Wanted - PVC/Vinyl cement for flexible PVC

[cl]

I'm trying to find a 'proper' glue that will 'weld' flexible PVC sheeting and I'm not having much success. Just about all of the advertised products that I can find do *not* truly weld the material and it can be simply peeled apart at the join.

The best I have managed so far is PVC pipe welding glue, for example Weld-On 725 Wet'R'Dry which certainly welds the material such that the joint is as strong as the material but it de-plasticises it considerably.

Is there any similar glue out there which will really weld the PVC but not de-plasticise it too much?

Can any plastic gurus out there help? FWIW the 725 Wet'R'Dry contains Tetrohydrofuran, Methyl Ethyl Ketone and Acetone.

[The Natural Philosopher]

MEK and acetone are enough to dissolve PVC and will weld it

The solvent CEMENTS also contain dissolved PVC to gap fill.

If by de-plasticise you mean loses flexibility, thatextraPVC is probably the root cause. You want pure solvent brushed on then a rolled lap joint alone. The only gap filler that might work is 'original' evostik..and that may or may not weld the plastic. If not, that too will peel off.

Similar stuff to solvent weld is in PVC repair kits.

Of course the best way is a pair of hot wheels to melt the plstic and roll a hot seam well along the length.

If you can afford a few grand for teh kit..:-)

[Gazz]

Back in the early nineties i was YTS at a commercial garage, and it was my job to be inside the curtain siders leaning on the board against the patch that was being 'welded' on to close up the knife slits all curtain sider trailers got when parked in certain laybys in the area,

The patch was cut from an old curtain taken off a wrecked trailer (just thick pvc, always blue back then for some reason) so no heat activated glue or owt (tho i believe the 'official' repair kits did have the heat activated glued patches) Anyway, they were heat welded using just a hot air gun and a steel roller wheel, the roller was nothing special, just a wooden handle and metal wheel with shallow ridges in it, but had to be pressed very hard against the backing board to ensure a good joint, and the 'skill' was getting the plastic to the right temp, which was not far below the point it began to bubble then turn black and crispy.

But once repaired like this, the splits never came open again, naturally that is, often we placed patches on patches on patches untill it became too bulky and the curtain get jammed in the end winder when rolling it up.