Bow Port Light Removal

[Sadey]

I know my forward hatch is dry but my hawsepipe may have been a contributing factor to the soaking we used to get. Used some clear flex seal under the cover and now that’s dry. I had a cover made for our windless which is dry now. I do know my deck box through bolts drip and that’s on the list to fix this winter but it’s not the source of the leak onto the bunks.

[kingsley_oasis]

Water leaks are the darnedest thing. I had one running down aft bulk head in master stateroom could not see where it ran down from. Went and bought one of those cheap bore scopes to thread up in there and would you believe it it hasn't leaked since.
I had same leak on bunk in forward cabin a combination of rub rail screws loose and caulk on port lights. Same I could not budge inner part of port light and suspect they used 5200 to install. I used combination of Fein tool and dental picks etc to work around out side edge of port light and hull to allow re caulking. So far so good after three years.

[scottinsydney]

Any water coming in via the portholes or thru hull fittings will find its way under the carpet underlay and into the bow bilge compartment. Our issue was twofold... a hard to find leaking thru hull fitting located behind a panel in the hanging closet and leaking portlight seals (Mentioned in my earlier post.)

There is no ventilation in the bow bilge compartment so any salt water in the bilge is warmed by the genset compartment, gasses and corrodes/destroys bilge pump wiring and bus bars, and hoseclamp fittings.

We sprayed fresh water everywhere in the compartment, pumped out and let dry. There is now no mould on any wood in the bow area.

In fact keeping bilges dry is the best way to stop mould and they don't smell.

[Nick in Manitou]

If you do go ahead and pull the portlights there is a video that I found most helpful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yBaQr6LrZg

In that video he points out that he feels 5200 is not the best choice to use for sealing the portlight trim ring.

Also, I read here that when reinstalling/resealing the portlight one can just seal the external trim ring in place with the sealant you are using and not use screws to hold it in place. The new trim rings are available from Sam's, are not very expensive and they look much better without all those screws sticking out (and they don't come pre-drilled). The screws only serve to hold the trim ring in place. By eliminating them you reduce the chances of the new trim ring cracking and it provides a better look. I am not aware of anyone having had any issues by going this route.

To remove the old trim ring I tried a toothless blade on a multi tool but it was trying to tear up the fiberglass of the hull, so I ended up just using a sharpened putty knife.

Nick

[SKYCHENEY]

I have done this on a 60MY. I was cruising with the guy and we crossed from White Lake to Sturgeon Bay. It was rough and his top bunk in the fwd stateroom had the mattress floating when we got there. I just caulked between the trim ring and the port light and that solved the problem. 12 years later, it is still dry. I didn't remove the portlight or the trim ring.

[scottinsydney]

I have just replaced a broken Fullers port. Here is what I found...

- A multitool is your friend.
- When you cut through the old 5200 on top and bottom, angle the multitool UPWARDS by 15 degrees and you will follow the angle of the port. Otherwise you cut into the port's plastic and job is much longer and harder.
- Multitool and a paint scraper / mallet will remove old ring.

5200 is only used to hold the ring in place and only in the gap between the hull and the port's plastic. The 5200 is not thick nor spread out and assuming you angle the multitool's blade correctly you will remove the port hole in a couple of minutes. In otherwords, the internal screws hold the port in place and the 5200 was used only as a high quality adhesive sealant. I used a quality non yellowing white UV stable adhesive sealant when replacing.

Installation:

- Insert port and screw in.
- Use adhesive sealant to seal port to hull and push in adhesive with squeegee. Make sure there is excess sealant that will squeeze out between ring and port.
- Put nice bead of sealant on back of trim ring and press on. My new trim ring did not have screws. Remove excess sealant with squeegee.
- Clean up with acetone.

IMG_9617.jpg
Angle multitool 15 degrees upwards to avoid cutting into plastic.

IMG_9618.jpg
What happens when you cut horizontal with the multitool.

[oscarvan]

5200......ouch.