Gasket Maintenance In Opening Ports
Most reports of leaking windows received
at Beckson have turned out to
involve other manufacturer's ports. There
are too many reasons why other
ports leak to cover here. You are welcome
to call Beckson for advice in
solving your problems with non- Beckson ports.
We will cover here the occurrences
that are relevant to Beckson ports. The Beckson
name is located between
the hinges on the top face of the window
frame.
Leaks In Older Ports
As a general rule if a leak starts in or
near an older window, it has
either a dirty gasket or deterioration of
the caulking. The first step is
to find exactly where the water is leaking.
Signs of improper or deteriorating
caulking are; the bottom front of the window
frame is dry but the area below
it is wet, or a leak is occurring at the
screw heads, or the window frame
or the cabin "above" it is wet.
Refer to the Beckson article on
Improper Caulking
If the trail of a leak is not readily apparent,
you can use the following
logic as a short-cut in finding the cause
without dismantling the cabin.
A hull and deck are caulked together to form
a water-tight assembly. Holes
are then cut into this assembly for fittings
and accessories. To find the
source of a leak look for these holes in
the general area above the leak.
For example, leaks in deck fittings can run
down the inside of the hull
or behind the liner and drip off the window
frame leading one to conclude
that the port must be leaking. Likewise,
a window caulking leak which emerges
at the bottom of the window frame will cause
some to swear the window gasket
has failed. Only when water is "visibly"
leaking between the gasket
and the lens it is not a caulking problem.
Over-Tightened Gaskets
If someone has over-tightened the knobs on
a port and left it for a long
period, the new style grooved gasket can
take a compression set; effectively
it becomes a solid piece of rubber and loses
most of its resiliency and
ability to repel water. Wiping the gasket
with a very light coating of petroleum
jelly and leaving the port open for a few
days will rejuvenate the gasket.
Over-tightening should not occur in ports
using cam latches.
Older Gaskets
You may have an old design smooth gasket.
A smooth surface can allow
capillary action to draw water across though
tightly sealed. It should be
replaced with a newer design that has parallel
ridges that stop capillary
leaks. Wiping an old style gasket with a
very light coating of petroleum
jelly will rejuvenate the gasket and its
water repellent nature will help
resist capillary action. This is a temporary
solution to stop the leak until
the gasket is replaced. Do not use silicone
grease as it attracts and holds
dirt like a magnet. Other lubricants may
adversely affect the gasket or
lens material.
Gasket Installation
Should you remove the gasket and screen from
the window frame, remember
to re-install the screen with the smooth
side of the face toward you (so
it will be against the gasket). The legs
on the screen fit into the groove
in the port frame. The gasket should be placed
with the seam at the top
of the window. Push the leg of the gasket
into the groove at the two corners
of one end and then slightly stretching it,
do the two corners on the other
end. Then press in the rest and you are finished.Make sure the gasket
is in correctly. The
gasket should be placed with
the seam at the 12:00 position. All manufacturers
use an extruded gasket
which is bonded in a loop. Since the bond
point could interfere with the
seal, we place this at the top of the window.
A person removing and re-installing
the gasket may not have noticed this. The
resulting leak will be a rare
drip but why have any at all?
Other Helpful Hints
Many boat owners have worked so hard for
so long for their boats that
they feel compelled to do some maintenance
on the ports. Involved in another
project? Resist the urge to share it with
your ports. If you find yourself
using an aerosol can of CRC or WD-40 or other
lubricant, don't spray the
hinges. If you are cleaning the galley with
a spray cleaner, don't clean
the lens. If you're anointing the boat with
an aerosol spray of CUTTER or
other insect spray, don't spray the screen
or lens. A good rule of thumb
is, if you won't put it on your face, don't
put it on the window. (Avoid
a toxic safety hazard and don't use aerosols
in the closed environment of
your boat.) If you really must work, try
reading a chapter on celestial
navigation! Cover the window when using teak cleaner,
such as Liquid Gold, paint
stripper, teak oil or paint on adjoining
areas. Do not clean the window
with hydrocarbons (petroleum products) or
solvents. This will prevent accidental
damage to the window and a lot of clean up
time. If you are using the tightness in the hinge
to hold the lens open then
you might hear a slight chirp as you close
the window. This is a necessary
result of the friction needed to hold the
window open. Do not lubricate
the hinges to eliminate the noise as that
will eliminate the friction. If
not using the hinge tension, merely loosen
the nuts on the hinge pins to
eliminate the noise. Beckson offers a variety
of port holders and chains
as an alternative to hinge tension to hold
the lens in the open position.
Summary
If an opening port has been providing adequate
service and a leak suddenly develops, it
is a deterioration of the caulking or a problem
with the gasket. With only minimal cleaning
you will be assured of satisfactory service
and long life for your Beckson opening ports.