Seam Sealer
- Thread starter Morgan Jane
- Start date
wetpaint
Active Member
I am doing a few joints nowwith "boat life"
Morgan Jane
Active Member
wetpaint
Active Member
surface preparation is the most important.....take it out, clean joint out good....
Morgan Jane
Active Member
Will do. Thanks Wetpaint.
davefin
New Member
I use a little bleach and hot water and a tooth brush.
The problem here is the sealant is actually failing. While I've seen this before, I do not know if the root cause is due to using the wrong formulation (not UV protected) or if Sea Ray simply got a bad batch. I suspect the wrong formulation, but that is just an uneducated guess.
As noted above, Boat Life does make a good product. The one to use is Life Seal.
As noted above, Boat Life does make a good product. The one to use is Life Seal.
Morgan Jane
Active Member
Thanks for the response Dennis. Will do. do you think it matters what the temp is outside? Would you wait till it is warm again before I do the work?
saopm
Active Member
I redid several seams on my boat with 3M. I used a plastic scraper to dig the old caulk and cleaned the joint with mineral spirits. Use rubbing alcohol to smooth out the new caulk as needed.
I've just gone through the same problem and in my case it caused a leak into the aft cabin. Now that you mention it, I'm thinking my boat was the victim of a bad batch of sealant as well. Here's a picture of one of my bad seams:
BTW, this tool was invaluable in doing the repairs. It has a scraper on one end that was great in digging out the seams and the silicone applicator on the other end really reduced the messiness of the job and created great-looking seams.
There might be a temperature range for curing, although I do not know what it is. I've never applied it in cold (freezing) weather since if I can't do it outside, I can do it inside in the shop. I've got a few tubes sitting on a shelf in my garage, but it does not mention anything on the package. Maybe it might say something on their website -- or give them a call; they are very friendly. I think the bigger issue might be whether or not it is comfortable for you to be working outside:smt001
If you start to worry about water intrusion, just tape the gap with white shrink tape until you can reseal. Or, put a light coat of Life Seal right over what's there, knowing that it is only temporary. Side note... as long as it doesn't rain so hard to physically splash the silicone away, Life Seal will cure (and cure very well) under the presence of water. In fact, misting it with water will actually make it cure faster.
If you start to worry about water intrusion, just tape the gap with white shrink tape until you can reseal. Or, put a light coat of Life Seal right over what's there, knowing that it is only temporary. Side note... as long as it doesn't rain so hard to physically splash the silicone away, Life Seal will cure (and cure very well) under the presence of water. In fact, misting it with water will actually make it cure faster.
Morgan Jane
Active Member
Will do Dennis. thanks for the advice.
Bill
Bill
Brian 59
Member
al, what is that tool? Is it something special, boating item we dont know about ?
Uplate
New Member
- Oct 13, 2008
- 977
- Boat Info
- 1998 Sea Ray Sundancer 310
Westebeke 4KW Generator
- Engines
- Twin 5.7 Mercruiser Carbuerated.
Alpha 1 Drives
If you run into removing some caulk that the scraper may not get, try some Mckanica silicone caulk remover. I have had great luck with this product.
Brian, nothing special, just something I found at Home Depot in the paint prep area.
Carver370
Well-Known Member
- Mar 30, 2007
- 1,928
- Boat Info
- 2000 Sea Ray 400 Sundancer - Diesel
- Engines
- T-3116 CAT - 350 HP
I would also take a look into the 3M line, their UV4000 product is perfect for this and is engineered to not yellow or get brittle in the sunlight. I have used it in a few places on my boat and so far so good!
mistercomputerman
Well-Known Member
- Jan 6, 2008
- 4,321
- Boat Info
- 410 Sundancer - 2001
- Engines
- Twin 8.1L Mercruisers - 2009
For what it's worth-
The original sealant used by Sea Ray was a Bostik product. I purchased a case to redo the entire boat. The color matched perfectly. However, the caulk never cured. Three days later, it was full of dirt and bugs and other crap. It is supposed to be a moisture cure and no amount of water would make it cure.
Figuring that that it was a bad batch, I ordered another case. Had to wait for the factory to make the stuff. When it arrived, it had the exact same properties; sticky, gummy, no cure. Contacted the distributor who contacted the factory who pulled their sample and said that their sample cured perfectly. I put some on come cardboard and left it in the garage, put another test on some cardboard and took it in the house and put another sample outside. None of it cured- it remained tacky to the touch and picked up every bit of dirt. Contacted Bostik again and they denied that they had a problem. I suggested that maybe they should pull their head out of wherever they had it stuck and look at my "samples". They didn't have any interest.
I gave up and pitched all of their Bostik crap in the trash, went to West Marine and got some West Marine white. It cured in about 4 hours, you cannot tell that it is not the same color as the boat and seems to be holding up fine after a year.
Save yourself the hassle and just go buy some store-brand white, caulk everything in sight and be done with it.
The original sealant used by Sea Ray was a Bostik product. I purchased a case to redo the entire boat. The color matched perfectly. However, the caulk never cured. Three days later, it was full of dirt and bugs and other crap. It is supposed to be a moisture cure and no amount of water would make it cure.
Figuring that that it was a bad batch, I ordered another case. Had to wait for the factory to make the stuff. When it arrived, it had the exact same properties; sticky, gummy, no cure. Contacted the distributor who contacted the factory who pulled their sample and said that their sample cured perfectly. I put some on come cardboard and left it in the garage, put another test on some cardboard and took it in the house and put another sample outside. None of it cured- it remained tacky to the touch and picked up every bit of dirt. Contacted Bostik again and they denied that they had a problem. I suggested that maybe they should pull their head out of wherever they had it stuck and look at my "samples". They didn't have any interest.
I gave up and pitched all of their Bostik crap in the trash, went to West Marine and got some West Marine white. It cured in about 4 hours, you cannot tell that it is not the same color as the boat and seems to be holding up fine after a year.
Save yourself the hassle and just go buy some store-brand white, caulk everything in sight and be done with it.
wetpaint
Active Member
Here is the existing caulking removed and joint cleaned........
wetpaint
Active Member
