DIY Gear Tips: Making Your Own Silnylon Seam Sealer

[@WillN2Go1]

Great tip thanks. I did this with the same GE 100% silicone caulking in the 'toothpaste' sized tube (it doesn't dry out as fast as large tube does). Unable to find 'Mineral spirits,' I used 'Paint Thinner' Worked fine. I actually prefer this method to using Sil-Net and Seam.... (which is a urethane and so won't work on silnylon, but silicone seems to work on everything). I use the small 'flux' brushes that can be bought 4 to a pack at Home Depot or in much larger quantities on Amazon. I also just kind of mix it as I go along. I end up with a thicker blob and a lot of liquid in my jar, but they both seal, one's more 'gap' filling, the other more brush on. I just made a pair of waterproof mitten covers in Silnylon. I painted on some of the thicker mixture on the palms and thumbs for grip. I also thinned Sil-Net using the paint thinner. (It has a different smell than the GE, but they both work about the same.)

[@kan-zee]

That's really kewl..I just picked up a Big Canvas Car cover on sale for only 6 bucks...and will be trying this out as a day hike shelter tarp once I modify it and Water proof it...but this is just the vid I needed to see, for sealing up some of my stitches..cheers..ty so much ..have a dry outdoor adventure ;-))

[@AshleyBoyd308]

Thanks for putting this series together. I am doing a new tarp soon and really enjoyed your tips.

[@breech123]

I have one swiss gear 3 person tent and one coleman 4 person tent with room divider. I do not see any description of tent material type on any of the labels or literature. Will this seam sealer recipe of yours work for any tent material? Or, do you know what tent material I have. I can probably answer any questions you have about my tents.

[@sanderbushcraft6999]

Good tip indeed, thanks ! Didn't know this yet, but it is very handy.

[@rickgruchy8621]

Very helpful Videos Joe. Thanks! I've started a couple of projects with silnylon and and getting ready to do a tarp but finding Odorless Mineral Spirits in my neck of the woods has proven difficult. I saw a video somewhere where a guy suggested Naphtha or Coleman Fuel to thin the silicon. I tested it with some scrap and it seems to work well. Are you aware of any reasons for not using Naphtha? Thus far, the only problem I have seen is that it is best to work in small amounts as the Naphtha dries faster. Thanks Again!

[@BackcountryBanter]

+Rick Grouchy I've never tried it, but I have heard that most thinners, including turpentine will work. I think the biggest issue is going to be scents getting locked in the silicon and sticking around a little longer than with odorless options. Not a huge deal but something to consider.

[@rickgruchy8621]

It seems that Naphtha does solve the odor problems. Looking forward to following your next adventure!

[@anthonysmith1616]

Rick Gruchy hi. Seeing as you have done this a few times have you ever had white stains on the material you have used? Just coated a black sock and it worked well but left big white stains all over? Please help.

[@robe4037]

Yes. Naphtha works better and dries quicker

[@SherwoodBotsford]

May find it mixes better if you put the thiner in the jar first. This way the silicone is coated with spirits as it enters.

[@flysubcompact]

Like homemade mixer bit. Had not seen that one. Thanks. Also, thanks for DYI's with the cam on a tripod. Much better than the Hero on the Head one for table top stuff. .

[@TacBlades]

Some great videos, I have just started out on making my own stuff, some on my channel. I used PU coated fabric, so needed a different sealer, after a lot of testing the best stuff for me was Marine Goop diluted with white spirit, cheap and amazing stuff.

[@Jobrewerful1]

Love that mixer!

[@trentonbilyeu]

you talked about making your own silnylon. What ratio do you recommend for that? And do you "paint" the tarp or soak it in a bucket and hang it to dry?

[@Bikepacking]

What water rating pu would it be ie thinking of doing the whole bottom of my tent floor which is pu3000 could I up the water rating by putting this on the whole bottom thanks

[@AlvaroDiazCastro]

Thanks ! I didn't know you can dilute silicone. We have other chemical called thinner I think is similar to "Klean Strip - Mineral Spirits" - But not odorless. I will look for it in art shops to waterproof my tarp seams. Great info.

[@jorgequinones765]

Hey man, will this work re coating a usgi poncho tarp? It has lost all it's waterproofness. Then, i have to mention it is a ripstop fabric poncho. Is there any problem with it? Cheers man!

[@gary18211]

I'm enjoying your DIY guides so far, I'm sure I will use them a lot when I get off the CDT at the end of the year. Any idea when you'll be back on the trail?

[@BackcountryBanter]

I'll be starting the PCT (hopefully) in a couple weeks. Can't wait!

[@gary18211]

Awesome! I'll be reading/watching your updates from the CDT!

[@BackcountryBanter]

gary zaborowski Sweet. How are you enjoying the CDT? It's on my to do list...

[@gary18211]

Not started yet, visiting some family down in Florida before I head out. Start on April 14th.

[@pekesrepose7363]

I found your video in search of making a custom tarp for my SUV. can I see a link to your video for seam sealing your tarp? thanks in advance

[@MeetMeOutside]

Great idea ! On a different subject, do you still feel that the La sportive wildcat shoes are a good choice for backpacking ? I am looking into another option for this season.Thanks for your input.Peace

[@BackcountryBanter]

I still love mine. They dry so fast and are just so comfortable. I'll be taking mine to start the PCT here in a couple weeks. That said, I always recommend trying them on before you buy them. Shoes are a very personal thing and depend greatly on your foot shape.

[@MeetMeOutside]

Thanks, I respect your opinion man. Best of luck to you on your trek ! I will be going out to the Sierra's or Trinity alps this coming August, can't wait ! Peace

[@DiGiTaLdAzEDM]

How hard is that stuff to mix by hand to a smooth consistency? I don''t have a drill. Also, will either Methyl Hydrate, or 99% Isopropyl alcohol work to mix with the silicone?

[@BackcountryBanter]

+DiGiTaLdAzEDM It's certainly doable, just not as time efficient.

[@BackcountryBanter]

+DiGiTaLdAzEDM I can't say if Methyl Hydrate or alcohol will work for sure. Maybe do some googling on that first. I would think that alcohol could work, though it might evaporate a little too fast to work well.

[@hobbitsrgr8]

DiGiTaLdAzEDM I tried rubbing alcohol and it didn’t work. The silicone didn’t dissolve at all.

[@jasoncampbell3188]

do you think one could get the mix thin enough to apply with a 2.0 head paint gun or a wag nor sprayer to do a full tarp

[@alstaubin3699]

Great video! Stupid question, but I have an inexpensive tent to start backpacking, I can still use this same method for the seams, wont hurt the material right

[@BackcountryBanter]

It depends on the material, but it should work for most backpacking tents. For non silnylon tents, seam tape is more effective. Either way, it shouldn't hurt the material, it just might not be very effective on non-silnylon (because it won't bond well).

[@blondiesmith9018]

seen this work on tents as well . im doing this its about $15 at lows i am going to have to seal a tent soon

[@reeggiee]

We don't have Mineral spirits here. What are my alternatives?

[@fergusrb]

I am thinking about getting a Warbonnet Super fly tarp. This you have to seam seal the pull outs. my question is with the Silnet do you have to thin it out the same way as your video? I have heard of people using Silnet and it leaking and the answer is to use thin coats. I could probably get all your supplies at Homedepot. Would there be any advantage of putting on more than one coat. Thanks for the info. Bruce from the City of Orange In Orange county California.

[@BackcountryBanter]

You don't have to thin it out (I didn't on my first tarp and it worked fine.) One coat should be just fine. Just make sure you pitch the tarp super tight, to give the silnet a chance to get into all of the needle holes. If you want really clean lines, consider using painters tape to tape off the lines.

[@fergusrb]

Thanks for the info. The pitch tight and painters tape are good suggestions.

[@bigmac3006]

Cant find part 2. Do you have a link?

[@johnellis4129]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2W5p5-Dh81kr6s

[@bigmac3006]

@@johnellis4129 Thank you.

[@johnellis4129]

@@bigmac3006 Your welcome. My pleasure.

[@BronsonQuinoa]

Is there any way to package this mixture to keep in the backpack for field repairs?

[@BackcountryBanter]

BronsonQuinoa I've never tried to do it, but I imagine that as long as you eliminate air flow (i.e. vacuum pack it maybe) it should stay malleable. If not check out SilNet seam sealer. It is expensive but comes in fairly small bottles that you could easily take into the field.

[@bucktown2938]

Will this work on a tent?

[@ChrisRedfield--]

mineral spirits as in naphtha?

[@anthonysmith1616]

Hi I have been trying this all day and can't get the silicone to break up like yours so it's all liquid. Mine has bits of silicone in it. I'm using pain thinner so mineral spirit and silicone. Thank you

[@BackcountryBanter]

Hmm... I wish I had some advice for you, but I've never had an issue with the silicone not breaking up. Stir even faster?

[@anthonysmith1616]

Joe Brewer hi. So I manged to get it to break down using a different type of spirit but one that was odourless. It worked great and the water runs off well but the material has white stains all over it, I'm using black material. Any ideas on how to not have these stains? I feel like I'm getting there now.

[@emberN]

WOOH! wait.. can you put it in a spray? l wish to put it on my shoes!!! =D

[@1217850]

Could I coat a full tarp made of ripstop with this and have it work well ?

[@1217850]

Well you answered the question in the video thank you

[@MrPop369]

Good tip.

[@NateGoesOutside]

Well done sir

[@whatsgoing_on8812]

Wouldn't it have been quicker to use the kitchen blender?

[@cz0zero]

does it have to be 100% silicone?

[@BackcountryBanter]

cz0zero yes

[@DiGiTaLdAzEDM]

This can also be used for repairs. I adhered a large (5"x7") patch of sil-nylon to the vestibule of my sil-nylon tent using GE Silicone II. I did not mix it with anything. It does have a slightly bumpy appearance on the surface, but not really a problem. It has gone though many storms, and is still like the day it was applied. Could you use Methyl Hydrate (i.e. danatured alcohol) as a mixing agent? I hate working with mineral spirits.

[@Domingjm2]

How has this held up?

[@BackcountryBanter]

Exceptionally well. It survived over 5500 miles of hiking and is still waterproof.

[@jeancary677]

fun fact thanks

[@ghostwatts7802]

I am looking into getting a stratospire 2 from tarptent.Should i just go over the seams or should i go over the entire thing?

[@BackcountryBanter]

+Ghost Watts Just the seams. If it has a bathtub floor, you'll want to do any seams on that as well.

[@ghostwatts7802]

Thanks man,You have helped me alot not just through this comment but from all the others i bother you with lol. 1 more question.Should i do both sides like say inside and outside? Would this be a timely thing but a good idea,Or would it be a waste of time and not really help?Thanks again.

[@BackcountryBanter]

Just do the outside seams. The main focus here is to cover up the needle holes created when the stitching takes place. Sealing the inside would just be redundant and add weight. Thanks.

[@ghostwatts7802]

Thats honestly what i was thinking lol.Thanks again man.

[@adastra3147]

This does not work it never dries

[@tradewater1]

This formula will not work. Use silicone adhesive and thin with naptha.

[@BackcountryBanter]

This formula does work and has held strong and remained waterproof for over 5,000 miles of hiking.

[@xyzdroneservices]

nice video, I need to seam seal a tarp and will try it your way. If you could watch a video that I made and tell me what I did wrong, would be very, very helpful. It was an epic failure and leaked as if there was no waterproofing at all on the tarp. look at my channel and watch "Homemade Silnylon Tarp by Mike Kovaleski, "failed when tested in rain" any ideas would be great.

[@BackcountryBanter]

I checked out the video. I've never water proofed an entire tarp before so I can't offer the best advice. Based on what I've read though, you've really got to get that silicon deep into the nylon to have an effective tarp. I think you want to make a slightly runnier solution, and use some type of vacuum to make sure the silicon is getting into the fabric. If you could somehow put the tarp and silicon mixture into a bucket, and then create a vacuum in that bucket, the mixture would soak into the nylon much better and likely be waterproof. If nothing else, just really work the mixture into the tarp by hand, over a longer period of time, by massaging it over and over. Wad up the tarp in mixture, then pull it out, then wad it up again, and repeat this over and over until the tarp is fully covered. Another option is to order silnylon from ripstop by the roll. They have great prices on silnylon. Though the cost may be more up front, it will likely even out given the amount of silicon/mineral spirits needed to waterproof a tarp, the time invested in doing so, and the overall effectiveness of the tarp.

[@xyzdroneservices]

Biophthera thanks. when I originally made it 4-5 years ago, I had trouble finding affordable silny

[@bigstick5278]

Seven minutes of redundant chatter 1oz, 1oz,1oz,1oz!! I tried this 1/1 and four days later still tacky? I did it on an old test tent, glad I did.

[@willownoel5017]

Get to it man you diddle around to much and get really boring.

[@Moodybootz]

Hey man I used regular ripstop nylon instead of silnylon, is this the route I should go? Or be using a different solution?

[@BackcountryBanter]

It is possible to turn ripstop into silnylon, but you'll need a lot more silicon and mineral spirits. Basically you can make a big batch and soak the tarp in it. It helps if you can place it under a vacuum. Honestly, I wouldn't recommend going that route though. It is messy and not nearly as consistent or waterproof as prefab silnylon. Plus silnylon can be found for pretty cheap these days. If you need it even cheaper, search for silnylon seconds.

[@Moodybootz]

Will ripstop be water resistant at all?? It will be for super early season in nice weather. Mainly to keep moisture and dew off my bad

[@BackcountryBanter]

It depends on the ripstop. Some ripstop has a DWR coating on it which will help to shed water, though it still won't shed water for very long before it wets out. It's not something I would use. If it actually did rain, it'd be really rough going.

[@Moodybootz]

Backcountry Banter hmm good to know man.. thank you

[@Moodybootz]

The only part I’m having trouble with is when you make your cat cuts and they meet at each corner, won’t there like just a sliver of fabric left for you to sew your circle reinforcements to?