32-200 Fixed Port

Last summer after a heavy rainstorm I noticed a couple of drops of water on the starboard settee cushion and tracked the source to the forward fixed port. Having a very dry boat I didn't want to just let this go even though it was only a couple of drops. Last weekend while working on the boat I ended up removing the complete port and frame; no easy task in itself. The past couple of days I worked on removing the glass. What a battle that was:0! I did not break anything and only drew a little bit of blood. The frame was held into the boat by the internal aluminum trim and a lot of white caulk that remained fairly flexible. The glass was sealed into the frame with clear silicone caulk that gripped like a giant gorilla.

My question is does anyone have experience re-sealing the glass into the frame and the frame/port back into the boat. This is way more work than I had imagined. I hope it all goes back together without any leaks!

Thanks for any input and advice,,,, Brian K.

I recently tried to rebuild my original fixed ports and finally gave up (when I realized the old ones were too far gone to save) and had new ports made. If yours are salvageable you are lucky. Theoretically I don't think the glass needs any kind of sealant if you use the right glazing strip. I think getting the two halves of the frame back together around the glass with the new glazing is going to be the (very) hard part. Soapy water is supposed to help.

When I first removed my old ports to inspect them I rebedded them using butyl tape. That proved to be leak-free, but I wanted to put new ports in anyway. When I installed the new ports I had them made slightly larger so I could trim the cutout to fit the new windows more exactly. I made a routing template to fit the new ports and routed the cutouts. I bedded the new ports with butyl tape as well and they have been leak-free since installation. I think butyl is the way to go as it will be easier to remove the ports in the future if needed.

My next re-bedding project is my main saloon hatch and forward hatch. I plan to use butyl there as well.

If you are interested in new ports, I had mine made by Bomon. I believe they have the measurements I did on file. Sven also had new ports made to those measurements, so I'm sure Bomon will recall the orders; they delivered my windows around the end of March last year. It seems the large fixed ports on all the Ericsons were the same size.

BTW: If you do break the glass, I have several panes from ports I disassemble sitting around here.

I rebedded mine about 8 years ago. Used clear silicone for the glass and 3M 101 on the frame. Still leak free.

JG
'88 E32-3

Mark, do you recall how much you paid Boman for each of the new ports? Were the new frames stainless or chrome plated or aluminum (anodized)? Just curious on that. My ports are in very good shape and since I was able to remove the glass from the frame with out breaking either, I'll go ahead and try to completely remove all the old caulk and sealant then rebuild what I have. The glazing strips seem to be in good condition also. The process I used to remove the glass is to first unscrew the connecting piece that holds the frame together. Then I took a razor blade and carefully worked my way around breaking the silicone caulk seal. Finally, there are plastic spacers that go between the aluminum frame and the edge of the glass. You have to work these spacers out and remove all the silicone caulk from the groove of the frame. Then you can carefully pry the glass out. Mark, hang on to those glass pieces,,,, I'm sure someone will want them at some point.

JG, I'll probably follow the same process you used but use butyl tape around the outside flange.

Thanks for the feedback.

Is there any way to seal the windows in the glass without taking the whole frame and glass apart? I have a very minor leak in the seal between the glass and the frame, but don't want to remove the whole frame and take it all apart unless that's the only way to fix it. Any advice?

Frank

The frames are clear anodized aluminum and the glass is 1/4" thick, which is slightly thicker than the original. When I ordered them a year ago the price was $312 each, not including shipping charges which were $107 coming from Canada.

Here's a link to the Bomon site for more info:

http://www.bomon.com/

The problem I had with my original windows and with some of the salvaged ones I found was salt water had gotten to the inside of the frame and the large channel that runs around the inside of the frame. This corroded the screws and backing plates that hold the two sides of the frame together and the frame itself; so badly in some places that the corrosion had completely eaten through the frame.

Here's a couple of pics of the new windows installed:



I had them use this Graylite 14 glass. It looks almost black from the outside, but as you can see in the above interior picture, is easy to see out of:

http://www.grayglass.net/product.cfm/GrayGlass/GRAYLITE-14/product_id/4173

Hey Frank, you could probably try to use some kind of sealant on the outside of the glass. It looked like a previous owner had tried something like that on my original windows.

If you do that, I would consider trimming the lip of the glazing strip on the outside of the glass first so you can make a smooth fillet of the sealant rather than trying to apply it over the existing glazing. I would also maybe try using something like Corning 795.

Thanks, Mark. That's a good idea.

Frank

Mark, thanks for the info,,, the ports look very nice!! Even though Luna spent most of her life in salt water the frames are still in fantastic condition, so here's hoping they will go back together and function properly. I was planning to add tinting,,, I think your picture confirm how much nicer that looks.

Fixed Port Repairs

Has anyone photographed the sequential disassembly of these units? Even an exploded array of components would be helpful to those of us looking forward (!) to this repair.

They're quite simple, really. Take out the screws from inside the cabin; the inner frame will come away from the bulkhead. With a couple of wide and/or narrow paint scrapers, break any exterior seal between the frame and the boat, and pry off the outer frame from the exterior; this might be easy or difficult depending on the sealant used and its condition. Ease the frame and the glass out of the hole in the bulkhead. There are then a couple of screws holding some small aluminum tie bars in place keeping the two pieces of the frame together around the glass. After that, it's just the rubber gasket around the glass holding it together.