Information on general Canvas & Vinyl fabrics & manufacturing

use warm (not hot) or cold water and a soft broom to scrub it with, stains may not be removed ,but anything that takes out stains also removes the waterproofing.

If you use a hard brush/broom you may scrape any treatment and wash it away with the water, in that case it may need reproofing (a different issue).

red dust (Australia's own) will work its way into the treatment eventually and should be removed asap.

yours is a longer answer, will get to it tomorrow.

There is no universal waterproofing, it depends on the original.

there are 4 types of waterproofing:
1: "Wax" based proofings, Bees-wax, Parafin wax etc. (thin-out/disolve with White Spirits)
2: Silicone water repellants (they may not waterproof)
3: PVC coatings for vinyls
4: Latex type substances.

Problem is: 2 Canvas producers in Aus use the "wax" type treatment, the 3rd one is a Latex type, All 3 are used in campers, so you need to find out what canvas is used. It is hard sometimes to tell the difference.

most imported tents/campers/other canvas products have a baked on coated plasticky type water"proofing" made to look like good proofing.

You can't use wax on latex or PVC, it just washes of.

Silicone rejects wax and may leak along the join.

PVC is only good for Vinyl.

And hardly anything sticks to polyethelene (except everything you don't want)

Incidently, Contact Glue used by many people for repairing canvas/vinyl in an emergency, is the bain of canvas repairers as most times it goes hard and is VERY difficult to remove and difficult to sew through. Better to use Silicone Glass Sealant which stays flexible and is easier to remove but mat take a while to set.

You can also use it to glue the flap on re your Q3.

Q2: The most usefull item is a Wax stick or Candle but it mainly depends on the original product.


Hope this helps.

Thanks heaps BR. Much appreciated.

Sometimes people have to be promted to ask, some of them think it makes them look silly, but unbiased knowledge of canvas & its uses is not readily available except from makers that just want to sell their own stuff,

The reason I will not reflect on other makers products, (although I also have bias sometimes) is that everybody (or most) people have bought "the best" in their eyes, otherwise they would not have bought it. Sometimes I have to walk a very fine line.

regards, BR.

ps, Victoria, Melbourne

I have always thought that some of the most relevant threads should be "sticky", ie: tyres, fridges, solar/batteries & now canvas care.

It may save a lot of bandwidth by stopping the same questions being asked ad nauseum.

Two reasons for anononimity is that, as soon as I become an advertiser I become biased, and I can now answer in my own time.

I do apprecaite your suggestion, thanks.

Other members will have to take up your thoughts with Exploroz to get this rolling.
Regards. BR

is Bivouac the canvas or the Brand of the tent? there is a Bivouac canvas made in Australia , not sure that it was made 17 years ago.

Bivouac is the canvas. Tent made by Halls Canvas Goods in SA. Just looks like most other good solid canvas.

Bivouac is an 8oz canvas made by Wax Converters (name of the company) in Sydney, They do sell their waterproofing as an aftermarket item through various outlets, contact them to find your nearest or most convenient one. It is classed as a "wax" based waterproofing. use a soft broom & bucket or roller tray to put it on and spread it as quickly as possible, the canvas does not need a lot of proofing in a small area, just enough to penetrate into the fibres.

all you can do is try to disolve the excess wax. But it will most likely also disolve the waterproofing of the canvas and take the colour with it, Maybe better left alone. Unfortunately the choice is a waxed area that is more waterproof or a totaly faded spot on your camper, that has very little protection as it is the colour that stops the sun from burning the canvas fibre.

is the fabric canvas or vinyl?

Hi BR the fabric is Vinyl. Thanks

If the vinyl has stiff (hard/cracked) areas in it on the sun side it will be very hard to handle under a sewing machine without damaging or destroying it. The alternative is to get a PVC seam sealer/glue (Acetone/Ketone base) which will glue the seam(s) back together and at the same time fill up the stitching holes . Glue is made by Chemtex in Melbourne available from CanvasCraft (Mordialoc) Melbourne. Contact Chemichal Technology P/L for other & interstate distributers.
This way you don't have to remove the awning from the caravan.
Make sure the vinyl is clean, dry and free from dust before using this product.

Thank you for your advice. It is very much appreciated & will probabley save me heaps. Best wishes.

Looks like it, I'll live.

No, not all wax proofings are the same, the ones from Bradmill or Wax Converters have mildew & rot resistant addetives.

The wax (or most other prooing agents for that matter) does not protect the fabric against the UV from the sun, Only the colour in the original proofing ,or fabric dye before proofing, will do that. to check the amount of protection left, compare the colour on the inside (or unexposed area) to the faded side, if there is a lot of difference you have lost most of the protection as well as a lot of the waterproofing.

HI, You are right, a bit of glue and a vinyl patch will do the same as any canvas repairer can do, sewing it on would still need sealing. Any acetone/ketone based glue that does not go hard will do, but if you want the right stuff, check one of the previous replies for details re CHEMTEX .

Thanks BR, your info is much appreciated.

cackles

Hi Fergus,

Mould grows fast under humid conditions (moisture) and can be on inside or outside of tent or both.

I will abbreviate a copy of the "Bradmill" treatment for you, although lengthy.

A bottle of White King bleach , a bucket of water and a medium stiff brush or broom.

Most tenting fabrics are NOT colourfast and the mixture should be tested first on an non important section of the tent. if it discolours , weaken the strength of the mixture. Bradmill tenting fabrics are classed as colourfast for this treatment.

Use it outdoors and if possible pitch the tent, tight.

Mixture: 1 part White King + 3 parts water , No other chemicals or cleaners.

Apply solution to fabric at a rate that penetrates the fabric.

Let it work for 15 minutes and thoroughly hose of with water until water is clear.

If the MOULD is not removed, let it dry and repeat procedure.

DO NOT TRY TO REMOVE, or concentrate treatment on, BLACK SPOTS or stains as that may damage the fabric, only kill the mould & spores. Unfortunately, you may be left with those.

Do not leave mixture on canvas for longer than 20 minutes,

It is not a reproofing agent , they can seal in spores, which may be your problem. If tent needs reproofing you have to use a similar or compatible substance to the original proofing, if possible.
Check with previous answers in feedback for more info>

Read safety instructions on White King bottle. Wear rubber gloves and avoid contact with skin & eyes. If splashed, wash with plenty of water. WATER RESTRICTION? IT CAN BE CLASSED AS A HEALTH ISSUE.
It will yellow your lawn but will grow out, otherwise use another spot. It may do worse to plants, flowers & shrubs. so choose the spot carefully.

*White King is a product of Kiwi Brands Pty.Ltd.
* "Duradux" is a reg brand of Bradmill Pty.Ltd.
(freecall 1800 33 77 41)

Q1: Re your Q about maintenance of canvas annexe, The 2 major destroyers of canvas are: UV as in strong sunlight which you will get plenty of in Aus, but only when in use, and moisture left in canvas when packed away or aquired during storage. In my experience of repairing canvas products, several major causes are identified .

1; Product (Tent, Annexe etc) stored in a bag with a canvas bottom and then placed on a concrete floor in EG: garage, shed, Concrete usually retains a lot of moisture which willbleed and be drawn through the canvas bottom into the product and eventually create mold and rot.

2: Stored in a shed, garage (or galvanised steel box) with a tin roof, Condensation from the roof picks up chemicals created by electrolises(spelling?) which drips onto the goods and can cause a lot of damage as well as mold and rot.

3; Moisture left in canvas can start a mold cycle after as short a time as 10 days.

Most Australian canvas will withstand many years of handling without much damage unless you drag it across a hard surface and provided it is packed/folded away dry and stored in a place that is low humidity, it should not deteriorate while in storage.
Folding it won't damage good canvas, unless the product contains polyethelene fabric, such as mudflaps etc,

Most good annexe canvas will last at least 4 years of continuous exposure to the weather, so generally UV is not an issue in short term use, only in long term exposure. (Outside canvas Awnings are a good example, many of which are 25 years old or even more)

The question raised about the Vinyl roll out awning crazing, This is caused by the platicizer evaporating (leaching out of) the vinyl by the sun, and unfortunately very little can be done about it, other than put a seperate cover over it when at home. (that may be a pain to do every time). Moisture will only affect the sewing thread in this product, which will deteriorate in the sun and when rolled up wet.

Hope this is usefull to you, regards BR.

Thanks for your response BR.

Regards, Trevor.

Hi, KiwiAngler.

Wth regards to the vinyl cover, you must supply measurements to the canvas maker because:

Vinyl generally SHRINKS under extreme heat conditions, once you remove it from the roof top camper it will not have the same measurements as the original. Re zipp etc, for reasons ,see reply 13 and some others.

I suggest not to use canvas as it has to withstand all the mud and slush thrown at it while traveling and remain waterproof under all conditions.

iIn our trade, back engineering generally does not work for getting accurate measurements.

Also, If made from canvas, the maker will have to allow for shrinkage.

The best material to use for travel covers is the Tonnoeu material with a Polyester backing, very stable, does not shrink and is very high UV resistant, that is why they use it for the back of Ute's and marine covers. It also won't allow water to bleed through under all conditions.

Regards, BR