Fabric gurus: Is my hammock at end of life?

[trick420]

Hi everyone.

I have an 11' custom made by user hk2001 that I got off the for sale forums in 2015 - it was used then and as best I can tell it was made by him in 2011 - 2012, so its at least 5 or 6 years old. Anyway, I have no idea the fabric, but it's a DL hammock and is pretty stout. **** comfy too.

Ok, on to the problem. The pieces of fabric at the top of each end where the zippers enter is something different from the rest of the hammock. This weekend I noticed that this fabric has changed in texture markedly. I showed it to my 10 year old son and we both touched it and agreed that it feels a lot like fruit roll ups. It's gotten a sticky/waxy feel and stiffened slightly. The foot end is worse than the head end. The head end looks like its just starting to degrade. It also kinda sticks to itself.





[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/pJ1W2ws.jpg{/IMG]



So I posted this in DIY since it's not a production hammock and it's more of a fabric question... So is there anything I can do here? Is this the beginning of the end of my hammock? Can these two pieces be removed and replaced with new?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Regards,
Jeff

[Otter1]

The end pieces are probably made with some polyurethane-coated fabric that is at the end of its normal life.

The rest of the hammock should be ok if inspection shows no problems. I say you can replace the pieces in question - PM hk2001 and ask his thoughts. Then let us know how it turns out.

[TrailSlug]

Hum, could it be that some tree sap has gotten on this? Have you tried cleaning this area or washing the hammock? That hammock looks like it's got a lot of years left so is there an ulterior motive here? Honey my hammock material is breaking down so I need a new one

[trick420]

Hum, could it be that some tree sap has gotten on this? Have you tried cleaning this area or washing the hammock? That hammock looks like it's got a lot of years left so is there an ulterior motive here? Honey my hammock material is breaking down so I need a new one

Lord no! I love this hammock!!!

So it's not sap. The end that is the worst is always covered by the bishop bag and I never hang without a tarp.

I haven't tried washing it. It's due. What's standard protocol for washing a hammock?

[gargoyle]

Replace the endcaps. It will take some care (and a stitch ripper) to deconstruct the seams and hems. Keep the caps for templates for the new fabric. Rebuild.

[trick420]

Replace the endcaps. It will take some care (and a stitch ripper) to deconstruct the seams and hems. Keep the caps for templates for the new fabric. Rebuild.

Ok. Definitely beyond my skillset. I’m a total novice with a sewing machine. May give it a go though.

[TrailSlug]

You may be able to contact your vendor or maybe some one like https://www.2qzqhammockhanger.com/ they do custom hammock modifications and may do this one for you.

[mudsocks]

The top-end of the hammock that is made from a different material (brown in color) is not load bearing. Either 2qzq or hk2001 can replace this. Probably you can too.

[hutzelbein]

The end pieces are probably made with some polyurethane-coated fabric that is at the end of its normal life.

Agree. But if it's simply the PU coating coming off, you can ignore it. I have never seen a reason why the end caps should be waterproof anyway. If your tarp is too short, the rain will not just hit the caps but also the uncoated hammock body. And if your tarp is long enough, the rain shouldn't come anywhere near the end caps. My most used hammocks don't have waterproof end caps, and I have never missed them.

Usually the PU coating will come off and leave the bare fabric. Washing might help with removing it, although it often takes more than one washing. I would ignore it and continue using the hammock. If you get the caps replaced, have them use an uncoated fabric. That way you won't have the same problem 5 years from now.

[Tucson Tom]

It certainly sounds like the usual polyurethane depolymerization. This is accelerated by moisture, i.e. being stored wet (or with any moisture). Because of this syndrome I have grown to hate polyurethane. But I don't usually see this problem for 10 years or so.

But I think hutzelbein has hit the nail on the head. There was no reason for these pieces to have been coated in the first place. The maker probably just used something they had on hand. A washing or two with harsh detergent is said to remove it -- or you can just ignore it.

In ancient tents I have that develop this problem, there is also a smell that I simply can't stand (and can't imagine is healthy" and that had caused me to retire, give away, throw away some of my old tents. Now I bend over backwards to make sure my tent is bone dry before getting stored.

If you are new to sewing, I wouldn't make this repair my first project -- but you should do a sewing project or two and then you will have confidence to replace these pieces if you want to do so.