Unused waders leak

[James Pondscum]

  Bought a pair of entry level of a top brand at the major fishing store, at a clearance price a few years back.       Put them in my closet for backup when my others fail. Leaked first time out. Sent both sets in [same waders] leaking at seems .  Brand says by manufacture date ten years old life of wader. I informed them never worn stored in closet.  Thinking of buying large tube of aquasil  and coating all seems or throw out or as some have advised take back to store and complain. Large tube aquasil pricey but so were the waders.  Also would it fix the seems.

[TnRiver46]

I’ve seen brand new 400 dollar waders leak, it can happen. If no refund is available, they can sometimes be patched. If you’ve got extra friends for muscle, you can turn them inside out and hang them up. Then fill them with a hose to find the leaks . 

[J Francho]

Patch them. 

[Sphynx]

Patch them if you can. All waders are going to leak sooner or later, just make sure whichever patching method you employ works with the material your waders are made from, not all patch kits work for all types of waders, a call to the wader manufacturer should be all that is needed if you are unsure about what material yours are, they'll probably have a patch kit they recommend. 

[gim]

Virtually every set of waders I've owned eventually wore out in the seam somewhere and started to leak after years of usage.  Usually it was right in the crotch where there was multiple seams.  Its tough to patch spots like that where there's pieces that are stitched together.

 

A couple times I did successfully patch other areas of my waders though that were not in the seam.

[Deleted account]

Waders leak, I think it's required by law...

[Darth-Baiter]

I have a pair of Orvis waders.  the first part of the owners manual was d**n funny.  it stated that the fish will still be there and to slow down putting on the waders.  hurried donning can result in tearing the waders at the boot, leg junction.   I think about it all the time when I am putting them on.  I can see how quickly pulling them on can separate some seams.

 

OP, I would patch yours.  maybe call the manufacturer and ask for repair recommendations?  I think my friend used a product called Tenacious Tape on his as a temp fix and it still holds.

[volzfan59]

How are you storing your waders? This part won't affect you, but I read years ago to make sure that they are dry, inside and out before storing. Also, store them hanging up, not folded. You can get heavy duty hangers at the dry cleaners. It's the type that they use on drapes, quilts, etc. I religiously follow those two rules although I can't lie, my ex-wife bitched about waders hanging in the spare bedroom closet. Could be one of the many reasons she has that title.

 

Seriously, I've got two sets of waders that I've owned for years. The neoprenes are well over 12 years old, the breathables are probably 8 or 9. I wore both last year and neither leaked. Both are BPS White River brand.

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, volzfan59 said:

This part won't affect you, but I read years ago to make sure that they are dry, inside and out before storing. Also, store them hanging up, not folded.

Back when I stream fished for trout, I had waders. Did exactly this - hung them up on a specialty hanger. They were bought in the late 70s...so 'old tech' - when I got out of stream fishing, I sold them and they were still leak proof...that was in the mid 80s.

 

Here - try these...$8 investment can save you bundles in the long run

https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/rackem-boot-wader-drying-hanger

[James Pondscum]

  This set of waders had never been used. They have been rolled up setting in a closet. Both sets leaking all through the seems . Are they worth spending 35.00 for a large tube of aquaseal and coating all the seems.

[MN Fisher]

9 minutes ago, James Pondscum said:

They have been rolled up setting in a closet.

That was a mistake - waders should never be rolled, folded, etc....should always be hung in a way to keep them straight.

 

9 minutes ago, James Pondscum said:

Are they worth spending 35.00 for a large tube of aquaseal and coating all the seems.

Depends - did they cost enough to make it worth your time and effort to possibly fix them, or is it worth it more to you to just replace them...only you can make that decision.

[WRB]

I would consider breathable waders in lieu of rubber.

Tom

[James Pondscum]

 They were 200.00 breathable stocking foot waders.

[WRB]

Did you contact the company who makes them?

Seam failure sounds like a production issue and they should offer you a replacement.

I used stocking foot breathable waders for over 20 years without any issues.

Tom

[OkobojiEagle]

Wear them and enjoy the comfort they do bring... even when they seep some water, they insulate you from the lake/stream water temp AND they protect you from the leaches that are guaranteed when wet wading.  There are many greater problems in life than seeping waders.

 

oe

[J Francho]

On 6/10/2022 at 12:25 PM, MN Fisher said:

That was a mistake - waders should never be rolled, folded, etc....should always be hung in a way to keep them straight.

I don't think so.  Waders are all folded up tightly in a box on store shelves and probably sit for who knows how long.  These were supposedly brand new.  If they were $200, it would be worth it to me to figure out the leak point and patch it.

[PhishLI]

On 6/10/2022 at 4:09 PM, James Pondscum said:

They were 200.00 breathable stocking foot waders.

Breathable waders develop seam leaks. Sometimes in 5 days. Sometimes in 5 years. Doesn't matter if they're $100 cheapies or $800 Gortex. There's not a person alive who's more insane than I am about wader care and maintenance, and I can't stop it from happening.

 

I wore a hole through a bootie's heel on the one pair of waders I owned that never developed a single seam leak. I cleaned them, hung them by their suspenders as usual, then waited for 6 months to attempt a repair. The season had just begun, so I bought a new pair. $200 Simms that had a crotch seam leak from the get go. They got swapped out. Anyway, the heel repair went perfectly, but somehow they developed multiple seam leaks just hanging there. Oh well. Just the cost of doing business if you like to wade, and that's mostly what I do.

 

BTW, holes are easy, and try it if you like, but seam leaks are a you-know-what-er. Hard to fix.

[GetFishorDieTryin]

It's worth attempting to patch them before you buy a new pair.  Just about all the waders I've bought in the past 20 years have come with a small patch kit.  

 

[king fisher]

     A little off subject, but I had a similar problem.  I have some pants that were new and stored in a closet at my cabin for 10 years.  When I flew there I didn't bother to bring any pants, because I new I had plenty there.  When I got to the cabin I  was surprised to find that for some strange reason all of my pants had shrunk.  The length was OK but the waist line had diminished significantly.  After 10 years your waders leak, and my clothes shrink.  I think this might be some kind of similar conspiracy.   

[J Francho]

[throttleplate]

On 6/9/2022 at 2:39 PM, James Pondscum said:

Thinking of buying large tube of aquasil  and coating all seems or throw out or as some have advised

I own pvc material type of waders and only use 3M marine Adhesive fast cure 5200.

This is the product many wader repair companies use but wont tell you how easy it is to use and cheap to buy.

 

Go to youtube and watch how to find holes in your waders by spraying rubbing alchohol on the waders and then patching with the 3 m product.

https://www.amazon.com/3M-Marine-Adhesive-Sealant-06535/dp/B098Q1YWWD