some more advice please - leaky windows

[Jamesb4uk]

Strange one here - in the last year living aboard my windows have never leaked, ever.

 

however i powerwashed the boat ready for painting & all of a sudden 3 of the boats windows are now leaking quite a lot.

 

I can only assume powerwashing them has dislodged seals/mould that was keeping the rain at bay.

 

can they be repaired without sending them off? i spoke to a couple of places who cant get them back until after my crane in date.

 

 

1 hopper & 2 slides are the ones leaking.

[eightpot]

Easy job. Well, when I say easy, I do mean git of a job. I did one of mine last month:

 

Drill out pop rivets / unscrew, erm, screws (delete as appropriate).

 

Use a flexible craft knife behind the frame to cut the remaining sealant which acts like a glue between the frame and the cabinside. This will be a bugger of a job and don't flex the frame too much when levering it out of the aperture, else you may distort the ally frame or break the glass. This is generally regarded as a Bad Thing.

 

Once it is finally free and ideally not broken, clean off the remaining sealer/crud from the frame and the resultant hole in the boat where once there was glass. You may need to treat edge of the metalwork as it may have rusted and the rust will have pushed the frame away from the cabin causing the leak. Feel free to look on in horror at the gaping hole in your boat, the rust and crap now all over the floor, then swear profusely during this part of the exercise and call me all the names under the sun. I can take it, I'm not in earshot.

 

Once both the frame and aperture have been cleaned and repaired, get a tube of silicone sealer and apply a bead around the inside of the "flange" of the window frame.

 

Offer up the frame back into the window hole and fix the frame in place with screws/pop rivets. Wipe up the reulting silicone gloop from around the frame as it is fixed back, becuause you WILL apply too much sealer since the little pixie on your shoulder will tell you to do so.

 

 

Thats about it really. Oh, watch the weather report prior to starting and expect lots of nasty brown coloured bits of narrowboat to fall over your soft furnishings inside.

 

Enjoy!

Edited June 19, 2012 by eightpot

[Tony Brooks]

Strange one here - in the last year living aboard my windows have never leaked, ever.

 

however i powerwashed the boat ready for painting & all of a sudden 3 of the boats windows are now leaking quite a lot.

 

I can only assume powerwashing them has dislodged seals/mould that was keeping the rain at bay.

 

can they be repaired without sending them off? i spoke to a couple of places who cant get them back until after my crane in date.

 

 

1 hopper & 2 slides are the ones leaking.

 

 

Depends whet you mean by leaking.

 

 

 

If they are leaking between the glass and frame then they might have to go away or you could try Captain Tolly's Creeping Crack Cure.

 

If they are leaking between the cabin side and frame then the said CTCC might give a temporary fix but it would be much more satisfactory to take the windows out and reseal them.

 

In driving rain water may well bounce up through open hoppers or gaps between the hopper glass and frame, also between the two pieces of glass in the sliding windows.

 

You may well have drain holes between the inner channel of the frame and the outside. make sure these are free.

[Rebotco]

Strange one here - in the last year living aboard my windows have never leaked, ever.

 

however i powerwashed the boat ready for painting & all of a sudden 3 of the boats windows are now leaking quite a lot.

 

I can only assume powerwashing them has dislodged seals/mould that was keeping the rain at bay.

 

can they be repaired without sending them off? i spoke to a couple of places who cant get them back until after my crane in date.

 

 

1 hopper & 2 slides are the ones leaking.

 

 

 

 

Looks like they might be Caldwell Windows. If so this may help My link

[twinpot]

If it was mine i think i would wait and see what happened when it rained again.(thursday i think)because you have probably blasted water up through the hoppers,if its rained since you power washed it,and they still leak,then disreguard my sugestion.

Twinpot

[BlueStringPudding]

Clean out any drainage channels first as the powerwash might have flushed rust and dirt down to block them. Might be that simple.

[richardf]

I think it needs a bit more support in the middle of the boat than it currently has - just an observation!

[David Mack]

I think it needs a bit more support in the middle of the boat than it currently has - just an observation!

 

Why? The average steel narrowboat shell (hull and cabin) is an enormous box girder and won't worry about being supported in only two places. How much support is there when boats are craned in/out?

[bowten]

Why? The average steel narrowboat shell (hull and cabin) is an enormous box girder and won't worry about being supported in only two places. How much support is there when boats are craned in/out?

The webbing used when craning is much nearer the centre of the boat.It probably won't but it does look like it might break it's back,looking at the piccies.

 

Good advice by eightpot by the way.

[PhilR]

Depends whet you mean by leaking.

 

 

 

If they are leaking between the glass and frame then they might have to go away or you could try Captain Tolly's Creeping Crack Cure.

 

 

 

I am sure most people think I am mad for recommending Owatrol Oil for this purpose, but maybe they haven't tried it?

 

CTCCC IS good - but Owatrol does the same job and it does lots of other things at the same time............

[bizzard]

Do you have to go outside to open and close these windows.If so they have been fitted inside out and will probably leak.

[smileypete]

I am sure most people think I am mad for recommending Owatrol Oil for this purpose, but maybe they haven't tried it?

 

CTCCC IS good - but Owatrol does the same job and it does lots of other things at the same time............

PVA glue does the same, being water based unlike it can be used before things are fully dry.

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited June 20, 2012 by smileypete

[Jamesb4uk]

thanks all

 

had a look last night & they're screw in jobs so should be easy to take out.

 

the slide windows are leaking due to the rubber seal channel that the slide part window sits in being worn or non existant.

 

i'll have a look at the hopper window tonight

[Dovetail]

Over the years I have had to re seal most of my windows but what I have found with a couple in particular is they will drip every now and then and then nothing for a very long time.

 

It has to be down to wind and rain direction?

 

You can get a correct sealer for windows that stays flexible and is great and I have had no problems with it the product I used was called Marine Bedding Sealant.

 

Plenty of people use silicone and it works ok but the problem with this is if it fails in one corner say the rest of the window will be stuck fast and a real pain to separate the window from the boat.

 

Your hull looks similar to my boat and if your boat is by Arkwright then as with my experience the original windows were sealed with a type of putty? or similar sealant and rust forming behind the sealant caused the windows to drip and were relatively easy to remove, the windows that had previously resealed with silicone were a very different story.

[talisman]

If you take the windows out,re-fit using window tape, its better than silicone and easy to use. Just apply a little silicone to the screw holes before fixing to seal screws.

[Jamesb4uk]

I think it needs a bit more support in the middle of the boat than it currently has - just an observation!

 

its been like that for 3 months with no sign of breaking so far!

 

Over the years I have had to re seal most of my windows but what I have found with a couple in particular is they will drip every now and then and then nothing for a very long time.

 

It has to be down to wind and rain direction?

 

You can get a correct sealer for windows that stays flexible and is great and I have had no problems with it the product I used was called Marine Bedding Sealant.

 

Plenty of people use silicone and it works ok but the problem with this is if it fails in one corner say the rest of the window will be stuck fast and a real pain to separate the window from the boat.

 

Your hull looks similar to my boat and if your boat is by Arkwright then as with my experience the original windows were sealed with a type of putty? or similar sealant and rust forming behind the sealant caused the windows to drip and were relatively easy to remove, the windows that had previously resealed with silicone were a very different story.

 

 

 

The hoppers drain channels were indeed blocked - but sealent will be added when it stops raining!

 

The slides i'm still trying to find the rubber chanels for which seems to be the cause of the leaks, not forming a seal when the windows are closed..

 

btw mines a Springer 1980's ex hireboat.

Edited June 21, 2012 by Jamesb4uk

[Miracle]

i'm still trying to remove my window - i started this at 10am it is now 5pm. I've been around all but the bottom but its now budging at all. I.AM.SO.FRUSTRATED.

 

The windows were done by the previous owner and he did a good job. They're thoroughly sealed (except where they're not)

ARGH.

 

It seems everyone around me is enjoying the sun and water and I am sweating and struggling. GRRR.

[Phil Ambrose]

Well here's my two pennys worth. Leak could be due to flexing of the hull due to not being supported all round by water but only at each end. As for sealant, Silicon would not be my first choice for reasons already stated, I have had to seal windows on my previous boat and I used "Frame Sealing Mastic which remains soft and pliable though it does have a hard skin which can be painted (unlike silicon).

 

Phil

Edited August 18, 2012 by Phil Ambrose

[Miracle]

day 2: I've freed one corner..but its not breaking the rest of the seal. I've already called the marina to see about them doing the rest. They didn't answer. (it is sunday I shouldn't be surprised I guess). So discouraged.