The problem with polycarb conservatory roofs is firework night......
Anyway, after a stray rocket punched a hole through 2 of the 3 layers, I decided the cheapest way to fix it was to glue a patch in place. The patch I have scrounged, but not the glue, which I think needs to be a solvent glue given the exposed position. I understand things like methylene chloride are appropriate, but is there anywhere on the high street that sells suitable stuff - and is there a trade name to look for?
TIA.
Some paint strippers are based on methylene chloride. You could experiment trying to use a thin layer for solvent weld.
Mthylene Chlride I don't know, but,..
Methyl Ethyl Ketone = Model aircraft Dope thinners.
Also PVC weld usually. With PVC in it.
Acetone - nail varnish remover.
However I am NOT sure polycarb dissolves in anything..maybe silicone is best bet?
There was a similar thread a week or so ago about welding Acrylics.
From what I remember of the trade films they showed at school there is a big difference in the results if the best solvents and techniques are used, Viz Re: acrylics chloroform was the solvent of choice permitting crystal clear joints to be made in Perspex. That's from an ICI film. Seems to me it would be worth the cost of a telephone to the tech support dept of your favourite manufacturer of polycarbonate roofing.
As an alternative if it was (someone elses) Bonfire Night rocket could there be a better subject for an insurance claim?
DG
The "glue" for perspex is Tensol Cement, which is perspex dissoved in chloroform. Dad had a can of it which still worked OK a few years ago, in spite of the label on it which said "Use before Aug 1969".
Superglue works quite well as a solvent weld too, as the solvent dissolves perspex.
Don't know if either would work on polycarbonate though.
You could try this place which sells dichloromethane as an adhesive for polycarbonate.
Derek Geldard wrote: ...
Thought of that one. But three weeks after the fact, it would have been a bit difficult to prove to an insco's satisfaction whose rocket it was. /Much/ easier just to patch it up. If I can get the glue :-)
Looks like westward are a possibility (thanks SF), if they'll sell small amounts. I do wonder if the stuff can be posted though!
Methylene chloride, otherwise known as dichloromethane, Cl.CH2.Cl (although it's obviously not a chiral molecule), Me.Cl2, DCM. The dominant factor in the molecule's construction is the high electronegativity of the chlorines creating a strong dipole. [REORDERING]
The last time I looked at or smelled PVCweld, it contained DCM/ MeCl2. If it does, and it's *fumes* are capable of misting the surface of a piece of polycarbonate, then you can distill the DCM out of the PVCweld. IIRC the boiling point of DCM is around 35 Centigrade, so you'll need to be packing you receiver in ice, or doing the distillation in the fridge. Depends on what equipment you have to hand.
Both have a dipole due to the electronegativity of a single oxygen atom, and both have the positive end of the dipole dispersed into a C2-long chain, which reduces the gradient of the charge separation. I don't recall acetone as having any effect on most clear plastics ; I don't know about MEK.
May well be. It's quite possible that a "polycarbonate" is actually a copolymer with something else, and that down at the molecular level you can weld the two items by solvent-welding the second polymer.
Going back to the original question - didn't NitroMors paint stripper contain DCM?
================================== Not very elegant but quite practical:
Cic.
"Sorry, there are currently no matches for your search term 'flashband'. The closest match was 'flashing'." Did you mean 'flashband'???
----------------------------------
=================================== It should be showing 6 different sizes of 'Hi-Tack Flashing strip' and Primer to match. This is probably their own-brand version of 'Evostik Flashband' which is a self-adhesive roof repair flashing / bandage. It can be cut to any shape / size for roof repairs and will stick to almost anything either as flashing or as a patch. I used it on a polycarbonate shed roof several years ago and it's still waterproof.
If you can't find it from my reference try googling for 'Evostik Flashband' which should produce a result.
Cic.
Shouldn't be a problem. The most difficult things for postage are flammables and explosives (and carbide, which produces flammables when it gets wet). Methylene chloride/ DCM has been used in the past as the active ingredient in fire extinguishers - it's decidedly unflammable. It would need appropriate packaging, but that's not difficult.
Don't you have house insurance then? Rather than bodge it get the sheet replaced properly and be done with it.
Yes - it's a trade-off between losing no-claims bonus or patching until the whole roof needs replacing. As a judgement call, no-claims wins.
The message
from cynic contains these words:
It's generally unwise to claim off insurance if your claim is less than about £1000.
If you claim then
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