Marlig Fix-a-leak: Useful Or Snake Oil?

[AlienZen]

In another thread, I've been discussing fixing a piping leak in an old Tiger River Bengal spa. Before I turn this over to the pros and pay 100/hr to have them look at it, I wanted to know if these products advertised as "Able to seal any leak up to 1/8" " actually work, or are they junk?

Thanks

[cplarsen]

Searched around and it seems it does work. But I think it'll only fix a slow leak. 1/8" is a pretty small hole.

"Pool owners who want to take a stab at fixing a leak themselves before calling in the pros may be able to do so without even getting wet by using a product called Fix-A-Leak, made by Marlig Industries, based in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Tom Tesselaar, its president, said the product, which has been on the market for nearly 30 years, works similarly to a tire sealant. It

circulates through the lines and the pool itself and seals any leaks that it seeps through."

Note the word "seep". Think the stuff will work about as well as oatmeal in your radiator used too. Worth a shot. I'd follow the directions carefully, especially the part that says to drain afterwards, as it'll seal a pump up too.

[AlienZen]

Searched around and it seems it does work. But I think it'll only fix a slow leak. 1/8" is a pretty small hole.

"Pool owners who want to take a stab at fixing a leak themselves before calling in the pros may be able to do so without even getting wet by using a product called Fix-A-Leak, made by Marlig Industries, based in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Tom Tesselaar, its president, said the product, which has been on the market for nearly 30 years, works similarly to a tire sealant. It

circulates through the lines and the pool itself and seals any leaks that it seeps through."

Note the word "seep". Think the stuff will work about as well as oatmeal in your radiator used too. Worth a shot. I'd follow the directions carefully, especially the part that says to drain afterwards, as it'll seal a pump up too.

Thanks for the response.

Yes, I looked around at several different producers of these products, and all of them claim to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. I was hoping for some feedback from those not affiliated with the product as to whether or not it actually works.

[Dr. Spa]

Well, I'm affiliated with the product (I sell it), but I'll still throw in my 2 cents :-)

It's basically a crap shoot, but the odds tend to be in your favor. For most people, with small leaks, it tends to work quite well. For some people and some leaks, it doesn't work. Why? I couldn't tell you. I'd say that about 90% of those that use it are successful with it. Now of those, some are not permanent and need to reapply it every year or 2.

My personal opinion..... it can't hurt to try, and is a lot cheaper than a service call (sorry Roger :-) )

[cplarsen]

Thanks for the response.

Yes, I looked around at several different producers of these products, and all of them claim to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. I was hoping for some feedback from those not affiliated with the product as to whether or not it actually works.

I saw one other response on a different board where the guy said it worked.

[Dekerson]

It worked very well for me.

Inground pool with about 32000 gallons was losing 4 to 7 inches dailey. Leak was in return (pressure)side. I plugged the two return outlets in the shallow end to force the compound towards the area of the return line closest to the leak. Used 1 1/2 Quarts and within two hours our leak had stopped. Saved me an awful lot of money. For us it worked amazingly well. Not so sure it would have worked as well if leak had been on suction side.

[david_bilton]

I have used this stuff for a couple of jobs and it does work.I have found that it works only on the pressure side,if you have a suction side issue that only leaks when the pump is of you are going to have to fix that one the hard way good luck

[808ontheclock]

I know this blog is a little old but I wanted to share my experience with Marlig fix a leak. I live at Howard Beach, New York. I lost 2.5 cars to Hurricane Sandy. I was fortunate enough to have my home. However my hot tub was another story. I had my hot tub company out to see if my tub was worth saving. They made some repairs like changed manifolds and replaced some hoses. The repair was not to bad. When all was said and done I spent about $500 and my tub is running great, but I am losing about an inch of water everyday. The guys who fixed my spa said they can not find where this is coming from with out me putting a bunch of money into it. They did recommend I go online and find this product called Marlig Fix A Leak. I found this product at SpaAndPoolDepot.com. I called them to discuss what my chances were of fixing this leak. They were very honest and said its a crap shoot. It might and it might not it depends on where the leak is at. I asked if they had any personal experience with it and they said their service department uses it all the time for people who do not want to spend a bunch of money to repair it. They said it works about 85-90% of the time though. Well I bought it and I am happy to say I am no longer losing any water. So thanks for the opportunity to share my opinion.