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How to fix dent in laminate shower bench?

I have a small shower bench with a new ding / dent, and I'm interested in any tips that might help me repair it myself. At the outset I should say - I have limited tools and experience, but I'd like to have a go if I'm able.

Sadly, I can't find anything like a product information sheet, but my untrained eye is guessing that this is laminate. The product is a fold down shower bench (https://www.lencare.com.au/shop/bathroom-series/shower-seat-plus-drain-slots/) Size of he dent is 30 x 10mm. It's a brand new problem, not yet exposed to water from a shower. Looks like something has been dropped on it.

I have some SikaSeal Kitchen & Bathroom wet area silicone (I've been putting off learning about that for the unsealed kitchen sink and splashbacks that came with the house). Some beginner's research I've just done makes me think that epoxy may be a better choice, possibly?

Pictures:

Shower bench ding (angle 1).jpg Shower bench ding (angle 2).jpg

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EricL

Hello @LynneWasTaken

I believe the damage is repairable, I propose using Gorilla 59ml Glue Bottle. I suggest gently lifting the laminate and applying some glue on the bottom of the laminate spot. Please make sure that it is totally dry before applying the glue. Once the glue is applied press the laminate back onto the surface and keep it pressed for about 30 seconds. Allow the adhesive to cure to full strength. Once the glue has fully cured, I recommend applying a small bead of glue on the surface where the laminate has split. This will act like a seal to the split in the laminate surface. Allow that bead to cure before using the seat.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

LynneWasTaken

Thanks Eric,

I'll give that a go tomorrow then report back.

🙂

Noyade

G'day @LynneWasTaken

I'm sorry "Lynne" was taken as a Username. Mine is a leftover of struggling to find one acceptable for a website.

To me, the chipped laminate is only one side? I would be loath to lift it much further for glue.

Just a thought - but the glue 'reach' will be better with a syringe and drawing up needle to inject deeper into the cavity.

Just a thought.

Cheers and good luck.

LynneWasTaken

That's a good tip @Noyade - thanks.

I don't have a fancy syringe like your picture - where did you get that? I do have some plastic disposable ones! I am pig-headed stubborn with a hidden disability. So I worked out I can't use a caulking gun. Then learned that I can work an electric one but I can't use it well. But the electric one is perfect for getting sealant into a plastic syringe - which lets me get lovely straight / accurate lines where window glass meats the frame 🙂 Plastic will work for this, but I would love something that lasts longer than a couple of uses.

Laminate is indeed one side. Just bought the glue. Will use a syringe. And I reckon a ratchet strap might act as a clamp while it cures

LynneWasTaken

Hi again @EricL ,

I have the glue, and @Noyade had a great tip to try a syringe.

Reading the Gorilla Glue instructions - they say that one surface should be dampened. Am I right to go 1) make sure everything is 100% dry to start then 2) try to dampen just one surface? The gap is quite small (and currently protected with plastic / gaffer!) but I could probably use a damp rag and carefully work it in there by keeping it taught "like dental floss." I'm not sure whether that explains my thinking properly.

JacobZ

Hi @LynneWasTaken,

The Gorilla glue is a moisture-activated polyurethane adhesive, which means moisture is what triggers its chemical reaction and makes it expand, foam slightly, and cure to full strength. I wouldn't worry too much about how you apply the water, just that a small amount gets in there.

You could use a spray bottle to put a very small amount of water in the crack. One pull of the trigger should suffice. The water will find its way into the gap.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

LynneWasTaken

Replying to myself is odd, but this is a general update on my shower bench saga.

(there's some time where I try just buying a replacement. That went sideways as the current bench models have screws in different places)

The bench has started a second small instance of my initial problem. Somewhat visible in my original pictures are bubbles in the bench's top. The base absolutely has some cracks which were obscured by the metal wall mount.

My current thinking is that water has been in there, approximately in straight lines between the screw holes. Pictures of base are attached with this update. There's not room in my budget to get a new bench mounted. I can cope with 'ugly,' as long as I have 'functional.' So...

I have my Gorilla Glue for the initial problem. I have a the beginnings of a second instance of that issue, and I may not be able to get much glue in that. But at minimum I can apply a bead of glue along the top. Same treatment for the cracks which were hidden on the base.

Once I start I know I won't be able to resist the "bubbles/blisters" on the top side. The plan is to treat them like skin blisters, or bubbles like in contact on school books. Two small holes at the edges, gentle downward pressure see whether stuff comes out, then a dab of glue on the holes.

underside close upunderside of bench

Dave-1

Afternoon @LynneWasTaken

Definently interested in how the repairs go. Once laminate starts bubbling I havnt found a way to stop them as the plastic is seperating from the timber. I do like your thinking.

The only thing I could add would be when you add weight to hold down the bubble plus glue, you use something that is a little smaller then the bubble as the contact point so as to put as much prssure as you can (without punching through)

And yeah, we all reply to ourselves 🙂 So wouldnt worry 🙂

Dave

LynneWasTaken

Replying to myself again to track my journey.

I found a site for carpenters where you can buy better syringes than the plastic ones that work great with No More Gaps. For @Dave-1 's suggestion to use something smaller than the bubbles to help after I mess with them... best guess yesterday was to buy various metal washers to use under the ratchet straps I have used in the past as massive clamps. The syringes should arrive soon.

As I started drawing on my bench to work and strap as efficiently as I can - I decided that all of my issues here are the same issue. This includes some red brown stains I never could clean. And some liquid that appeared on my bench after starting this thread. Which looked like teeny drops of (red brown) Betadine just materialised... until I decided that was impossible.

Roughly:

Something gluing the product together is red brown. For whatever reason (temperature changes, water infiltration) that glue starts to migrate and blister. The random seeming stains are from small blisters popping as pin-points, with the bench folded away, gravity would get that dribble effect. The betadine I imagined is likely an instance of that, but the horizontal bench showed drops rather than stains. The larger cracks are from blisters bursting in a less controlled way. (Or! The contents migrate away leaving the laminate loose and tear-able.) And the actual blisters are going to end as cracks, I'd imagine.

Syringes will help me to better glue the cracks. Plus pierce blisters. Then plausibly drain blisters and / or get glue into them before I strap things.

My only skill is critical thinking. And I like Physics. I have no garage, but I just bought my first foldable workbench for the dining room and I am a very stubborn chick who will soon have carpentry grade syringes.

Dave-1

Evening @LynneWasTaken

🙂 Nice thought out steps. Just a suggestion and I am sure you would anyway but a plastic sheet down over an old paint cloth just in case that gorilla glue drips. I have been using a caulking gun and put it down on my paint sheet and then found that nope, it wasnt quiet on the sheet... 🙂 Live and learn is what I tell myself!

Dave

LynneWasTaken

This has been a journey! And I just had a laugh on looking at my original post!

I have learned that (at least for the syringes I have) Gorilla Glue does not like to be drawn in to a syringe. But it was useful enough as a very small tool to get the glue into my problem crack. I also learned that ratchet straps are overkill if you have bricks. I did try a small washer to help direct that force, and that seemed useful. The glue did expand a little more than I would have liked, but I think that was really because there was no real precision when applying it.

@Dave-1 ... The blisters remain. The one that I did open up seemed to be empty. It was not an easy thing to do, so that was lesson number 3.

At the same time as this project, I also had some pointers to fix a scratch in a laundry tub, and epoxy worked a real treat. After seeing that - epoxy was what I used to seal over the crack after the glue cured. Also the smaller cracks, and the punctures I made to experiment on the blisters.

I had forgotten the specifics of my initial post - and I had guessed that epoxy might be what I needed 🤣 It's been a learning journey though, and those are never a waste. Below are pictures of the epoxyed result. I'll be able to give that a light sand and it'll be fine

underside of bench with epoxytop of bench with epoxy

EricL

Hello @LynneWasTaken

Thank you very much for the update. I'm just glad you got through all the repair work.

Eric

Dave-1

Good Afternoon @LynneWasTaken

🙂 Thats a nice update and the info has been filed away 🙂 Thankyou.

Hope you can post a pic fo what it looks like after the sanding 🙂

Dave

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