Boating Lessons Learned:  Marine Window Replacement, Sealant Removal.

Well another weekend has passed bringing with it more Boating Lessons Learned.  Bottom Line Up Front – Power sanding tar based sealants makes a HUGE MESS.  Expletives Deleted. But Simple Green saved the day.

Pilot House Window Replacement

The job of replacing the pilot house window started out easy enough.  Drill out the rivets, remove the trim pieces, cut loose the silicone caulking, gently push out the window into the ready hands of a helper.  From there it went down hill.

Asphalt Based Window Sealant

As you can see in the photo the window was bedded in an asphalt based window sealant.   I scraped off as much as I could and then attempted to use mineral spirits to remove the dry and crusty residue.

The sealant was so dried out and crusty that I made no headway at all using mineral spirits.  So I got out my power sanders.  First I tried my 9″ disk sander with a 50 grit pad.  Wow.   Way too aggressive.  I know … I know.   You saw that coming.  It removed the sealant but quickly cut grooves in the aluminum.  But in my defense the disk sander is working very well in removing the thick latex paint from the deck.  But then again the deck is a large flat surface and I can easily control the pressure the disk is applying to the surface.  Sanding the narrow window rabbet was a different story altogether.  So I switched to my orbital sander with a 60 grit disk.

Porter Cable Random Orbital Sander, Variable Speed.

This tool worked like a champ.  It quickly removed not only the tar but the other sealants that were pin place.  But little did I know I was making matters much worse.  Sanding was converting all of that dry and crusty tar into a fine and sticky dust.  It stuck to everything.  The picture above and below do not do it justice but suffice to say that the entire front deck was speckled with tiny spots of tar.

Tar Spots All Over The Boat

I tried wiping and washing.  Nothing!!!!   I tied mineral spirits.  It smeared the now dissolved tar all over my shiny white paint.  I gave up, grabbed a cold drink, and plopped down in my moaning chair …. dejected.   Then around the corner came the answer, a dock mate carrying a big jug of Simple Green. It is available in the cleaning supply section of my local Home Depot and most likely at the other big box stores. My Bud splashed some on the mess, let it sit for a couple of minutes, and I could see the tar spots beginning to melt away. A couple of more minutes and some scrubbing and the mess began to wash away. Wow Again! This stuff works. He tells me Simple Green has the same effect on spider droppings also. What a find. And to think I washed boats to earn spending money as a kid and figured I knew all there is to know about boat washing. Well I guess I experienced another Boating Lessons Learned.

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The content herein has a single theme: Mistakes …. or as I call them “Boating Lessons Learned”. While there may be elements of this site that appear to be advice about how to do some task you can be assured that it is not a complete and accurate “how to”. I am partially describing how I did something and what I learned. Do not rely on this information because Mcmanusboatworks.com makes no representations as to accuracy, completeness, correctness, suitability, or validity of any information on this site and is not liable for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses, injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is provided on an as-is basis.