Need to Re-caulk Cockpit Floor

P

Pat Anderson

New member
OK, we need to remove all the caulking in the cockpit, much of it has ugly black mold or something growing inside it, needs to come OUT! Looked at the products on page 319 of the big West Marine catalog - not sure what to use. Looks like we could use several of them, leaning toward either 3M Marine Grade Silicone Sealant or West Marine Silicone Sealant. Right products for the job? Patty will do the actual work, as she is not a total uncoordinated boob. Wonder if we need the expensive little tools (Caulk-Away and Caulk-Rite), which are basically like little plastic spoons they sell for 9 bucks each. Patty says she could do the Caulk-Away part with a potato peeler, I would be a bit concerned about gouging things! Are there some more common (and cheaper) tools we could get at a hardware store? Thanks!
 
It sounds as if you have silicone sealer (is this just around the "cut out" for the fuel tank?). The only sealant we have is at the very front, between the aft bulkead and cockpit sole, plus the plastic hatches.

I would use an exterior mildew proof/resistant silicone. Once silicone has been used on a fiberglass, there remains some silicone on the glass. It is very possiable that this caulk was put in place, before the screws were tight, and that there is a bead underneath the lip of the hatch...so you may need to cut it, and be concerned about adherence to any underlying silicone residual. I have found the "MR Clean magic Errasers seem to be the best at removing any silicone residual.

There is also the Boat Life, Life Caulk. This is a combination urethane and silicone which is an excellent boat sealant.

Probably the plastic scoops will not scratch the gel coat if you are careful.
 
The caulking is around the gas tank cut-out, between the cockpit sole and the aft bulkhead, around the steps on each side, and perhaps some other places. It all has to be replaced...Guess we will use the BoatLife Life-Calk.
 
This isn't a suggestion [Disclaimer - Pat understands that] but a neat trick I discovered for smoothing and contouring caulk is an index finger wetted with acetone. Acetone on bare skin may not be good for you, but neither is mercury, which I used to swipe from the school lab and roll back and forth in the desk pencil tray with the same bare fingers (after dipping the dimes). Using acetone to clean fiberglass and gelcoat as the last step before applying the caulk helps it adhere much better, too.

If your original caulk is that bad already, the first thing to do would be to find out from C-Dory what they used and then scratch that off your shopping list.
 
I don't have any recommendations about the whole caulking job (Bob Austin and Tyboo Mike are much better at those things than me...).

But I've got to say - Pat, you were just MASTERFUL at preempting the "coordinated boob" category, thus opening the door for Patty to come in and do the work! True finesse.

If I ever need a strategy minded attorney, you're top on my list! You've clearly established yourself about three blocks ahead of most of us!

(But beware. Wives are born with a genetic counterattack capability that is awesome. She'll be laying-in-wait once she realizes what you've done.)

On Guard.........

Casey
C-Dory Naknek
Lake Montezuma, AZ
 
In the pool and spa biz , we used 99% rubbing alchohol for the finger dipping lube sauce for smooth silicone beads on our tile work .Vinegar works too , although not as well as isopropyl. I think these solvents are a little easier on the liver than Acetone..........
Marc
 
To get a nice bead of caulking try the following:
Run a line of masking tape - I like the blue stuff - on BOTH sides of the area you wish to caulk. The width between the lines will be the finished width of your new bead.

Apply caulking, liberally, but not too liberally.

Smooth the new bead of caulk with a finger - inside a rubber glove. I like to have a small glass of water to dip my finger into.

If I have applied too much silicone (or whatever) off goes the old icky glove and on goes a new one.

Try not to apply too long a bead (or multiple beads) as silicone can 'skin over' then you may not have the smoothest bead.

Remove the tape - carefully! It's covered with silicone...

You should now have a very clean looking bead of caulk.

No special tools required. This method has worked well for me on bathtub surrounds, shower doors, windows and kitchen counters.
 
Hmmm, OK, we'll remove acetone from the shopping list and add blue masking tape, rubber gloves and rubbing alcohol! A plan is forming! " I love it when a plan comes together!" (Hannibal, the A Team).
 
This sounds like Tom Sawyer . . .

If you're going to get someone else ( . . . . Patty ?) to do the work, you have to have all the materials (paint brush, white wash) on hand at the right time.

If you're really good you'll even get the eager workers to pay you for the privilege. Shooter marbles? Garter snake?

iggy
 
Almost sounds like a person could get some "Gratifaction" going on this project.

It is however useful info as I need to do ours as well.
Mike
 
I would try a hair dryer with different heat settings and experiment.
It might soften the chaulk enough to pull out several inches at once.
 
Pat, I resealed the deck along the transom on Shearwater four years ago. What ever the sealer was it came out pretty easy but then again it was 10 years old.
I just used 50 year 100 percent silicone with mold and mildew inhibiter from home depot. It been water tight and shows no signs of shrinking or hardening up. The blue tape trick works, have a roll of paper towels handy and a bunch of disposable gloves.

stevej
 
Thanks for all the tips...tonight has been THE most frustrating day on this boat EVER. Whatever C-Dory used to caulk the cockpit floor over the gas tank has no propensity whatever to release, it is WAY too adhesive for caulking that anybody with any foresight would know would need to be removed some day. Andrew Custis, are you out there? What the heck IS this caulking? How would you go about removing it? It is driving us CRAZY...
 
"but neither is mercury, which I used to swipe from the school lab and roll back and forth in the desk pencil tray with the same bare fingers "

Do the words "Mad as a hatter "mean anything to you. lot of questions have been answered.
 
The kids have seen me mad a few times, but that isn't the same as the Hatter's affliction. Don't misunderstand, I certainly wasn't condoning carelessness with any chemical or substance. The only reason I thought (regretfully now) to add the mercury comment was because a few days ago I was talking about the unknown foolishness of it with someone and it was fresh on my mind.

Acetone, too, requires some common sense caution. But it is an excellent solvent for Pat's purpose and with a little respect it is far less harmless to his liver than the beer he brews. Maybe since Patty is doing this job she can use fingernail polish remover. Pretty much the same stuff. A few years back I stopped using acetone to wash my hands, but I still will use some on a rag to remove 3M 5200 from my skin and I use it on a rag to clean the boat on occasion. I have also used it to clean and prep stainless steel for welding. Yeah, maybe it will do me in, but driving 30 miles to work and back each day is an infinitely greater risk.
 
Pat Anderson":329r289q said:
Thanks for all the tips...tonight has been THE most frustrating day on this boat EVER. Whatever C-Dory used to caulk the cockpit floor over the gas tank has no propensity whatever to release, it is WAY too adhesive for caulking that anybody with any foresight would know would need to be removed some day. Andrew Custis, are you out there? What the heck IS this caulking? How would you go about removing it? It is driving us CRAZY...
Click to expand...

Swami and the Crystal Ball sez-

This may be one of those new employee's errors where they substituted 3M 5200 for the soft Bostic usually used all over the boat!

crystal_ball.jpg
 
Pat,

I just wanted to add that I think at least having some Acetone on hand as a cleanup aid is a very good idea. It takes long exposure times and/or very high vapor levels for acetone to cause problems. After all, it IS the MAIN ingredient in fingernail polish remover. Just a little perspective.

Good luck,
John
 
We do have acetone, rubber gloves and shop towels on hand...the problem is, I think this very well may 3M 5200, and it isn't just a bead sealing the seams - it is like they GLUED the cockpit floor over the gas tank in place. After removing what we thought was the "bead" with the plastic caulk removal tool, we saw it was perhaps 3/4" or more deep below that in the crack, and it really adhesive, just is almost impossible to dig it out with anything. Even with the steps and the screws removed, and the bead removed all the way around, the floor won't budge. Next up, the hair dryer I guess. This is incredibly frustrating...
 
Sea Wolf's comment on 5200 employee error jibes with something Cutter Marine found when replacing the bathroom door on our 2007 CD-25. The old one had been put on with 5200. It took Cutter quite a long time to get it off so the replacement door could be put on.

Bill
Edgewater, MD
 
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