A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape...

[Ross S]

I've read the bedding tutorial and found it very informative. Thank you. I've removed the teak grab rails from my boat because years of neglect have left them in dire need of rehabilitation. They were bedded using 3M-5200 and in the process of removing the rails I've learned why it is called "Satan's Glue". I had been planning on rebedding with butyl tape however I discovered something that surprised me and am wondering if butyl is going to be the right choice. That discovery is that the rails are bedded directly over non-skid, meaning that the sealing surface is textured. I have two concerns about that. One is that it may be nearly impossible for me to remove the old sealant from all the nooks and crannies of the non-skid in order to start with a "clean" surface. The second concern is the thickness of the butyl tape. I bought the butyl direct from Maine Sail via the links elsewhere in the forum. It is 1/16" thick. If some of the nooks and crannies are deeper than that, it is ok to use two layers of butyl to get a thickness of 1/8" prior to compressing in order ensure good solid contact with the non-skid?

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Maine Sail]

I've read the bedding tutorial and found it very informative. Thank you. I've removed the teak grab rails from my boat because years of neglect have left them in dire need of rehabilitation. They were bedded using 3M-5200 and in the process of removing the rails I've learned why it is called "Satan's Glue". I had been planning on rebedding with butyl tape however I discovered something that surprised me and am wondering if butyl is going to be the right choice. That discovery is that the rails are bedded directly over non-skid, meaning that the sealing surface is textured. I have two concerns about that. One is that it may be nearly impossible for me to remove the old sealant from all the nooks and crannies of the non-skid in order to start with a "clean" surface. The second concern is the thickness of the butyl tape. I bought the butyl direct from Maine Sail via the links elsewhere in the forum. It is 1/16" thick. If some of the nooks and crannies are deeper than that, it is ok to use two layers of butyl to get a thickness of 1/8" prior to compressing in order ensure good solid contact with the non-skid?

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Just clean it the best you can. At least it's not silicone..

The reason I sell only 1/2" X 1/16" is because of its flexibility in use for multiple applications.

You can lay it side by side or stack it to the desired thickness. Once you begin to tighten it becomes one contiguous piece of sealant....

 

[alexco38]

Debond

Debond will get any glue off including 5200. Not cheap but does a great job. Let it soak and scrape off.

Never let it touch any window plastic. Don't ask why I know.

 

[IStream]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

DSR-5 also does a great job with silicone and any other soft cure adhesive sealants. It's about $40 per quart but it goes a long way.

 

[kito]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

I just bought 100' of Maine sail's butyl tape. Just wondering if it could be used to seal below waterline thru hull's.....or should I stick with 5200.?

 

[woodster]

I just bought 100' of Maine sail's butyl tape. Just wondering if it could be used to seal below waterline thru hull's.....or should I stick with 5200.?

best to use butyl above the water line and use what ever sealant you need below the water line like 4200 or 5200 i sealed all m through hull fittings below the water line with 5200 except for the trans ducers and i used 4200 for that one but i used the groco flange adaptor for the trough hull fittings with the groco valves on the inside attached to the flange adaptors...

hope this helps

regatrds

woody

 

[Maine Sail]

I just bought 100' of Maine sail's butyl tape. Just wondering if it could be used to seal below waterline thru hull's.....or should I stick with 5200.?

It is not rated for below water use..

 

[thinwater]

As Mainesail said, butyl is not technically rated below the waterline. Polyurethane also provides adhesive strength as a back-up.

That said, I would love to see move study on this. I used several sealants on a 3-year holding tank study (silicone, 5200, PL window polyurethane, and butyl) and butyl received top marks by a wide measure. Silicone pealed, 5200 and PL showed some blistering, and butyl was like day-one. Granted holding tank chemistry is different from seawater.

The primary qualifier with butyl (other than avoiding petroleum exposure) is that it must be held still by positive clamping pressure. Perhaps for something like a through-hull there would not be enough resistance to rotation. The failure would not be water exposure--butyl is used to seal submerged concrete fittings all the time, with lifetime ratings of over 30 years in my experience (things I installed and have seen demoed)--it would be mechanical.

 

[Steve Dion]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

I do not think I would consider 5200 for bedding thru hull fittings. If/when they need to be replaced it just makes the job that much more difficult. Chances are that you are going to remove gelcoat and probably some fiberglass material getting them out of there.

We really like using our butyl on our fittings. The only issue is the stuff is VERY sticky so if you are using it around a non-skid area try not to get it on the non-skid because it is not easy to remove.

 

[Brian S]

I thought I had heard that for below waterline uses, like through hulls, one should consider a polysulfide compound like Boatlife LifeCaulk or Sikaflex

Am I correct on this remembrance?

Brian

 

[Maine Sail]

I thought I had heard that for below waterline uses, like through hulls, one should consider a polysulfide compound like Boatlife LifeCaulk or Sikaflex

Am I correct on this remembrance?

Brian

Polysulfide sealants work too. The only marine polysulfide left on the market is Boatlife Life-Calk. Sika makes polyurethanes. 3M makes polyurethanes and also makes a Polyeather called UV4000 but 3M dropped their polysulfide.

 

[Guts1236]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

The butyl tape being discussed here is a very common product and can be purchased at any weatherproofing store. In San Diego California one store is called sunshine supply and it sells this butyl tape half-inch wide 1/8 inch thick 30 feet long for under four dollars I bought three roles and got change back out of a $10 bill.


http://www.sunshinesupply.com/locations.html

 

[woodster]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

all butyl tapes are not the same.....some better some worse than others....haveing said that yes one can get it from a lot of places but in order to get the good stuff one usually has to buy it in case lots and that is a lot of tape for some one to have on hand....it is nice that it can be found on this site and backed by the scrutney of a compatend tech.....that tech shares a lot of good info on this site at no charge.... that he gets paid for on the hard in his home stomping grounds....so it is nice to be able to say think you to him buy using him as a source for this product......

regards

woody

 

[kito]

The butyl tape being discussed here is a very common product and can be purchased at any weatherproofing store. In San Diego California one store is called sunshine supply and it sells this butyl tape half-inch wide 1/8 inch thick 30 feet long for under four dollars I bought three roles and got change back out of a $10 bill.

I bought the good stuff that is sold on this site. I didn't want to go through the trouble of rebedding my hardware with crappy butyl tape.

 

[Brian S]

Although Guts is correct - there are many types of butyl sealant available, from roofing sealant to window glazing, I caution folks about this. Some of the formulas will work well, some are really not a good choice at all.

However, Maine Sail has gone to great lengths to source a butyl formulation that has the desired characteristics for a marine environment, and he has tested it to make sure it will work well…

Butyl sealant has been around a long time, and was used often in the marine industry what, 50 years ago? I vaguely remember my Grandfather having some when I was a kid. I guess it fell out of favor for boatbuilders with the advent of polyurethanes like 3M 4200 and 5200. When I studied up and learned about Maine's Bed-it, and purchased some, I was surprised to see it seems just like the stuff I vaguely remember from when I was a kid.

Just be aware of all the considerations - I have learned a lot about this stuff primarily from reading Maine's forum, and hearing the experiences of Main and others…

Brian

The butyl tape being discussed here is a very common product and can be purchased at any weatherproofing store. In San Diego California one store is called sunshine supply and it sells this butyl tape half-inch wide 1/8 inch thick 30 feet long for under four dollars I bought three roles and got change back out of a $10 bill.

 

[Jghflash]

Re: A question about bedding deck hardware with butyl tape..

After reading about butyl tape on this site (thanks!), I rebedded all my deck hardware with it on my little boat.........it turned out to be 240 holes! The stuff works great and not a single leak anywhere. Super easy to use, although as noted it is a bit sticky, especially if it is warm.....and it's always warm on Bonaire.