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    #1

    5788 leaky portlights-gctid364776

    We had a great first outing on our '97 5788. On the way home across the Straight of Georgia we ran into a fairly good chop. My first mate went below to stow a few things and notice that we were taking on water through/around a couple of our portlights. We tightened the windows but the water seemed to be coming in around the frames. Can we get away with caulking or do we need to remove and re-bed?

    Any experience with this out there?

    Thanks in advance!
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    #2
    which ones are leaking? if the leakers are in the forward stateroom it will be an uphill battle to stop the leaks,,,that's why only the very early 03 meridians have forward cabin port holes,,,if i remember correctly you have larger than stock port holes in some cabins,,,glad to see you are enjoying the new boat...doug.
    84-38,,86-38,,89-45,,97-47,,99-47,,01-47,,05-540 meridian,, 04-411 meridian and 11 others,, all gone ,,now 04 -490 ,,sidney,,vancouver island.

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      #3
      both forward starboard port lights show evidence of leaks when screws are removed

      midships after market (large) portlight also shows water when screws removed

      the plan is now to take them all out and rebed them.

      is there something I should know?

      It seems to me that rebedding should stop the leaks.

      thanks!

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        #4
        I had my first mate look too when that happened. She yelled and said water is coming in. I slowed the boat down and went and looked. I saw dampness, but no water coming in. This happened time and time again. I bought a camera that recorded as we were underway. It really concerned me. We wouldn't you know. The first mate while I was up piloting the ship opened the windows to "air it out" when the water would come in, she would complain and shut the windows and tell me it was leaking.

        I had to do a two hour talk with her about battening down the hatches. For crips sakes, the first mates sometimes have no clue.

        Comment

          #5
          Captainscove wrote:
          both forward starboard port lights show evidence of leaks when screws are removed

          midships after market (large) portlight also shows water when screws removed

          the plan is now to take them all out and rebed them.

          is there something I should know?

          It seems to me that rebedding should stop the leaks.

          thanks!
          In my experience adding caulking on top of seams/joints is never a lasting solution, so I'm convinced you're doing the right thing. I would expect some rotted wood around the openings. I would remove it and fill in with expoxy, West System has a product called six-10 which is a thickened epoxy and should work well.

          Comment

            #6
            They are due to be re-caulked. It not a big job. You can use life caulk or a polysulfide that's none hardening. It's not a big job as long as you don't drop anything. Your deck hatches are probably next. I wouldn't wait as they are backed with wood and can develop rot if let go.

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              #7
              I have a 3486 in Auckland New Zealand and we have some fairly big seas over here . I found that my port lights were leaking around the frame due to the timber that the port light frame is screwed to had rotted away. This frame is all that holds the port light to the hull. I replaced this frame with a treated piece of timber and Sika Flexed it to the hull. I then reseated the frame to this and have had no more problems even when they are consistently under water. All the interior lining had to be removed to do the job. I have since done all my port lights as most of them were rotten. The original frames were plywood and by the look of the delaminations it was not a marine grade product that was used.

              Cheers Roger Murray.

              Comment

                #8
                I was told that Bayliner retrofitted almost all 5788's with non opening forward port lights due to a near sinking in rough water (of my boat before I owned it-1998). Because of the hull design, the forward lights are basically underwater in rough seas. The first time I saw underwater viewing from the forward stateroom, I was happy to not have portholes that had the potential to open. I would have a boatyard remove anything that opens on the forward part of that hull, and install non-opening lights.

                Good luck, and enjoy the view!

                Comment

                  #9
                  Removed and rebedded all four portlights in the VIP stateroom. Salt water pour out of the screw holes when I removed them.

                  Our next cruise was on flat water so we're not sure if it did the trick.

                  My maintenance guy told me that since the hull is a bit concave in that area and the portlights are flat, we'll be chasing this problem every couple of years. The hull flexes and when the 5200 hardens over time it will break down and leaks will happen.

                  By the way, I know refer to every $1,000 spent as "1 boat unit".

                  A $3,000 repair sounds much less painful when referred to a "3 boat units"

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