Reseating Sailboat Windows
This may have been my funnest project yet on this sailboat because of all the leaking problems I’ve been having. When the windows were removed it became obvious why they were leaking, unfortunately I failed to take any pictures of this project.
To remove most porthole windows on sail boats you first remove the screws on the interior side that is holding the unit to the boat frame tight. Once removed you need someone on the outside to work the silicone bead from around the window and push the unit in to the boat (it helps to have someone inside to pull and or just catch the unit). Now you can see the previous seal (if there is anything left) and any damage from leaking to the core of the boat around each window.
In my case the windows that had leaked for many years had rotted out the wood layer between the sections of fiberglass. It was a beuatiful sunny day with another one tomorrow, so there will be time for each windo hole to dry out. Once dried out I took a knife and dug out as much of the rotted material as I could and cleaned up the sides of the entire window hole and then filled in the rotted areas with polymer resin fiberglass mixture I was able to buy at Lowe’s. This step is to backfill the core to strengthen the structure from the lost material.
Each window unit had to be scraped to get all of the previous seal residue off, this step is extremely important. If you leave any of the residual sealant on the frame it will not seal properly when re-seated. I used a small metal paint scraper for the bigger pieces and then used a small hand sander with 80# grit to go over the entire sealing area for a finishing. It worked great!
I also used a 120# grit paper and went over the entire outside of each windo just to brighten them up and remove any small damage spots from the years.
OK, now it’s time for a new seal. It was highly recommended to use Butyl tape as my seal, and wow it worked fantastic!! Butyl tape is used primarily on RV windows and plumbing to keep water out, so go to your closest RV repair shop and ask for 1? Butyl tape. I bought a 12? roll and that was perfect with just a little left over to use for the main hatch up front. It’s kinda like working with playdough, so you have to be careful not to stretch it. Keep it thick all the way around the window so that it is a little bit difficult to push the window back into the hole in the boat. I went to the outside of the boat to see if I could see any light coming through on each window to help me insure the seal was solid. Replace the screws to tighten down the window and then move to the next one.
Each window now needs to have the bead of silicone replace on the outside as an added measure of protection. It was again highly recommended to use 3M 100 Silicone, but I could not find it anywhere so I went with 100% silicone. I suggest wearing a pair of latex gloves or some type of protection because you will need to use your finger to smooth out the bead. If you buy the larger tube of silicone you will need an application gun of course, and then run a solid bead of silicone around the entire window on the outside of the boat. Don’t be stingy, this stuff is great for keeping out water. Use your finger to press the silicon into the gap and make sure there is a solid layer still left along the outside of the window. If your porthole windows also have a decorative frame now is the time to place that over the silicone.
All done, and man do I feel great … heading home again. What tactics or issues have you ran in to with re-seating sailboat windows? Leave me a comment
