Beckson windows - rebedding

[NYSail]

The set-up of the Beckson window has the window seating from inside the boat, with a frame surrounding the exterior acting as a gasket. Seating this exterior frame appears to be the total protection from water intrussion with alot of silicone to be used. Beckson reccomends using Marine grade silicone for this as well as the rest of the bedding.Just wondering about past experiences and if life calk or similar products are acceptable?Thanks as always!GregP36-2

 

[Rob19574]

Use Butyl Tape

You can buy it in any RV supply stores. Its stays gooy and sticky and ensure the seal stay water-tight even as the hull flexes.Rob

 

[Rick]

Beckson rebedding

Installing new Beckson portlights was last years project. We dealt directly with Beckson and installed the portlights as directed and used the recommeded Dow 795 sealant. Install the portlights from the interior with screws going into barrel nuts inserted from the outside, lightly sand the cabin exterior and cabin side of the portlight frame, apply sealant in the space between the portlight and cabin and over the barrel nuts and cabin, install the frame over the window with a little pressure. After 3-4 days , trim the excess sealant. To keep the sealant from adhering to unwanted areas, tape and wipe dishwashing detergent around the outside of the window frame and outside cabin walls. One year later and no leaks.

 

[Rich]

Barrel nuts not standard for most Beckson models

I'm not sure whether the barrel nuts Rick describes are something Beckson suggests, but so far as I've seen in my "window shopping" the current Beckson models still have just screw holes on the interior piece that screw into the liner, just like the Beckson ports that came with my 1987 boat. I'm pretty sure the trim ring doesn't have holes for barrel nuts either, so you would have to customize something to get that kind of through-bolting.Fortunately, in removing my old Becksons I found that the caulk and screws in the liner formed a tenacious grip on the port. Ordinary silicone caulk would probably seal the exterior edges of the hold from water and adhesive caulk would hold the port in place. (If you don't have some kind of filler between inner and outer liner, don't fret: just a line of caulk at that liner edges will still grip it tightly. In fact, you may not want to seal the whole inner/outer area if it has filler because you may never be able to get the port off again!)Based on what I saw in removing my old Becksons there is no need to through-bolt as the caulk and screws will hold the port well enough that the port will break before it will detach from the fiberglass...

 

[Neil]

Rebedding Ports

To get a good seal it is obviously necessary to get adeqaute sealant between the hull and the side of the port. Check very careflly that the gap between the port and the hull is large enough, all around the port, to fully insert the tip of the sealant tube. I had to invest quite some time in opening up this hole with a sabre saw to achieve this, but it was well worth the effort!

 

[Rick]

Barrel nuts

Becskon sells the portlights, barrel nuts, and Dow 795 sealant. The barrel nuts are installed on the outside of the cabin with countersunk 1/4" holes(??? memory ???). Apply a little sealant int eh holes, insert the barrel nuts, and screw the portlight from the inside into the barrel nuts. Liberally apply the sealant and install the trim ring. The trim ring covers the sins. I had to use a Rotozip to make the opening slightly larger than the original portlights.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Tr this

http://www.c34.org/faq-pages/faq-leakyports.htmlfrom the C34 website FAQs

 

[NYSail]

The problem

with all these methods and a Pearson P36-2, is that the Pearson has the fiberglass cabin wall, then a fiberglass headliner, then a wood pannel, none of which are connected, so the inside frame of the window does not touch the cabin wall.....Makes the set-up a bit tougherGreg

 

[Stu Jackson]

nysail

I'm not sure I understand your problem. Even with three "layers" (exterior fiberglass, headliner, and inside wood), the body of the Beckson slides right through. Unless the length (depth?) of the whole Beckson portlight isn't enough to go through the depth of these three layers, I can't figure why it wouldn't work. (Ref is the picture on my last post). We have an inside headliner layer, too, but not the wood. Is it the depth of the assembly that goes through the hull or the width of the opening when you're looking straight at it from inside, when you say: "...so the inside frame of the window does not touch the cabin wall..."?

 

[John Nantz]

Seal Around the Outside Trim Ring

NYSail - you got it. The only place one can put sealant to keep water from going inside the boat is around the trim ring where it makes contact with the port, and on the coachroof side of the trim ring at that. Note that the trim ring has a 45º chamfer/bevel on it for this purpose - it's for the sealant.Puting sealant on the port flange on the inside of the boat does absolutely nothing - except make it harder to remove the port. Even a non-liner boat can have plywood or some other filler material on the inside of the coachroof and if water gets into it - you get rot or mold and mildew. The water has to be prevented from getting past the outside coachroof fiberglass.To get a better leak-seal, file or grind a matching 45º angle around the port opening in the outside of the coachroof opposite the bevel on the trim ring - this will provide double the contact area for sealant against port and also a better contact for adhesion of sealant to the coachroof because it's rough fiberglass instead of gelcoat - and - the roughened 45º surface provides a tad bit more surface area, not much but every bit helps.For sealant - talk to the Dow rep for your area and ask if he would recommend 795 or 995. The rep for the Northwest recommended 995 and I've yet to have a port leak in y-e-a-r-s, except for the gasket area Screws on the trim aren't needed and in fact will probably be only a source for leaks.

 

[Stu Jackson]

OK, I got it

Good picture, thanks for the clarification.Here's what I would do if it were my boat1. Depend on the integrity of the sealant YOU place behind the outside frame of the Beckson port. Slather LOTS of sealant on the vertical surface outside the window opening, press to fit.OR2. Step A -- spend lotsa time sealing the edge of your opening with whatever material you can find to suit. You could easily use gasket material of some sort, but with the edges I see you have, you could use Marine Tex and make the edges solid. Marine Tex or any other epoxy would dry in a day. You could also simply use silicone sealant on the edges, slather in and fair to a flat surface and let dry for a few days. Step B - just do 1 above.Your choice to do a one or two step. Your choice to deal with the integrity of the edges, although the Becksons when properly sealed from the outside, work very well.Your boat, your choice, it ain't the Beckson's.PS -- I agree with John, too, who just posted above this.