dry out

[screenman]

Dryout

As most of you know we have some wet days over here, so dry out is high on our agenda. The latest method we have that seems to work is what we now call the micro vibrate method. Warm the damage around the break to an area of about 32 mm. Then place 2 fingers one from each hand either side of the damage and then vibrate very gently for about 3 minutes. Then reheat and repeat the process, this may take a few attempts to remove all moisture. The vibration when done correctly massages the sponge in the PVB and helps the moisture evacuate the area. Pushing to hard will damage the break and trap the moisture at a lower level. If it is possible to have a co-worker or the customer vibrating from the inside at the same time this may speed drying times up. This supersedes our blow out method.

[maxryde]

Screenman, do you use this in place of a dri-star method?

[SGT]

Screenman,

Have you found the moisture evaporator to be lacking in performace or ease of use?

On the surface, this method seems more involved,time consuming and possibly requires help depending on damage location. That said if it works better then what you were doing that is great. Seems interesting and I would like to hear more on your findings from one method compared to another. Would you please expand on this? Thanks.

[Brent Deines]

I don't understand the part about the sponge in the PVB. I've done a lot of testing on the PVB and have not found it to soak up liquids. In fact, I have soaked it in all kinds of fluids to see what harms it and what doesn't, and in my testing water seems to have no effect. I must admit however, that we do not have any sophisticated equipment to measure minute traces of moisture, but were only going by sight, touch, and measurements to see if any swelling or weight changes occur when the PVB is subject to the various liquids tested.

I've also yet to find any science that says vibration has anything to do with evaporation, so I too am interested in hearing more about this method and the reasons why you believe it works better than heat alone. The topic of dry out methods always intrigues me as many of us just cant seem to agree on the best method, and apparently get very different results when we test the various methods others promote.

I'm still quite happy with the moisture evaporator's 20 second process that in our testing removes all the moisture in all but the largest of breaks. In the very large open breaks we sometimes have to let the glass cool for a couple of minutes and then apply the moisture evaporator for another 20 seconds. It just doesn't get simpler or faster than that, and in our testing we have not found that applying vacuum, to measurably speed up the process. Even if it did, the time it takes to set up a vacuum device or apply an additional technique would be longer than the few seconds saved. However, there is evidence that applying vacuum does reduce the boiling point of water, so at least that is scientifically sound, even if not practical in this application.

I must admit that I have never tried vibrating to remove moisture, so hearing why that works may be very enlightening. I should also say that as long as a technician is getting all the moisture out of a break without damaging the glass or laminate, I have no beef with any method used. I know we will never agree on the best method for windshield repair moisture removal, but at least I hope we can all agree that moisture removal is extremely important.

[Frank EU]

Is this an April 1 joke?

[screenman]

I did not think you lot would fall for it again after last year. I promise not to do it again for another 364 days.

I hope you can all now have a laugh.

[SGT]

You Got Me!!!!

[maxryde]

[Brent Deines]

Originally Posted by screenman

I did not think you lot would fall for it again after last year. I promise not to do it again for another 364 days.

I hope you can all now have a laugh.

I'm sending you a bill for the time it took me to post my response!

Although I expect that type of post from time to time, I almost had a heart attack when I saw you posted it. Do you like how diplomatic I tried to be?

Kudos, I owe you one!

[ProView WR]

Originally Posted by Brent Deines

I'm sending you a bill for the time it took me to post my response!

Although I expect that type of post from time to time, I almost had a heart attack when I saw you posted it. Do you like how diplomatic I tried to be?

Kudos, I owe you one!

I was utterly confused last night after reading the first post. As I started reading the responses I felt silly for not understanding how this method would work until I reached the end.

Good one screenman