again using a dry piece of cloth.
• When you have the patch ready, then it is time to apply the glue.
• Using your brush, apply glue to it and then to the patch, as well as the surface of your SUP board.
• It is advisable that you work your way from the center of the patch and then to the edges.
• Ensure that you have applied enough glue to the patch, as well as on the surface of the SUP board.
• Once you have applied enough glue, you can now attach the patch onto the SUP board’s surface.
• Make sure that you press the repair patch as firmly as possible on the SUP board. This is to ensure that all unevenness has been removed.
• When you have successfully glued the patch onto your SUP board, you may need to clean the entire area once more.
• Be sure to remove any kind of remainders coming from the glue.
• If you find it challenging to remove the excess glue, you may opt using acetone for that.

This is the part where you have successfully repaired your inflatable SUP board.However, it should be noted that you need to wait for at least 24 hours, to get the best results. We understand the excitement that you need to get it out of to the water as soon as possible but while the waiting time may be the hardest part in this process, we do recommend that you make sure that the glue has completely dried.

Conclusion

Now that we have discussed everything there is to know about repairing an inflatable SUP board, we trust that you will now be able to apply what you have learned here, in case you are dealing with a leak or a hole on your SUP. Just take note of the materials that you will need to be able to start the process as soon as possible.