: Interesting concept, Paul, but I'm not sure what is accomplished. . . Why bother?

Good point.

The original question seemed to imply that there was some uncertainty about the silicone sealing perfectly. Since the webbing will certainly wick some moisture, that seems a reasonable possibility. How much leakage is going to occur is probably minimal. Maybe a few drops an hour. Maybe less.

You are right. The patch adds no structural strength, it is merely a waterproof barrier that is easily applied, and so negligible that if it should need to be removed you won't have to do much to clean things up before replacing with another patch.

You can think of this as a "belt and suspenders" approach, but it coulsdalso be likened to putting plastic pants on a baby that is wearing a disposable diaper. If the first layer of defense should leak . . .

Hmm, thats a nasty thought to end a message with.
Sorry

PGJ