5200 SEALANT

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Greg

I helped a friend this past weekend put his new to him Pace23 in the water. Prior to putting it in the water we rebedded the thru fittings with 5200. The boat was in the water within two hours after we rebedded the two thru fittings. It leaks. The question is does 5200 have to set up any length of time? If not any ideas on why it the two thru fittings are leaking? Thanks Greg
 
B

Bill

Oh yea it has a set up time

I put a thur hull fitting in and 1 1/2 weeks later the stuff hadn't set up. I removed the nut to seal it and the whole fitting came out, had to start over. Turns out the temp was to low for it to set up. Temp, humidity and ventilation all will impact the cure time, which in an ideal condition can be close to a week if memory serves (which its dosen't seem to do all that well any more). Not the answer you wanted. I know.
 
Feb 3, 2004
12
- - Lake Martin, AL
At least 4 days...

I believe it says on the package that it will take about 3-4 days to fully cure. That depends on the weather in your area also. If it is cold outside, I wouldn't even bother because it will take forever. The ideal conditions would be above 65, no humidity, no rain. I used it a few weeks ago sealing some leaks and it took about 5 days to cure, with no rain, 62-70 degrees outside every day. Hope this helps and good luck, Brooks
 
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Gord May

5200 Cures Under Water

3M(TM) Marine Adhesive Sealant 5200 A one-part, greater than 99% solids urethane sealant that chemically cures when exposed to moisture to form a rubbery, extremely strong, waterproof seal or bond, is non-shrinking and offers exceptional resistance to weathering. Tack-Free Cure @ 48 Hours - Full Cure @ 7 Days
 
W

Windship

Greg, Did you apply the 5200 and then tighten the fittings imediatly or did you apply the 5200 snug the fitting untill th 5200 squeezed out all around then letting quick cure sit overnight or untill almost cured then tighten all the way? Dennis
 
Dec 2, 1999
15,184
Hunter Vision-36 Rio Vista, CA.
Very poor choice!

Greg: I would have to agree with Jim. 5200 is a very poor choice of sealants for thru hull fittings. There is a good chance that it will remove gel coat if/when it is ever removed again. 5200 is not a good choice for MOST applications. Bonding a keel to hull or bonding the cabin to hull are a few of the places where it should be used. 4200 has the same sealing capability and it can be removed. There are also many other sealants on the market that are better for this type of application. I would suggest that you refer to the West Marine Catalog for a matrix of what to use on what. My favorite for this type of application is Life Caulk, but there are others that are also very good. I believe the 5200 it will cure just fine, it will just take longer.
 
A

Alan

Steve's right!!

5200 is a great bonding agent but a poor sealant. We put our keel on with 5200. Once it sets up you don't even need keel bolts. It would take a reciprocating saw to remove the keel now. I installed my thru hulls with silicone sealant 8 years ago, not a drip. But removing it would be rather easy.
 
W

Windship

I can't believe what I'm hearing! 5200 is a very poor sealant??? Are you kidding me??? 5200 is the best adhesive/sealant on the market! You installed your through hulls with silicone??? What!?? Up untill two years ago I worked professionally in yacht repair. I have worked for three boatyards in the area and also worked on the final assembly line at C.Raymond Hunt Boat Works in South Dartmouth. I have also done many,many side jobs. Total of twelve years. Not to mention maintaining and up grading my own boats all my life. 5200 is a polyurathane A/S (adhesive/sealant)that is available in a quick cure that cures in a day or two depending on ambient temps and the regular cure that might take up to or longer than two weeks also depending on ambient temps. Polyurathane can and should be used on fittings and such above and below the waterline when the item you are bedding down will not be removed any time soon or will not be removed at all, Ie cleats, chalks, stantions, swim ladder, teak trim, hull to deck joints etc, etc. but not on plastic items. 'Life Caulk' is a polysulfide A/S almost as strong as Polyurathane but not quite as.Polysulfide also takes gel coat if not removed properly. Polysulfide may also be used on all the same things that polyurathane is used on but like polyurathane should not be used on plastic. Before cure, cleans up with denatured alcohol.Polysulfide has to be cleaned up with a solvent. Water, by the way, will aid in the curing process of these two compounds. These A/S,s most of the time have to be cut when removing a fitting or what have you.If you don't remove an item correctly, then yes, of coarse they will take gel coat with them, their adhesives. You don't bed somthing down with the thought of, 'it may be difficult to remove someday', you bed something down with the thought 'this is strong and it will not leak' Silicone is a very poor adhesive, in fact, it's not really an adhesive at all! Silicone is a sealant. The only place you should use silicone,is on plastic ports or other area's where you can't use polyurathane or polysulfide. Dennis
 
D

Daryl

I only use 5200 ....

on things I never want to take apart. I'd never use it to be a thru hull fitting. Boat life or Seakoflex is better suited for things you may want to disassemble some day.
 
V

VIEXILE

5200 Below the Waterline

I just did all my through hulls with 5200, and have done it on a number of boats. It will take glass and gelcoat when removal is attempted, however, sometimes the only way to remove an old through-hull is to grind slots in the flange and chisel it out. That's better than whacking it from the inside repeatedly until it (maybe) comes out, stressing the crap out of the area and probably delaminating around the hole. After that, I rebuild the hole with 1.5 oz. mat and west system mixed with mill fiber or colloidal silica. So it doesn't matter if gelcoat comes off, particularly if you're going to barrier coat anyway. 5200 takes awhile to cure, but it's 83 degrees down here every day. Probably 4200 would work better in colder climes, although I used 5200 in Maine with good results. It also adheres and keeps the valve/backing plate assembly from being able to turn. This time I didn't through-bolt, because I trust the 5200, after experience with removal, to keep the thing in its original position. I wouldn't use silicone, boatlife or other bedding compounds for this application. And mine don't leak, but you've got to load it up and lean on it.
 
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