Replacing vinyl upholstery

[vicman]

I recently bought a Rinker 192, that had been sitting at a dealer all summer. We got a ton of rain this year in the South and apparently the boat sat outside, uncovered for most of the time at the dealer. The padding on the engine compartment was completely saturated and would not dry out. I took all the pads apart and let the foam and plywood dry. Under the vinyl there was a VERY thin plastic sheeting that looked like it may have been glued to the underside of the vinyl or part of the vinyl. It is unrepairable. When putting the upholestery back on, should I put plastic sheeting over the foam? If I wrap the foam and staple this to the plywood before putting the vinyl back on, will the foam not mold and mildew this summer? It seems like this would be good for waterproofing, but I am not an upholesterer and hope someone has done this before and can pass along some help. Thanks!

 

[EddiePetty]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

....actually, from my experience reupholstering seats and such, the primary purpose of that plastic is to allow the upholstery fabric to slide across the foam when assembling (just try to slip a seat cover over the foam without the plastic!!). Secondly, the plastic acts as a moisture shield to the foam.

FWIW....Ed in 'ol Virginny

 

[ziggy]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

i've never reupholstered so my comment may not count.

what i will say is that i'm sure i have plastic under my vinyl too. my thought would be that if it was there to start with, ya should put it back the way ya found it weather or not we know the purpose of the plastic or not. the oem in my case and yours too felt it was necessary. surely there must be a reason.... my boats much older than yours too. must not be a new idea apparently...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

yep it's there to allow the vinyl to slide... without it you have a better chance of tearing the vinyl when assembling and when using.... it should not be glued or otherwise attached to the vinyl though

 

[dg512055]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

I am currently doing the same thing, except replacing some wood. I found some ideal plastic at Wally World. It is a roll of painting drop "cloth". It is actually a 1 mil plastic sheeting that works perfectly for this. I thought that the plastic was there to keep water out of the foam. Someone else thought that the mfg. used it to vacuum the foam down while stapling the vinyl to the wood.

DG

 

[EddiePetty]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

....Someone else thought that the mfg. used it to vacuum the foam down while stapling the vinyl to the wood......

DG

Now that you mentioned it, DG: an old memory cell came back to life.
Too many years ago I was redoing the interior of a MG Midget. The seat back covers were impossible to slip on the forms, even with the plastic. As you indicated, I 'smashed' the foam down, stapled the edges, slipped the covers on and then removed the staples. Worked like a charm, and now, years later, the seats still sit like new.

FWIW...Ed in 'ol Virginny

 

[vicman]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

Will this plastic trap moisture or cause mold? Obviously mine did'nt because it was shredded. It only covered the sides and top and was not on the bottom that touched the plywood. The plywood was slimey and the water that was trapped in the cushion filler and could not escape. It seems like a good idea to keep lake water from getting to the foam, but I just wonder about condensate under the plastic that can't escape.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

both the plastic and the vinyl will trap moisture... that's why you wanna keep it as dry as possible.... it's the nature of the beast

 

[jeeperman]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

It is most likely rain water.
I had a bench seat out on the deck at the house. Never saw a drop of lake water in it's life.
But after a couple of years water would squish out when you sat on it.

Some vinyls are cheap and porous. Some are so bad you can blow air thru them.
Some people put the new foam in a plastic trash bag to seal it and to make it easier if the foam is to be slid or stuffed into the new cushion.
It is also said that without the plastic, the foam will walk or spin over time as the underside of the vinyl grabs the foam each time it is sat on.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

you can take a hole saw and vent the plywood if you want

 

[vicman]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

Makes sense to me. I'll put the plastic on and see what happens. If it's wrong, it will probably be years before it shows up anyway. Thanks for the help!

 

[PiratePast40]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

You mentioned that the plywood was wet and slimy. Best to go ahead and replace it while you have everything apart. It's old and probably has bacteria (rot) growth allready. If you don't replace it now, you'll probably have screws and staples falling out later - believe me - I know!:redface:

 

[lowkee]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

The plastic may aid in pacement, but that is not its purpose. The plastic is there to prevent the vinyl from shredding the foam. The backing of the vinyl will, over time, sandpapaer away the foam without the plastic sheeting to act as a lubricant between the two. If you are really worried about moisture, you can always replace the plastic with cotton batting, which does the same job and wicks moisture well.

 

[actionljackson]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

Vic when I redid my interior I wrapped everything with Tyvek house wrap.I figured it would work great as a moisture barrier as well.Help keep water out of my foam!

 

[vicman]

Re: Replacing vinyl upholstery

I appreciate all the advice, I now know it should be on there. I went ahead and finished without putting it on, but I am going to take it back off and do it right. It is a good project that can be done inside. Wife says it keeps me off the couch, watching TV anyway. Thanks for all the advice, I could'nt find much about it out on the net. Iboats sure has made things alot easier. Thanks again, guys!