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View Full Version : Front Pilot House Windows on Invictus --Thanks Vincent!



wsdemmer
01-24-2012, 04:32 PM
I have just finished the pulling and re-sealing of the 5 pilot house windows and I could not have done it without Vincent's pics and info in the instruction area. My cost breakdown as follows:

New rubber (Sam's) 135.00
New Butyl Roll sealant (ebay purchase) 115.00 (500' roll have left over for other projects)
Caulking Compounds (ABC supply) 99.00 (12 tubes)
3 rolls Blue shop towels 6.00
Mineral Spirits (1 gal) 12.00
2 cans Zinc Chromate (self etch alum primer) 25.00
Paint for frames (took off multi coats of paint) 125.00
Blue tape 4 rolls 10.00

Total 527.00

Labor: 84 hours@ slave wages

Total Benefit: Peace of Mind and no more small drips!

bobk
01-24-2012, 06:54 PM
Good luck.

I'd like to learn more about the self etching aluminum primer. I have blistering paint on parts of the radar base, aluminum hard top and the dink crane. Brand, longevity etc.

Bobk

Jaxfishgyd
01-25-2012, 06:35 AM
I'll second what BobK said....:rolleyes:

GJH
01-25-2012, 06:50 AM
One thing I noticed when re-reviewing Vincent's post was the use of silicon caulk. Not ideal; see Jimmy Watts' discussion in the Frequently Asked Service Question section:

"I forgot about the silicone. It has a tendency to pull away for the glass and if this happens of course, resealing will be necessary. Once you have used silicone on the frame, I can not find a way to remove the residue 100%. It leave an oily, greasy feeling film that will not allow the Sika to adhere to. Other caulking might stick to it, I am not sure.
A friend of mine with an 37 has had a night mare with his windows because someone installed his glass with silicone. We have now put in new frames and now no more leaks. This is some of the experience that I can tell you about first hand."

That's why we got ours, which matches the specs on the Sam's tips, from a commercial glass shop that also does a lot of boats. I try to avoid using silicon anywhere on the exterior of the boat, which I too learned the hard way, fortunately not with a window installation/rehab. I recommend anyone doing this read both Jimmy's and Sam's versions and use Vincent's excellent show and tell pictures as an enhancement.

Vincentc
01-25-2012, 03:35 PM
You're welcome.

Your inventory of time and materials is impressive. Pictures?

Regarding silicone. I appreciate the problems noted, but used it because I had it and was only concerned with filling the void under the rubber, relying on the butyl tape to provide the water seal.

So far, no leaks.

Regards,

wsdemmer
01-25-2012, 04:40 PM
I did not take pictures because I thought Vincent did a pretty good job with the pics. I did not use silicone but polyether caulking compound and butyl tape. Polyether does not react to anything and can be used on acrylic or Lexan plastics (side curved windows) so I used it for both the glass and the plexiglass. I used zinc chromate primer (from my airplane building days) which actually etches into the aluminum to make a better bond than regular primer. The best brands can be bought at professional paint stores. I did not have a professional paint store near me (I am on Mustang Island am 45 min. from a paint store) so I bought the brand Moeller at True Value in the marine area. It is Zinc Chromate for industrial use only it says. Very caustic but very good bonding primer. I did pull all of the frames and cleaned all surfaces with mineral spirits and put a lot of the butly tape down and finally filled the screw holes with polyether and seated the screws back in the caulked holes. I figure every couple of years I will reseal around the frames and pull and reseal the screw holes. We had a big rain shower last night on the TX coast and not a drop inside from the windows. Hope this helps!

GJH
01-25-2012, 05:46 PM
Mustang Island! That brings back happy memories hanging around and fishing out of Port A. We lived in Dallas for years before we bought our Hatt. Nice to have a forum member from down that away!

wsdemmer
01-25-2012, 07:33 PM
As a matter of fact I am moored at Island Moorings in Port A at least for the next couple of months and then we are heading out to the Bahamas. If I wasn't in love with the clear water of the Bahamas we would probably stay here in Port A since it is a really great community and we can walk to the beach from the marina.