Flex Seal

[kinto]

Have any of you seen those tv commercials for Flex Seal? It's apparently flexible rubber in a spray can, paintable etc.

I don't have any need for it at this point in my build, but it might be useful for some teardrop applications.

Hope everybody's doing well.

Kent
:)

[parnold]

Kent:

I'm pretty sure that is just overpriced undercoating. Of course I have not put a screen door in a boat to test my theory, but all of the advertised properties are the same as a quality undercoating.

[Oldragbaggers]

I was curious about that myself Kent.

[TheBizMan]

I bought some and used it on my house gutters and it seems to work. I'm going to try it on a leak I have in the TD. Will let you know.

[48Rob]

Kent:

I'm pretty sure that is just overpriced undercoating. Of course I have not put a screen door in a boat to test my theory, but all of the advertised properties are the same as a quality undercoating.
_________________
-- Paul --

I'm with Paul.

I believe it falls into the "consumers will fall for it because they want to patch something instead of making a proper repair" category.

If it is a rubberized product that is supposed to form a "membrane" of sorts with the "rubber content" that is good, as waterproofing is the goal, but remember that paint, or as Paul suggests, rubberized undercoating does the same thing, that is, forms a skin or membrane to prevent the intrusion of water.
Many so called "roof sealer, or gutter sealer" products in a spray can also contain an agent that causes the product to "foam" or expand, allowing the product a better chance to get into small holes or cracks, stopping leaks sometimes missed by a quick one coat application of a similar non expanding material.

It is probably a great product, but as with shopping at a 7-11 you pay for the convenience.
Probably get a comparable product at a farm store, or automotive store for much less.

One can seal a screen/screen door with plain old paint too...

If you do a quick Web search for "Flex seal review" there are a lot of pissed off people commenting...


Rob

[TJinPgh]

Wish I'd found this thread before I posed a similar question in the general forum. Probably because I searched for it before it was posted.

Anyway, I was curious about this product as well.

I'm not sure I'd believe that it's simply undercoating. Not that I've worked with undercoating but I wasn't aware that it was a rubber type product.

The reviews I've read about it online seem to indicate that it's a fairly decent product.

As for price? Not sure. $20 for 2 large cans that cover a total of about 24 square feet between the two of them. To cover an entire teardrop with it would likely be pretty pricey.

My thought was to just use it on the roof of a soft-sided unit. Could probably get away with 5 or 6 cans?

At any rate, will anxiously be waiting to see if it works.

-TJ

[LWW]

Buyer beware. My neighbor ordered some and like everything else you order off the TV you get twice the product for twice the price without even trying. A can of the spray undercoating will give you less hassel. Larry

[TJinPgh]

Good to know. Although, it can be purchased locally without having to pay for all the extra shipping and handling.

Still, though, the main question is whether or not it works.

[parnold]

I'm not sure I'd believe that it's simply undercoating. Not that I've worked with undercoating but I wasn't aware that it was a rubber type product.

There are different types of undercoating, and many of the better ones are made with rubber. Many call themselves "paintable" and if my memory serves me correctly, these are not rubberized. Here is an example of one of the good quality ones that I sell.

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/transtar-body-tec-quick-dry-rubberized-undercoating-p-16682.aspx

Here's another

http://www.johnsonautobodysupply.com/Rubberized-Undercoating.html

Either of these will do anything that Flex Seal will do as far as I know. Again, I did NOT build a boat out of a screen door, but I've been selling this type of stuff for almost 15 years.

[parnold]

Oh yeah, the floor of my tear was coated entirely with this product. It is a paintable version and yes it has rubber, but forms a harder surface than the other two I listed. Flexibility was not a concern of mine for the bottom of the trailer.

http://www.5starautobodyproducts.com/aerosols/5star/5981.htm

This product is close to half the price of the Transtar and Fibreglass Evercoat undercoatings.

[eamarquardt]

Watch out! The stated price is $19.95 for one and get one free. However, the shipping and handling charge is $9.95 for each can, so your two cans cost nearly $40.00.

Flex seal is available at Bed Bath and Beyond for $12.99 a can, which, when you factor in the TV/online shipping charges is a bit less:

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product ... =18744120&

3M (probably a more reputable company than Flex Seal) sells a similar product for just about the same amount of money:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3M-Dynatron-Dyn ... 507wt_1062

Permatex (another reputable company) sells a similar product for a bit less after factoring in that their can is only 9 ounces versus 16 ounces:

http://www.simsupply.com/p-32676-9oz-le ... ealer.aspx

These products probably have some genuine practical applications, but I think the advertising is more hype than substance. There are probably better, longer lasting, and more cost effective ways to fix things than using these products, IMHO. More "World According to Gus".

Cheers,

Gus

[parnold]

They all work great as UNDERCOATINGS! Go figure.

[eamarquardt]

I did a search on "Flex Seal Reviews" and it appears that most of the sites are further advertising sites for Flex Seal and paint glowing reports of how wonderful it is and conveniently have links to take you to the Flex Seal site where you can place your order.

http://www.jennyreviews.com/home-repair/flex-seal/

There are some interesting negative comments, primarily about the advertising and billing practices of Flex Seal on the Amazon site:

http://www.amazon.com/flex-seal/forum/F ... B004ICSMQ0

More on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Flex-seal-line-or ... B004ICSMQ0

Buyer beware!

Cheers,

Gus

[TJinPgh]

There are different types of undercoating, and many of the better ones are made with rubber. Many call themselves "paintable" and if my memory serves me correctly, these are not rubberized. Here is an example of one of the good quality ones that I sell.

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/transtar-body-tec-quick-dry-rubberized-undercoating-p-16682.aspx

Here's another

http://www.johnsonautobodysupply.com/Rubberized-Undercoating.html

Either of these will do anything that Flex Seal will do as far as I know. Again, I did NOT build a boat out of a screen door, but I've been selling this type of stuff for almost 15 years.

Paul, thanks for the info.

I'm curious. One of the things that attracted me to the Flex Seal commercial was the fact that the material stayed flexible once dry.

Given that my original thought was to do a tear that was completely clad in canvas, using the Flex Seal as a "roof coating" of sorts on the top, I would think that some degree of flexibility might be good?

If you sprayed those products you mentioned there on canvas, would they adhere? And, if they did, would they dry hard or flexible?

-TJ