Need to Replace Shattered Side Window

[JT and Estee]

Uh oh! We shattered our side window made of safety glass. When closing our side door one night just before a 4 day trip, the door edge caught the side of the frameless window glass and shattered it.

We taped the window to keep it intact during the night then removed the shattered glass in the morning. We installed plastic tarp and duct tape in the morning and went on our trip. (which was lovely despite the broken window!)

Now that we are back in our home marina we are researching window replacement.

A. We emailed Carver and they sent us the drawing and a contact at the manufacturer, Trend Marine (of Taylor Made corporation). Unfortunately its been a series of emails of employees who are furloughed and so far no concrete reply. Still working on this.
B. We started investigating Lexan instead of safety glass. Benefits are that it would be lighter, stronger, and available quickly and also comes in the same thickness as the current window, .25 inches. Not sure about how it will look, however.
C. We finally tracked down someone who might be an installer, he will come by the boat someday this week and take a look.

1) Any thoughts or concerns about Lexan as a replacement for the glass?

2) The original window was "glued" onto the boat. We still need to remove the last bits of glued on glass and the glue. What is the best way to do this and not damage the fiberglass?

3) If we use the Lexan, we will probably do the installation ourselves. What type of sealant is recommended to adhere it to the fiberglass? Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. ST. Lexan will scratch. Personally, I'd go with glass again.

 

[koliver]

When I had a broken front window on my boat, I found that it was bedded in a white sealant, likely 5200 or its 1980 equivalent. Using a sharp knife I was able to extract it and using Sikaflex 291, to properly bed the replacement.

I would check for a tint, yours being a side window, then consider whether you want the replacement to be an exact colour match. Glass is pretty easy to work with, comes in exactly the thickness you will need for the replacement, and will likely last as long as the rest of the boat. Your breakage was an unusual event, one that you will not be likely to repeat.

IMHO, using glass is easier to get an original looking replacement and dead easy to work with. Probably the most difficult part is making the template and getting it to a glass shop to have the replacement made up. Any glass shop should know what to do.
I used a piece of butcher paper for a template, but any, non stretchy material will work, even a garbage bag.

 

[Capn Craig]

I would not use Lexan or acrylic. Getting a color match would be a crap shoot at best. Lexan has more thermal growth than glass and getting and keeping a seal will be really tough going thru winter clold and summer heat and sun. It scraches easily and doesn't stand up to glass cleaner well without hazing. Make an accurate template and see the glass man, If you have a decent sized sample for color matching it might be helpfull

 

[Rufus]

I replaced a cracked side window this Spring. It’s privacy safety glass as used in emergency vehicles and busses. Make sure you have a piece of the original glass to match the tint. (I learned that what looks like Gray tint on our boat is actually a bronze variation). A little heat can ease the cutting/cleanup of the old adhesive. I used urethane as for car windshields, but it required small shims along the bottom edge to keep the glass from sliding down (until the adhesive set). A 30x 36 piece cost me about $85 at a local glass shop. Installation was easy once the frame was cleaned up.

 

[JT and Estee]

Thank you for the replies. We still don't have a reply from the original window glass manufacture but we will be requesting a quote from Henderson glass.

 

[bayview]

I have replaced several windows. Taka a sample of the old glass to any glass shop along with the drawings and they will be able to cut a replacement without problems.

 

[Comodave]

If you use Lexan, and I am not recommending it one way or the other, use Sika 295UV. It is made to use on acrylics. I would prefer glass myself.