Type of caulking and bedding material

[rusbet]

We are redoing our teak and have removed some pieces to refinish.* What product do we use when we reinstall the screws and bolts?

There are lots of gaps between the teak trim and fiberglass.* After the teak trim is finished, what type of caulking should we use?

We have teak trim along the bottom of our flybridge.* It is grey and seems to retain some moisture as it is in the path of water (when we hose the flybridge)* Lately it is the driest we have seen it and would like to finish it and caulk so that the moisture stays away from the trim.* Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

We are redoing all our brightwork with Cetol Natural teak.* Our boat is a 1986 Monk36.

[Phil Fill]

Boat Life makes a caulking for teak decking that holds up to the oil in the teak wood and the teak oils. That is what in used *13 years ago when I refastened and re caulked the deck seams.* I used stainless steel nuts/bolts and screws.* To cover the screw bolts you can buy bungs/teak plugs.*

If the screw holes are to big you can fill them with West System epoxy with one of the addtives to thicken.

*

[RT Firefly]

Hiya,
** Mr. Rusbet.* Welcome to TF.* If replacing teak TRIM pieces, I use Dolfinite** http://www.jamestowndistributors.com...ct.do?pid=4400
** It is NOT caulking.* It is a bedding compound which is VERY user friendly and CAN be removed, if necessary, very easily.* SS or bronze fasteners would be the preferred method of attachment.*
* P/F, read the man's question.* He's dealing with brightwork (TRIM, not DECKING).

[Phil Fill]

I use Boat Live teak caulking on trim also as its made to hold up to the teak oils.*and also use 3M 5200*for some applications.* 5200 is easier to work with and clean up as paint thinner will take 5200 off before it dries.* Tape the area and the best applicator is your index finger

RTF, thanks for point it out.***

[JD]

4200 if you ever want to get the item off again without damage to it or what ever it is secured to.* 4200 is much*the same as 5200 except it is removable.

[Nomad Willy]

RTF,
Yes Dolfinite is great. But mostly only as a bedding compound** ..not a caulk.
Phil Fill,
Thanks re: the Boat Life as I've been wondering if I was in for trouble w caulking and all the linseed oil I've been using.
JD,
I've had bad experience w 4200. I use SikaFlex now for most caulking. 5200 when I want to weld it together. Think I'll look into Boat Life.

[jleonard]

I use SikaFlex for caulking teak to fiberglass. It has worked out good for me.
For sealing screws and most anything else I use 5200.
(I have always been able to get things apart after sealing with 5200.)

[Marin]

rusbet wrote:

1. We are redoing our teak and have removed some pieces to refinish.* What product do we use when we reinstall the screws and bolts?

2. There are lots of gaps between the teak trim and fiberglass.* After the teak trim is finished, what type of caulking should we use?

1.* We don't use anything when replacing screws and bolts except deck screws through the teak planking.* For them a very experienced shipwright we met advised us to dip the end of the screw in sealant before installing it.* But fasteners that hold things like trim to the boat are sealed by the bedding compound or sealant that is bedding the trim or other component.

2.* Again going on the advice of shipwrights we've met, we use Dolfinite when bedding things like teak trim strips, window frames, etc. to the exterior of the boat.* It makes removal at a later date extremely easy.* It's available in "natural" (tan) or white.* For bedding glass, window track, etc., we use Sikaflex.* One material we NEVER use on our boat for bedding or sealing purposes is silicone except for a few very specific uses in the engine room.

PS.* Eric--- We've used LifeCaulk on our boat for various things over the years and not been impressed with it.* If exposed to the weather, LifeCalk seems to break down over time to the point where rubbing your finger over it leaves long black streaks on the adjacent fiberglass, paint, wood, and your finger.* We find that Dolfinite is best for bedding, Sikaflex is best where a sealant/adhesive is needed, and TDS is superior as a deck plank caulk to anything else on the planet.

I'm talking about applications above the waterline here.* I've had no experience using sealants below the waterline.


-- Edited by Marin on Wednesday 5th of January 2011 12:49:08 PM

[Moondance]

I'm curious, why not ever Silicone caulk.

[Nomad Willy]

A long long time ago I thought silicone was great. I made a plywood self bailing engine well for my big OB boat and caulked it up the best way I knew how. A couple of months later I noticed a little spot where it seemed to have come loose and I gently pulled on it.
The entire caulk job came off w almost no effort at all. Just pulled it all off in less than a minute. It seems silicone only adheres to slick plastics, glass and metal. It's great for making fish tanks but I don't trust it any more.

[Marin]

Moondance wrote:

I'm curious, why not ever Silicone caulk.

If silicone gets on anything, and particularly finish surfaces like paint, gelcoat, brightwork, or onto raw wood it will prove to be almost impossible to repair or redo the finishes on these surfaces in the future without removing a lot of material.* Nothing will adhere properly to a surface that has even a trace of silicone on it.

Given that there are so many other adhesive sealants on the market that perform as well or better than silicone without the finish adhesion problem there is no reason to use silicone as a bedding/sealing/adhesion compound.

The only use we have for it is on impeller pumps (raw water pumps, for example) in case it proves difficult to get a leak-proof seal between the cover plate and the pump body using the gasket alone.* However I believe we've only had to resort to this once.* But outside of this, in my opinion (reinforced by the shipwrights on the Grand Banks owners forum) silicone has no place on a boat.

It's not that it doesn't work as advertised.* It does, although Eric has described an instance when it didn't.* But the side effects of using it can be detrimental.

*


-- Edited by Marin on Thursday 6th of January 2011 01:52:34 PM

[Keith]

I'm still looking for a good, non-silicone, white outdoor caulk that will stand up to the sun. I tried the UV-xxx silicone that's supposed to work well for that, but it turned to chalk after a couple of years. Lifecaulk doesn't last in the sun. Don't really want to use 4200, but would consider it if it'll work. Any other ideas?

[Nomad Willy]

Sikaflex

[RT Firefly]

3m 4000

[Nomad Willy]

RT,



Is this an era of minimalization?

[Marin]

RT Firefly wrote:

3M 4000

Did you by chance mean 3M 4200?

*

[RT Firefly]

Hiya,
** Should have said 3M 4000 UV.* I've used it in the past for teak decking to house joints and it "seems" fine.* Stays bright white.

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3...beQH8HT14PGTgl

-- Edited by RT Firefly on Saturday 8th of January 2011 12:59:09 PM

[Moondance]

Sikaflex 291? Is that the one? *They also have a fast cure. *The 3M looks good, too.

-- Edited by Moondance on Saturday 8th of January 2011 06:01:45 PM

[Nomad Willy]

Moon,
Yes 291 "adhesive/sealant and bedding compound"



-- Edited by nomadwilly on Saturday 8th of January 2011 06:45:34 PM

[Keith]

RT, that's the stuff that I thought would be the answer, but at least here with the batch I used, it basically turned to chalky crud in about 3 years. You can knock it off with a fingertip. Maybe I got a bad batch, but it's been the worst performer yet.