Waterproofing nylon?

[sidmarx]

Does anyone know if it's possible to squeeze silicone sealant from a tube, thin it with, say, gasoline or diesel, then paint brush it onto nylon as a waterproofer?

Sidmarx

[angrysparrow]

It is, but you don't want to use diesel/gasoline. Try mineral spirits instead.

There was another thread about that here.

[sidmarx]

But that's the problem... i live in Thailand and can't find anything that exotic.

[shrek]

That's a tough one. Mineral spirits would be best, but I have seen other forums where they mention it is not available where you are. I would probably stay away from a petroleum product or maybe even paint thinner. I have a fear with using these types of solvents with nylon. There is a good chance they could damage or dissolve your material.

[sidmarx]

2day i found a can of 'kerozene' (label in thai and english) in a paint store. Having used kerosene stoves i know that min. spirits, recommended in an above reply, is actually clear kerosene. I've smelled the similarity. Anyway this can was on a shelf with the solvents, so presumably it's cool to thin some paints and clean brushes with the stuff.

(when i say it's kerosene, it burns the same in kero stoves which gas and naptha won't.)

sidmarx

[viix]

you might want to do a spot test first.. I know in south east asia, most of the paint thinners & petroleum products contain some synthetic solvent which will eat away plastics.. I did tried a few solvents to remove paint stains only to ruin my plastic fittings..

I feel your pain, as it's dang hard to find any non synthesize thinners here..

[BrianWillan]

It is, but you don't want to use diesel/gasoline. Try mineral spirits instead.

There was another thread about that here.

Denatured Alcohol would also work too and should be readily available at any hardware or woodworking supply store. Beyond that if you can get some high proof alcohol really cheap (75-80% range) that should work too. I know that may be viewed as sacrilege by some, but when options are limited, you have to adapt and overcome.

Cheers

Brian