How to Find & Fix a Hole in an Air Mattress | Easy Guide

Air mattresses are a great help when you are expecting guests in your house, slumber parties or going for a camp.

However, a tiniest hole or leakage in it can affect the whole scenario and can affect your fun as well.

It is not good to use a punctured air mattress, the longer you wait to fix it, the larger hole will become. Pointing out a hole on an air mattress is a bit challenging task, especially if it’s the tiniest one.

Nonetheless, we are here to solve all your problems related to your air mattress.

In this article we will guide you thoroughly how to find a hole in your air mattress and how to fix it properly. First, let’s have a look at how to find it. 

How to find a Hole/Leak in an air mattress

Finding large holes on the surface of air mattresses is sometimes easy but the tiniest holes make it challenging.

However, there are two effective methods to use when finding a hole in an air mattress.

Let’s have a look at them in detail. 

Soapy water method

This method is the most easiest and efficient one to be performed on an air mattress (excluding plushy air mattresses). So, what will you be needing for this method?

REQUIREMENTS (Materials needed)

• Any kind of soap (without bleach).
• Water.
• sponge/sprayer.

Step 1

First inflate the air mattress to its fullest and examine the whole mattress thoroughly.

There are high chances of punctures at the bottom surface of the mattress so make sure to check it thoroughly. 

Step 2

Try to listen to the sound of air splashing out and spray the soapy water (either by a sprayer or use a sponge) to the areas you find suspicious.

Now watch closely if any bubbles are produced. The areas where bubbles are produced are basically the punctured areas.

Through this soapy method you can identify the holes on an air mattress easily.

This method can be applied to any air mattress except the plushy ones (chances of soapy water to get inside the mattress). 

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Tissue paper method

This method is safe for all types of air mattresses.

And, all you need for this method is a tissue paper or any kind of light cloth.

Step 1

Take your air mattress to a quiet place first and inflate it to the fullest.

Check corners and bottom of the mattress as these places are prone to punctures (seams as well). Now take the tissue paper and place it flat on the surface area.

Step 2

Move the tissue paper to each place of the surface and look for any disturbance of the tissue paper.

If the holes were tiny, you would hear a hissing sound and if there would be a big hole, the paper might move a bit. 

These methods are the most used ones. There are some other methods as well but they are not the efficient ones and have risk factors as well.

Let’s have a look at them.

Also, if you are looking for some heavy duty high quality air mattress, make sure to check our guide and Consumer reports on heavy duty air mattress.

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Some other Methods

The other methods are; submersion method and powder method.

Firstly, talking about the submersion method, as the name indicates, one needs to submerge the inflatable mattress in the water (in a tub or pool). The mattress should be partially inflated. If you see bubbles forming from any area, that area needs to be fixed.

The other one is the powder method. This one is a bit easy though. One needs to dump the baby powder all over the partially inflated mattress. After that, inflate a bit more and from the place where powder blows upwards is your target area.

These two methods are not used as they require a bit more time than former ones and are a bit messy as well. 

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How to fix a hole in an air Mattress (Step-by-Step)

Now after finding the hole in your air mattress, the next step is to how to patch the air mattress.

If your air mattress is leaking or gets punctured due to having any contact with a sharp surface, then you don’t need to panic as fixing the leakage is now an easy task, you just need to follow these steps which we are going to describe below. 

Step 1: Locate the hole

The first step is to find and locate where the problem is. In order to locate the hole, we have mentioned in details about the methods.

You can choose the one according to your convenience. However, we would recommend the tissue paper method or soapy water method. 

So, after locating the hole, it would be best to mark that area either with a permanent marker or with a pen. 

Step 2: Clean the affected area

After that, clean the affected area or the surface thoroughly so when you apply the patch or any adhesive material, it sticks to it pretty permanently. Apply a cleaner or any detergent on the surface and gently scrub the area with a neat and clean cloth. 

Step 3: Deflate the air mattress

Now after marking the area, the next step is to deflate the air mattress and then again, clean the area to be on the safer side so the patch will stick to it pretty efficiently and permanently. 

Step 4: Apply the Patch

Well, a type of patch could be a good debate. It depends upon your personal choice and your budget, which type of patch you need to fix the leakage.

For example, you can fix it with a rubber sealer, duct tape, vinyl tape or any other type of tape which offers a high adhesive factor.

If you are using duct tape or any other tape, just make sure to cut the corners of it and apply a big piece.

Here we are using rubber cement (a kind of glue you can find in a bicycle repair kit as well). 

Now take a rubber patch of a bicycle tube (some air mattresses come with patches as well).

Brush this rubber cement glue on the affected area and on the patch as well. Let both dry for about 5 minutes and then place the patch on the affected area.

Then place any paper or wrapping paper on it and then a book or any hard cover to let the patch rest and get stuck to it.

At least wait for an hour for effective results. And, at last, inflate your air mattress and you are good to go. 

Now after one hour, remove the patch and from the patch kit (if you don’t have any then buy one) use a sandpaper or any metal lid to scuff up that respective area (a little wider around the corners of it to make the surface even).

Step 5: Apply pressure

Now after that, clean the surface thoroughly and then again apply the adhesive glue.

Then take a small patch and place it over it and press it with a heavy weight for a couple of hours (this will make the whole process more effective and give you best results).  

Step 6: Test the seal

The last step is to test the seal whether you have done the right job or not and for that inflate the mattress to its fullest and lay it on the surface.

Now apply the pressure near the patch area and then observe the mattress for at least 15 minutes.

If you observe any change in deflating or losing air then you need to repeat the whole process again. Otherwise, you are good to go.

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FAQs

Below are some frequently asked questions regarding air mattress and leakages.

Is there an air mattress that doesn’t leak?

Well, not really, there isn’t any air mattress present in the world which isn’t prone to leakages.

However, one can only be cautious about the place where you place it and keep check and balance on it on a daily basis. 

How to repair the fabric side of an air mattress?

The method we have described above is to repair a fabric side of an air mattress and any other side of it as well. 

Can an air mattress deflate without a leak?

Yes! Air mattresses mostly come with electric pumps which can deflate it as well by just pressing a button. 

Can you sleep on an air mattress permanently?

If you are using it to sleep on it for once in a while then it would be acceptable. Daily usage of it can lead to back pains and leakages of the mattress. 

Can you put a mattress topper on an air mattress?

Yes! A mattress topper makes the air mattress more softer and comfortable.

You may also like to read: Best Mattress topper for Heavy Person

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Wrapping Up

All the fun of sleeping on an air mattress can go in vain when you get to know about its leakage.

However, fixing it is not a problem now. Make sure to find a hole first by either opting for a soapy water trick or tissue paper trick (soapy water trick would be the best option though).

Make sure to perform the above mentioned steps carefully and inflate the mattress to its fullest at the last in order to check the seal.

Nonetheless, air mattresses are prone to leakages, just make sure to apply the patch carefully and be patient while doing it.

Still, if you are having any confusion or facing any difficulty in repairing your air mattress, then you can ask us.