07/15/2026
GALA FINAL REVIEW…
When glued PVC seams blow due to over-inflation, the fabric often gets stretched. As you can imagine, that creates a bit of a challenge with regard to regluing the seam without any puckers, wrinkles, or bubbles.
I have tricks to sort of negate that stretch, and had to use those here. The factory lateral seam had a wonky cut at the edge; it didn’t make for great coverage where it meets the vertical seam. I made a minor adjustment to get that to sit a bit better.
Adding the sealant to the seam prior to placing a reinforcing patch, or gluing the seam strips back, is a smart move. We now have a repaired seam with 4 reinforcement measures in place:
1. Exterior sealant along the seam (extending well beyond the area of damage,
2. The seam reinforcing strips,
3. The reinforcing/cosmetic patch; and
4. Exterior sealant around the perimeter of the entire work zone.
As a courtesy, we gave the vessel a quick cleaning to remove grime and to brighten the rubrail.
