Glen- we’re tag-teaming you! Your solution sounds like it may be the ticket, taking up anything bedded with 5200 is something I’d prefer to avoid if possible. Is there any chance you could provide a visual aid? A cross-section drawing showing where the grooves you cleaned/dug out were? How deep into the cap? And what kind of tool(s) did you use to accomplish the grooves?
Thanks,
– Carl
NS30C “Last Word”
Carl, I used a roto zip tool, like a dremmel tool with a small router bit. On either side of the teak I made a small groove appox 1/16 th to 1/8 inch deep and then applied the silicone. I used clear silicone but I’m sure a colored caulk would work just as good. On the outside of the teak on my boat is a rubber rub rail and on the inside is fiberglass. Again, If you want to rebed the screws, you can dig out the wooden plugs and remove and rebed each and every one. There are lots and lots of them. Ed
I am a bit late on all of this but are you sure the leak is from the toe rail? I had an intermittent leak that took me a couple of years to track down. Finally discovered that the scupper drain fittings on the deck were at the point of disintegration. The plastic over the years with exposure to the sun had done them in. A hard rain where water pooled by the drain yielded a leak.
So finding the source is job one before you run off dismantling things. Sometimes using a shop vac on exhaust can find the source. Run the hose into the cabin and seal the cabin with tape and plastic as well as you can. As the vac pressurizes the cabin spread soapy water about and look for bubbles. You may find the guilty fitting that way.
As for the deck bolts I have had good luck with soft butyl rubber on anything that is bolted. Screws require 3m 4000, butyl does not work unless there is positive compression.
Cheers
T
So tell us how you found and replaced the scupper drain fittings. Mine have been enjoying too much sun over the years and I can see replacement is something I’ll have to contend with before too long.
Ed Strazzini
Manatee, N30U #503
Deltaville, VA
And we're back! Had a few other things to deal with and kept the toe rails covered in plastic which served to stop the leaks. Also told us where they were. Amy found some water coming in today (from a hose outside, it's now the front burner project) and smushed the butyl tape back into the joint from the inside of the boat, which slowed the leak a great deal. Our toe rail has a wood cap over it, and I guess (hope?) there's an aluminum strip of some sort under that thru which the bolts that hold the deck on pass. We'd like to fix this from the outside in. Joe V mentioned that he'd seen a cross section somewhere, we haven't seen it in the paperwork that came with the boat. Again, we're just fine with losing the cap if it doesn't impact the structural integrity of the joint. Any and all info or referral to sources of info are most welcome. The boat is located in northern Alabama, limiting on-site assistance so we're getting desperate! Thanks for all!
-- Carl
NS30C #45 "Last Word"
Amy,
I’m confused… My boat does not have a teak toe rail cap. Are we talking about the screws that go vertically through the toe rail and the nuts under the deck?
ron<<
S/V Serenty II
NS U 30 479
Gulfport, FL
Ron-
We've seen many pictures of other boats that do not have the toe rail cap on Yactworld and the like, which leads us to think that either it was a nice looking but poorly executed feature by the builder or a previous owner. The cap seems to be screwed down, tho without removing it we're not sure what to. It doesn't seem to go thru the deck, altho there are a couple of screws that appear near the hull/deck joint bolts when looking from inside the boat. If anybody is aware of the history/mystery of the toe rail cap we'd love to hear it!
Thanks,
-- Carl
NS30C #45 "Last Word"
Hi all…This is a very old thread, but here we go. Our NS30 has the same issue and I was wondering how this all worked out. Carl: did you remove the teak, and how did you stop the leak. Ed: are you still happy with the “rotozip” method?
Thanks,
Bill
1979 NS30C Bonheur #40
Niagara-on-the-Lake