Window Gasket or Caulk

[Gulf Comanche]

Greetings All:
Just got into a new boat project. Took port and stbd doors off to repaint and replace gaskets. Have one window off, rather a PIA getting it off because the 23 year old gasket appears to be tar. Or, the gasket was rubber and turned to tar. The below sideways pictures should give y'all an idea of what I'm working with. I don't know where to find a replacement gasket but wondered if there is a caulk that would work. I think it's going to take the heat gun to remove this stuff from the window and door, it's pretty hard to scrape. Any ideas?
Thanks
Mike

 

[koliver]

Looks and scrapes like butyl. You will likely need armstrong power to get it all off. On my house, when I was replacing sealed window units that had fogged, they were bedded with that. I ended up just taking time and using an exacto knife to get it all off.

On your metal boat, you should probably rebed with the same, as they will seal forever. It comes in a 1/2" x 1/16" or 1/8" tape, wound into a roll, with a blue plastic separator. You can get it in any glass shop. To install, put the sticky side to the cleaned surface of your opening, start the blue tape at the join, put the window in place and pull off the blue plastic while pushing in on the window. Once the window has full contact, it will be a real fight to get the window out again, so it better be in the right spot.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Thanks K. That stuff is tough to get off. What about a heat gun to soften it up?

 

[koliver]

"Thanks K. That stuff is tough to get off. What about a heat gun to soften it up?"

Try it. Nothing to lose. Then if it doesn't help, you will just have a warm, softer mess that is still a Bit*& to get off.

 

[No Mast]

I second that it looks like butyl tape. I wouldn't use heat to soften it. I'd scrape what I can off and use Toluene to dissolve the rest

 

[Phil Fill]

I use a wire wheel on a variable speed drill to remove caulking and sealants. Makes short easy work with out glowing or breaking wrecking a manicure.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Worth a try Phil. Thanks Just bought the toluene NM, more on that later after I give it a try.

 

[JDCAVE]

Just a suggestion...try a razor paint scraper first. I found it particularly useful when removing the caulking for my window project and was able to do so without scratching the Gelcoat. Just work carefully. I then used acetone to remove the rest.


Jim
Sent from my iPad using Trawler Forum

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. JD. Scraper is a good idea for the bulk. I, however, would suggest starting with a plastic scraper.

 

[dhmeissner]

Have plenty of ventilation when working with toluene. Minimize skin contact.

 

[Steve]

I believe your boat is aluminum, I'd try the heat gun, easy to use and vary the amount of heat by how fast you move and how far away the nozzle is held . Wire brush might do the trick but I can see millions of tiny tarlike particles flying all over the area.
Good luck!

 

[FF]

What I see looks like a 2 part gasket from a bus windsheied .

Go to the local bus or skool bus garage or look here.,

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[Conall63]

Doors removed? Why not scrape what you can, bring it to shop and have it blasted, then re paint. It would be nice to start the new glass bedding on a good, new surface.

3M has some products specifically for window bedding where you treat the glass before you bed it in place.

Conall

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Here's what I've tried so far:
Scraping the butyl gasket with a metal paint scraper. Slow going but works w/ the big stuff.
Toluene: dissolves the stuff but is messy all get out. Put the toluene in a hand sprayer to wet the surface which helps.
Wire wheel on a drill: Works fine on the metal window gasket area but too much gouging on the wood door. Toluene and scraping for the door, then an orbital sander.
I'll post some pictures when I get it ready to paint the door. Have not tried the heat gun because I forgot it at the boat. My guess is that heating it would cause a similar mess as the toluene. Boat fun continues. Thanks to all for the suggestions.

 

[bilge53]

Putty knives are good for some things. If you have a good, sharp wood chisel and work with the bevel to the base material it might make it a smidgeon easier. The wood chisel will give you a solid cutting blade with a respectable handle that you can better hold and control. A sharp chisel is designed to take off very thin layers of material (and thick stuff).

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Good idea chisel. Have a nice sharp one.

 

[C lectric]

I was using butyl rubber tape the other day. In past the stuff would stick to me, to the scissors, to everything. Not the other day. It actually behaved itself. At first I wondered, what the heck. Then I realized, it's cold out. The previous job was in the heat of summer. This job was COLD.

I see you are in Louisiana so you may not get the cold weather naturally. Try some ice or one of the cold sprays from an electronics shop or a CO2 extinguisher. Stiffening the butyl up may make it a whole lot easier to remove the stuff.

Just an idea.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Pretty chilly down here tonight C, that stuff is rock hard. Not messing with it till tomorrow.

 

[fryedaze]

Had the PO on board our boat this week. We had not talked since we bought the boat six years ago. He told me that he used 5200 when he replaced a broken salon window. He said " sorry I didn't know any better at the time". Sure hope I never have to remove that window.

 

[angus99]

Not that it matters all that much to the OP's problem of how to remove this gunk, but are we sure this is butyl tape? From my limited understanding, BT may stiffen up in cold weather but never dries out or loses its gooey elasticity. ***Buy Bed-It Butyl Tape*** Photo Gallery by Compass Marine How To at pbase.com

I had some dried out black caulk on my through hull backing plates that looks more like what the OP is dealing with than BT. I'm planning to eventually rebed most fittings and windows with BT, so I really hope this isn't the same stuff.

 

[Gulf Comanche]

Looks like this tape that Angus shows will work with my windows, anyone use this product? Have finished cleaning one door and window, best tools so far are the chisel, an oyster knife, and toluene with plenty of rags.