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I'm looking for a glue/adhesive sealant that would be suitable for patching top loading washing machine's rubber seal (there's a 2cm x 4cm hole). I'm mainly interested in finding glue that would be safe to use (non-toxic? food grade? food safe?). I know it's a really tough task and many would recommend just replacing the seal, but it feels wrong to pay over 100$ for it, and I'm curious whether there's a solution for this.

There's a guy on Youtube who fixed his rubber seal with polyurethane that is used for roofing, but I don't know whether it's safe, even though the guy says it's been working for him for years Video.

Any ideas? At the moment I feel it's either silicone, polyurethane, epoxy-resin, or nothing.

Would this come close at all: Sealant on Amazon

enter image description here

Rohit Gupta
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vfinn
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    Why would you need "food grade?" Do you eat your laundry? Braise chicken in the hot wash cycle? – Ecnerwal Apr 01 '23 at 13:58
  • I mean I don't know which is the proper term to look for, that's why I put all those question marks. I know there are glues meant for aquariums that iirc are food safe, could be wrong. I mean the trivial logic is that if it's proper for eating it is proper for my skin. – vfinn Apr 01 '23 at 14:00
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    Do you have the bit (2cm x 4cm) to fill the hole or are you expecting the glue to fill all that? – Solar Mike Apr 01 '23 at 14:16
  • I was thinking of using either piece of plastic or rubber to cover the hole and then use the sealant for the seams, but it's difficult to say what kind of forces are at play. I'm hoping nothing too big. – vfinn Apr 01 '23 at 14:19
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    A picture of the problem area will help. Seals are usually soft/have give, but also need to be smooth to the matching surface. Something like a patch over the top will probably cause the other sections to not seal as well. – crip659 Apr 01 '23 at 14:37
  • Here's a picture: https://imgur.com/ThYdLXr – vfinn Apr 01 '23 at 15:14
  • The photo is a bit unclear about where the boundaries of the damaged section are - can you clarify? Is it the dark area upper right? Also, what model washer is this - it seems different from a traditional top loader. – Armand Apr 01 '23 at 18:56
  • I'd think about getting a thin silicone baking mat, and sandwiching it around the existing rubber. Stitch through all 3 layers with polymer thread. – Huesmann Apr 01 '23 at 19:26
  • How old is the washing machine? It might be more economic in the long term and environmentally more sound to replace it with a modern, more efficient machine. – Andrew Morton Apr 01 '23 at 20:27
  • The roofing polyurethane sounds like it may work as it may be more flexible and may cope with harsher environment than other ones. – Rohit Gupta Apr 01 '23 at 21:15
  • that looks like a job for white duct tape, originally called duck tape – jsotola Apr 02 '23 at 02:42
  • @Huesmann silicone baking mats contain fiberglass for strength, that is why you have to discard them if they get cut or torn ... you don't want fiberglass to get in your clothes – jsotola Apr 02 '23 at 02:44
  • @AndrewMorton 2 years. Why do you think so? If it's possible to patch the hole, I can't see how it would be more environmentally sound to get a new one. I'm hoping a solution to this problem would help others as well. We as people waste way too much resources as it is, I feel we have to change that. – vfinn Apr 02 '23 at 06:50
  • @Huesmann I was thinking also of stiching, but I'm pretty sure I'd still need a proper and safe glue/sealant that won't also "tarnish" the clothes. It's diffucult to tell by reading just manuals, how different glues' behave when they are cured. The same applies to duck tape, I'd think. – vfinn Apr 02 '23 at 06:57
  • @RohitGupta Yes it's possible, but how can I confirm if it's safe to use? Thanks for the edits. – vfinn Apr 02 '23 at 07:00
  • @Armand Yes, that's the hole. I think it's clear enough, since it's zoomable and since the nature of the problem is quite clear. The machine in question is AEG L6TEP620K, if it makes a difference. – vfinn Apr 02 '23 at 07:18
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    @vfinn I thought maybe the machine was, say, 20 years old. More recent machines tend to use less water and less electricity. We now know that the age isn't a consideration in this case. – Andrew Morton Apr 02 '23 at 10:19
  • @jstola not all baking mats contain fiberglass. Here's one I bought about 4 years ago, and a second one last year, that has none: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TXRS2W4 It's basically just a sheet of rubber. – Huesmann Apr 03 '23 at 12:36

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