Replacing Fixed Windows Research [Master Thread]

[Momiji]

Thanks for the post and you may be hearing from us soon. As I type, the templates Bomon sent us for new fixed windows are "out for delivery", so hopefully they arrive today and we can start the process. Your install looks great!

 

[Jim Picerno]

When I purchased my boat back in November there was obvious damage to the teak trim surrounding the fixed windows on both the port and starboard sides, mostly on the forward edge of the fixed windows closest to the bow. Good news is that at least for now I’ve only got a leak on the port side. I see several comments about the qualities of Dow 795. Are folks using this as a “bedding compound” in place of Life Caulk, Sikaflex, or Dolfinite to bed the window frame within the cutout, or as a replacement for the rubber gasket surrounding the window within the frame?

Thanks

https://streamable.com/r3aggc

 

[Prairie Schooner]

When I purchased my boat back in November there was obvious damage to the teak trim surrounding the fixed windows on both the port and starboard sides, mostly on the forward edge of the fixed windows closest to the bow. Good news is that at least for now I’ve only got a leak on the port side. I see several comments about the qualities of Dow 795. Are folks using this as a “bedding compound” in place of Life Caulk, Sikaflex, or Dolfinite to bed the window frame within the cutout, or as a replacement for the rubber gasket surrounding the window within the frame?

Thanks

https://streamable.com/r3aggc

We used it as a replacement for the rubber gasket. An architect has since told me, "Yeah, you'll never get those apart."
We used 3M 4000 UV to bed them in place. That was for the fixed portlights. I hope that's the last I will ever need to deal with them.
For the opening versions, I cleaned them and reconditioned the gaskets, but put them in with butyl tape. We'll probably need to replace them at some point and I wanted them to be easy to remove.

 

[bsangs]

When I purchased my boat back in November there was obvious damage to the teak trim surrounding the fixed windows on both the port and starboard sides, mostly on the forward edge of the fixed windows closest to the bow. Good news is that at least for now I’ve only got a leak on the port side. I see several comments about the qualities of Dow 795. Are folks using this as a “bedding compound” in place of Life Caulk, Sikaflex, or Dolfinite to bed the window frame within the cutout, or as a replacement for the rubber gasket surrounding the window within the frame?

Thanks

https://streamable.com/r3aggc

That water damage makes it appear the leak is coming from above the windows, which is what I've been dealing with on the port side. I get a couple areas where it drips out from behind that teak strip above the window, then it rolls down along the window frame. (Fixing the sliding hatchway door has been suggested as the actual fix, but I'm not there yet.) Have you actually seen the windows leaking?

 

[Christian Williams]

https://streamable.com/r3aggc

Probably a classic case of bedding failure. The fix is just to yank the portlight and rebed.

It is necessary to determine whether the leaking is from the bedding of hatch to cabin house, or whether the rubber gasket that holds the glass in the frame is to blame. A hose played on the window can reveal which, or both.

My recommendation is to rebed frames with any medium or low adhesion caulk, rather than butyl rubber. Caulk fills gaps, and is what Ericson used. Butyl rubber requires strong mechanical clamping, as present in through-bolted deck fittings. Portlights are held in by design--the flange which seats in the opening. The interior cover is decorative, and its small screws not intended to provide clamping force. Overtightening them will distort the aluminum. See Post #83.

See also
Replacing gaskets on Fixed Ports (Windows): https://ericsonyachts.org/ie/thread...main-large-windows-ports-master-thread.13578/

 

[vanilladuck]

I see several comments about the qualities of Dow 795. Are folks using this as a “bedding compound” in place of Life Caulk, Sikaflex, or Dolfinite to bed the window frame within the cutout, or as a replacement for the rubber gasket surrounding the window within the frame?

I used Dow 795 to bed my new opening portlights on Rumour. It has some properties which are advantageous for bedding portlights on a boat. I think they've been detailed elsewhere in the forums, but here's a quick recap:

• High grade silicon (used on windows on skyscrapers
• Silicon, once cured creates a gasket like material that will flex and move but not break open when the cabin flexes, swells, or shrinks
• Easy to remove later compared to other bedding compounds

I avoided the process of checking and repacking the gaskets on the original frames from the trapezoid windows on the E32-3. Instead, I chose a much pricier option of having new frames custom made by Bomon in Quebec. Bomon recommended their frames only be bedded with a couple layers of neoprene tape, of which they included superfluous quantity on delivery. I have yet to get the boat on the water, but the neoprene-bedded windows had no leaks through our heavier rain season here in SF.

.

 

[Prairie Schooner]

https://streamable.com/r3aggc

Probably a classic case of bedding failure. The fix is just to yank the portlight and rebed.

It is necessary to determine whether the leaking is from the bedding of hatch to cabin house, or whether the rubber gasket that holds the glass in the frame is to blame. A hose played on the window can reveal which, or both.

My recommendation is to rebed frames with any medium or low adhesion caulk, rather than butyl rubber. Caulk fills gaps, and is what Ericson used. Butyl rubber requires strong mechanical clamping, as present in through-bolted deck fittings. Portlights are held in by design--the flange which seats in the opening. The interior cover is decorative, and its small screws not intended to provide clamping force. Overtightening them will distort the aluminum. See Post #83.

See also
Replacing gaskets on Fixed Ports (Windows): https://ericsonyachts.org/ie/thread...main-large-windows-ports-master-thread.13578/

Exactly so. I only used butyl tape because I see ours as a temporary install. I was careful not to warp the frames.

 

[Loren Beach]

Instead, I chose a much pricier option of having new frames custom made by Bomon in Quebec. Bomon recommended their frames only be bedded with a couple layers of neoprene tape, of which they included superfluous quantity on delivery. I have yet to get the boat on the water, but the neoprene-bedded windows had no leaks through our heavier rain season here in SF.

Those look amazing! Thanks for sharing.