Replacing boat glass

[curlass24]

Hello,

 

Our window is cracked so looking to refit. have never done this before. Where's the best place to buy glass? And do I need to get a new seal? it looks like the bolts supporting the frame can be taken out with an alan key.

 

Any advice much appreciated!

[Rickent]

Some pictures would help people give relevent advice.

[Chewbacka]

1 hour ago, curlass24 said:

Hello,

 

Our window is cracked so looking to refit. have never done this before. Where's the best place to buy glass? And do I need to get a new seal? it looks like the bolts supporting the frame can be taken out with an alan key.

 

Any advice much appreciated!

It must be a very old pane of glass because it should be toughened glass which does not crack it shatters.  I get my glass from a local glass supplier, suggest you use google to find one nearby.

 

i suppose it might be laminated glass which does crack, but I don’t think it is common on boats, assuming we are talking about boats.

 

as to fitting there are a number of different designs, so it depends on what you have, hence a photo or more information is required.

[Alan de Enfield]

49 minutes ago, Chewbacka said:

It must be a very old pane of glass because it should be toughened glass which does not crack it shatters.  I get my glass from a local glass supplier, suggest you use google to find one nearby.

 

i suppose it might be laminated glass which does crack, but I don’t think it is common on boats, assuming we are talking about boats.

 

as to fitting there are a number of different designs, so it depends on what you have, hence a photo or more information is required.

 

Certainly "Safety Glass" is required by the RCD, but I don't know what the definition of 'safety glass' is.

I know mine has a sort of 'BS logo' in the glass similar to that a car windscreen has.

 

It would not be a very good idea to simply use 'plate window glass'.

[Geoff]

As I found out when some "little darling" broke into my boat recently, most of the glazing shops are closed because their suppliers are shut. ( Channelglaze open but can't get glass)

[BEngo]

A decent glazier will supply the glass.  Look for double glazing unit makers.  You will need to supply a template,  tell them the thickness  and ask for it to be toughened.  That means having to wait after it is cut whilst it is toughened.  Some firms can toughen in house, others send it out.

 

N

[mrsmelly]

I have replaced quite a few on hire fleets. We used laminated and was cut to order at any glazing suppliers in the area. Very easy on some types of frame but probably a pain lol on others.

[Geoff]

11 minutes ago, BEngo said:

A decent glazier will supply the glass.  Look for double glazing unit makers.  You will need to supply a template,  tell them the thickness  and ask for it to be toughened.  That means having to wait after it is cut whilst it is toughened.  Some firms can toughen in house, others send it out.

 

N

As I said, vast majority are closed and even if they are open they can't get the glass treated

[Jen-in-Wellies]

If you can't get glass, then polycarbonate sheet would be an alternative, temporary until you can get toughened glass again, or permanent if the collapse of civilisation accelerates. Easy to cut yourself to size. This company is still supplying for example. Riot shields are made out of the stuff, so it is plenty tough enough. Size, thickness and method of fitting depends on your windows.

Jen

[BWM]

10 hours ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

If you can't get glass, then polycarbonate sheet would be an alternative, temporary until you can get toughened glass again, or permanent if the collapse of civilisation accelerates. Easy to cut yourself to size. This company is still supplying for example. Riot shields are made out of the stuff, so it is plenty tough enough. Size, thickness and method of fitting depends on your windows.

Jen

A good suggestion, if like many boats the windows are identical, it could be kept afterwards as an emergency spare when replaced. 

[Rickent]

11 hours ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

If you can't get glass, then polycarbonate sheet would be an alternative, temporary until you can get toughened glass again, or permanent if the collapse of civilisation accelerates. Easy to cut yourself to size. This company is still supplying for example. Riot shields are made out of the stuff, so it is plenty tough enough. Size, thickness and method of fitting depends on your windows.

Jen

I replaced one of my windows with polycarbonate sheet whilst I sourced a sheet of glass, two years later the polycarb sheet is still doing a great job.

[ditchcrawler]

I know a boater who was very pleased he had polly carbonate when a drunk passed his boat in Middlewich and aimed a few kicks at the windows

[Alan de Enfield]

1 minute ago, ditchcrawler said:

I know a boater who was very pleased he had polly carbonate

Sounds like a very 'gassy parrot' (lovey plumage !!!!)

[curlass24]

Thanks, here's a picture 

[dmr]

Have you tried getting an Allen Key into those bolts, or had a really good look at them? I fear they are in fact pop rivets so will require drilling out, but the convenient hole in the middle makes this a little easier than some drilling out jobs.

 

...............Dave

[curlass24]

Ah thanks Dave, how do I drill them out?

[Chris G]

34 minutes ago, curlass24 said:

Ah thanks Dave, how do I drill them out?

I'm tempted to say "With a drill".

[Jen-in-Wellies]

39 minutes ago, curlass24 said:

Ah thanks Dave, how do I drill them out?

High speed steel (HSS) drill bit. Size depends on the rivet size. Try a 3mm first. If the head of the rivet doesn't pop off, then try a 4mm. If that doesn't work, try a 5mm, but it will most likely be 3, or 4mm.

Jen

[TheBiscuits]

4 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

High speed steel (HSS) drill bit. Size depends on the rivet size. Try a 3mm first. If the head of the rivet doesn't pop off, then try a 4mm. If that doesn't work, try a 5mm, but it will most likely be 3, or 4mm.

Jen

And from bitter experience make sure you have more than one 3mm drill bits ready before you start!

 

If you have three bits you won't snap the first one.  If you only have one it will break at the most inconvenient point in the process, probably while the window frame is dangling loose on the last one or two rivets ...

[Tracy D'arth]

I think that you will end up replacing the whole window.

Obscure glass as well, you will have problems.

[Chris G]

Try and make sure that the drill bit doesn't "grab".  If it does, the rivet may spin, making it much more difficult to drill out. 

[curlass24]

Great thanks a lot for the advice

[dmr]

I reckon the idea is to drill out the head itself rather than getting a drill to go down the hole, so a larger drill bit is the way to go, especially if inexperienced as there is less chance of breaking the drill bit. Probably 5mm, no less than 4.  Breaking drill bits is a right pain, first it might break off flush so you cant twist it out, and you can't really drill them out. Also if you are applying a lot of pressure the drill leaps forward and the remains of the drill bit digs a big scrape in the paint.

 

For general purpose (non engineering) boaty jobs I would get a pack of cheaper Screwfix drill bits and make no attempt to look after them. 

 

Pop rivers are nasty things. If possible I would redrill and tap the holes in the cabin side and refit the window with button head Allen bolts.

 

...................Dave

 

 

[David Mack]

I had to remove some flying saucer type roof vents which had been pop rivetted to the roof. I just drilled out the rivets using a drill bigger than the rivet shank - probably 5mm - until the heads came off, lifted off the vent then used a nail punch to push the rest of the rivet through. It would have been perfectly possible to put new rivets in the same holes, had I been refitting the vents (which I wasn't).

 

If you can't get toughened glass, which has to be sent away for toughening after your local glass merchant has cut it to the required shape and size, you could use laminated, which can be cut while you wait. If you want it obscured you can get film which can be applied to the inside face of the glass.