Need Help Replacing Ports Wood Rot in Core

[njlarry]

795 is not like the stuff at the hardware store. It is a very strong architechual adhesive that also seals. It is also a little pricey but worth it. It is the only the sealer to use on fixed ports imho.
for this type of application where opening ports with bolt fastened frames i would use life caulk. 5500 and4500 are too permanet and would make future repairs a real bear.. They are best for hull to deck joints only.
i like the idea of plywood held and sealed with epoxy. Th e bondo glass works well too.

 

[pateco]

Exactly. if I had to do it over I would just use Bondo Glass from Walmart next time. A $12 can would have done at least 3 ports.

I agree that Bondo Glass would be much easier, however my worry about Bondo Glass is that it is polyester resin, and I have read that it may not bond well with older fiberglass. Because of where it is, inside a skinny wall opening, I cannot prep the surface well for bonding. I am going to see this weekend if any of my neighbors has a planer I can borrow for the PVC board. Otherwise I will try to make up a West 105 epoxy resin version of Bondo Glass myself.

 

[kito]

I agree that Bondo Glass would be much easier, however my worry about Bondo Glass is that it is polyester resin, and I have read that it may not bond well with older fiberglass. Because of where it is, inside a skinny wall opening, I cannot prep the surface well for bonding. I am going to see this weekend if any of my neighbors has a planer I can borrow for the PVC board. Otherwise I will try to make up a West 105 epoxy resin version of Bondo Glass myself.

That's funny. I heard the opposite that polyester resin sticks to most anything. I bedded all my seacock g10 backing plates in Bondo Glass......I think MS calls it "kitty hair". Btw, it's most likely your boat is made from polyester resin and not epoxy. But, I have been wrong many times I can tell the difference by the smell when cutting or grinding it.

 

[Allan12210]

I agree that Bondo Glass would be much easier, however my worry about Bondo Glass is that it is polyester resin, and I have read that it may not bond well with older fiberglass. Because of where it is, inside a skinny wall opening, I cannot prep the surface well for bonding. I am going to see this weekend if any of my neighbors has a planer I can borrow for the PVC board. Otherwise I will try to make up a West 105 epoxy resin version of Bondo Glass myself.

Do you have a belt sander? A couple of quick passes should reduce the thickness to what you want. Either that or a regular orbital sander with some coarse grit paper should accomplish the same thing pretty fast.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

Just a thought on the plastic sheets. Go to a reputable model train or hobby shop and you can purchase varying degrees of thickness in plastic sheets by Evergreen. It is a thought.

 

[pateco]

Did some more work this weekend

Filled the gap with short strand fiberglass filler.

Sanded it back to the correct opening.

After first coat of white pigmented west systems epoxy.

Once that was dry, I sanded again and put on a second coat. But it was too dark for a picture. I will post one tomorrow when I go back to the boat.

 

[isaksp00]

I would try to fill all but about 1 or maybe 1/2 inch of the gap with some kind of foam planking or wood - that'd be much easier, faster and less costly than a lot of thickened epoxy. Then I'd use something like West system (mixing the epoxy and filler is time consuming, yes - whether you use the mixing tubes at higher cost is a question of how much time you have) just for the edge where the screws are, which would seal it from future intrusion between the deck layers. You may want to consider butyl strips for the caulking - I am not sure if hatches are a recommended application though.

 

[pateco]

First of the new ports is finally in.

Port opening after the final coat of epoxy.

Finished opening from the outside.

Freshly installed port.

Now I only have 6 more to do. I hope they are in better condition than the first was, but it was the worst leaker. Next will be the one over the galley. It is almost as bad as this one was..

 

[pateco]

Big difference.

Before

After

 

[uncledom]

Nice job Chip! I know where I'm sailing to when my ports leak.

 

[pateco]

Learning this on the fly with a lot of trial and error. Next one should go much quicker. I think I could do two a weekend without to much effort. Going to have to wait until after new-years though. We're going to try to take her out sailing for the first time this weekend. Just got the "new to me" used sails installed late last Sunday

 

[pateco]

I was correct. Finished two yesterday.

Friday night I started Port #2 over the galley. It was worse than the first one I did. Rotten All around. And repaired with gobs of silicone.

Started cleaning it up:

Lots of rotten plywood:

Got it cleaned though:

 

[pateco]

Yesterday, I got to work fixing the port opening.

Taped it off:

Glassed and sanded:

I was trying to figure out how to do the inverted section at the top of the port. I was worried about not filling it completely, and about sagging. So I found some 7/16" exterior pvc board at Lowes. I pre-fit it, and then covered with fiberglass and pushed it up into the space. Only color lowes had in 7/16 was Brown, you can see some of it showing in the top right side of the picture below.

 

[pateco]

Finished port looks good

 

[pateco]

While I was waiting on the fiberglass to harden on the galley port opening, I decided to try the next port on the list of leakers, in the Aft Cabin looking into the cockpit. This one must have been a gasket leak, because once I got it out, the opening was sound and dry as a bone YEAH!!!

I did some cleaning, Test fit the new port, and sanded to make sure it was fitting perfectly.

Installed the New port. What a difference.