How do I glue a cut / tear in the wetsuit ?
Small fingernail cracks generally have no effect on the gliding behavior of the wetsuit, but they do look unsightly. They should be glued to prevent further tearing. There is nothing against doing this yourself with a neoprene glue and appropriate instructions. Larger tears to the inner material, however, belong in the hands of professionals to repair them professionally. We would like to give you a short instruction how you can repair smaller damages yourself, so that you can enjoy your wetsuit as long as possible.
1. material | You need neoprene glue, if possible in black, a small piece of cardboard, a paper clip and a weight, e.g. a water bottle.
2. preparations | First, make sure that the areas to be glued are clean and free of grease. Bend the paper clip on one side so that you can then use it like a brush. Press a few drops of neoprene glue onto the cardboard and mix it with the paper clip until a drop adheres well to the clip.
3. applying the neoprene glue | Fold the neoprene suit so that the tear is open and easy to work with. Transfer some neoprene glue with the paper clip to the area to be glued and spread a thin layer of glue on both sides of the tear.
4. drying of the glue | Wait a few seconds until the glue has dried slightly and changed color from shiny to matte black everywhere. Blow lightly on the glue to speed up the drying process.
5. weighting the neo | Join both sides of the tear exactly on top of each other and fold the wetsuit with the glued area facing inwards. Weight down the folded suit with a weight, e.g. a water bottle, and let the glue cure completely for several hours.
