# Paco pad full of water



## caverdan (Aug 27, 2004)

Cut and dry. 😶


----------



## B4otter (Apr 20, 2009)

Yep. You will never get the foam inside dry unless you open the end that doesn't have the valve, pull the foam and dry, put back together and reglue. Consider replacing the foam if it's more than a few years old - like $20 for a new piece. If you can't get the end seam to peel (heat gun) just cut it open and shorten the pad by 3-4" - it will still be serviceable. Also consider corner condoms while you're cutting and gluing... will extend life and prevent recurrence of water entry.


----------



## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Cut and dry. Been there, done that.
My DIY pad already had a few open spots in the long seam and was a bit damp inside, but floating ensured the foam got soaked.









Used a layover at Corn Creek to cut, dry, reglue mine.


----------



## DoStep (Jun 26, 2012)

Jack's website has instructions if I recall...


----------



## markfortcollins (Aug 20, 2015)

JPW has a great summary on how to handle this. I hung mine for a while in the backing late summer heat. Helped a bit, but what really did the trick was to use a shopvac to compress the pad down as much as possible, secure the valve, then use a paddleboard pump (set to pull air rather than push) and really put more suction power on the already compressed pad. Then hang and repeat. 3 years on now and dont notice a thing with the pad. Didnt need to cut it and re-seal. Good luck. It'll work.. just keep after it.


----------



## Pinchecharlie (Jul 27, 2017)

Wheres the instructions on the site cant find them lol. I'll try the suction thing to thanks!


----------



## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Paco Pad FAQ - Jacks Plastic Welding


You may realize that some of the answers to the questions below are subjective based on our experience. Your experience may be very different, and we suggest you email us at the info address below if you have different opinions. The foam in my pad is folding over and getting stuffed up into one...




www.jpwinc.com






My Pad has soaked up a bunch of water. What can I do to fix it?
When a pad is full of water, it will not work very well. Try to avoid floating on a pad that has holes, a bad, or open valve. The easiest way to get the water out is to hang the pad upside down with the valve down for about 2 weeks. Every day you must take a minute to try and squeeze the water out through the valve. When you can not get any more water out, place the pad in a warm area. Place it on the the south side of the house, where the sun can heat up the remaining water, and turn it into vapor. Then suck the air out with a shop vacuum. If you do this for a couple of days when the pad is at its hottest, you will be able to get all of the water out. This does not take as long as you may think, just a couple of minutes a day.

One other way is to cut the bottom of the pad off, dry out the foam, and reseal the end. If you prefer this method, call us, and we will fax you instructions and a drawing of how to put the cover back together with our glue. Our phone is 505-334-8748, and our fax is 505-334-1901. 

_(They used to have a link to additional repair instructions, but the link now goes nowhere.)_


----------



## christen (Nov 18, 2010)

Pinchecharlie said:


> Kid surfed my Paco pad around in an eddy all day with the valves open. So now it's a water bed. Any secret technology to dry it out? Rolling and hanging and squishing ect did next to nothing. Thanks Charlie


Oh I did that like ten years ago... There has to be a hole, if the water got in? Try to find it in the bath tub (submerge, look for air bubbles) and then hang upside down for at least a week for it to drain out, use pressure if you can to squeeze it out. Then seal the hole (I used aqua seal) - I've never floated on it again, but it's been on lots of trips since.


----------



## travisdecker (Feb 18, 2020)

Why not use a vacuum pump. Water boils in a vacuum. That's how we get water out of air conditioning systems....


----------



## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Not a bad idea. Just might work! Anyone got a vacuum pump and a pad full of water?


----------

