ShareThisEver since she was a student at the Royal College of Art in London, Jane Ni Dhulchaointigh has been interested in fixing things easily. "And making people's lives better," she says.
About seven years ago, Ni Dhulchaointigh, 31, teamed up with retired Dow Corning scientists Steve Westall and Ian Moss to examine the properties of silicone caulks and adhesives that air-dry, and industrial silicone rubber used for objects such as baking trays that cure at very high temperatures.
They discovered Sugru, a new moldable silicone clay that bonds and sets at room temperature.
"It's a moisture-curing silicone that is activated when it is exposed to air," Ni Dhulchaointigh says. "After about half an hour it forms a skin, polymerizes and essentially becomes silicone rubber within 24 hours. It appears to be cured in five or 10 hours, but we recommend 24 hours for a good bond."
In December, just six hours after a pilot launch on Ni Dhulchaointigh's website, Sugru (derived from "sugradh," the Irish word meaning "play") sold out.
Bloggers loved it, and it seems homeowners with playful fix-it projects and arts-and-crafts enthusiasts were waiting for just such a material. Their broken toys, chipped objects, bicycle-handlebar grips, key-ring ornaments and iPod bumpers had found a new fix.
Ni Dhulchaointigh, from Ireland, exhibited Sugru at the Maker Faire in San Mateo, Calif., this year and received a similar response. As word spreads on the Internet of Sugru's effectiveness, Ni Dhulchaointigh, headquartered in East London since June, is ready for a growing demand for Sugru. "It has changed our lives," she said.
Expert opinion: Sugru is not structurally strong and is to be used as a "surface material for repairs," Ni Dhulchaointigh says. "Its strength depends on the substrate it is attached to."
Unlike tough epoxy clays like Bondo that have to be sanded and painted over, Sugru is integrally colored and remains flexible long enough to be shaped by hand. It can be smoothed with water or molded against glass or plastic film for a glossy finish.
Pros: Sugru's insulating properties also make it ideal for repairing electronic parts and frayed wiring. It comes in standard black, blue, green and orange colors that can be kneaded together like modeling clay to make custom colors.
Cons: Sugru is not strong enough for objects that take a lot of wear, such as the soles of shoes.
Price: $16.50 for a dozen heat-sealed 5-gram bags of Sugru.
Resources: Sugru.com
(E-mail Zahid Sardar at home(at)sfchronicle.com.)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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