What exterior caulk is the factory using now?

[rideandfly]

6 minutes ago, SeaDawg said:

Make sure you read the date code. 

Will do! 🙂

[John Dorrer]

On 4/1/2024 at 7:42 PM, DavePhelps said:

Scuba Rx, that ASI 0240 sounds pretty good. Especially interesting it can be used as a tooling lubricant. I will try that.

What I have been using with great success is Debond, and it is even more expensive! So I think it's going to cost you Geronimo John!

Debond

The big problem with silicone from a refinishing point of view are the oils it contains. You can clean it off with solvents and plastic razors to where the gelcoat looks pristine, but when you spray the surface with water, it still beads up all over. This is caused by the silicone oils having penetrated the pores of the gelcoat. Not completely removing these oils will interfere with the full bonding of any sealant you want to use, including silicone! You have to break out some 1000 grit automotive sandpaper and wet sand it out with the solvent of your choice (in my case, Debond). When it's all gone, I hit it with some finer grit (1200-1500), then a good polishing cleaner. The gelcoat will then look great, and be ready to be sealed, and most importantly, the sealant will adhere to the gelcoat! All this work is why I never use silicones to begin with, except in some rare instances. Also, if you do any finishing in your shop, be extremely careful to keep any rags, pads, sandpaper, or anything that was used cleaning your silicone problem separate and away from your regular shop supplies. Silicone contamination in your shop can be a total disaster for the finisher. Good luck!

Dave

Spot on. I spent 40 years designing sealant projects and saw my share of failures due to silicone contamination.

[Boudicca908]

On 4/3/2024 at 9:37 AM, Dave and Kimberly said:

what they used (there in the pre-delivery bay) dried very yellow and to this day, stands out like a sore thumb on our pristine white Oliver. 

My Oliver suffers the same mysterious yellowing only around the rear window.  I'm going to have to read through this thread several times to begin to understand some of the issues discussed. Thanks to all contributors. 

[jd1923]

On 4/3/2024 at 11:40 AM, DavePhelps said:

Man I hear you! And that is a pretty gnarly sealant job on your rear window!😖

So, 1 1/2 years since this post, and near 2 1/2 years of Oliver ownership and I'm finally getting to making our Oliver look better! I believe it's better to do maintenance and repair, mechanical and electrical work, before the cosmetic work!

I've got a guy coming over today to quote the buffing and ceramic coating work. He runs his own business and has good references. Hope he's reasonable! But I'm not having this kind of work done without all the proper prep work. Doing what I can do myself.

Spent half a day, used a half dozen razor blades, and made good headway. Check out all the caulk on the driveway, mostly silicone and some butyl from around the furnace cover. I found a new Atwood furnace cover for only $25 on eBay. Thank goodness I do not have to clean the caulk off those parts, certainly worth the money to replace it.

Next step, using light 3M pads and solvent to remove the silicone from the window frames and body around the furnace. The frames are painted or powder coated as I can see aluminum in a couple very small spots.

This is the waste from this area only (including the window above)! Four windows, the entrance door, and this utility area, lots of useless gunk. I had three piles of caulk to vacuum up end of day!

Edited Saturday at 06:50 PM by jd1923
Added picture

[Jim and Chris Neuman]

Having been in the sealants business for years I would like to share one thought.  I have seen many instances where adhesive removers were used to clean up old adhesive and caulks.  This is fine so long as the adhesive remover is completely removed or neutralized.  The methods to do this are product specific and I won't attempt to go into them here as there are many new products on the market since my retirement from the adhesive and sealants industry.  An adhesive remover is not bright enough to know when its job is done and will attack new sealant or adhesive just as happily as the old.  This can be both a mess and terribly dexpensive ... to the point where I have seen folks bankrupt their businesses unwittingly through the use of adhesive removers.

The butyl caulk / tape holding the window frame to the hull is your primary moisture barrier.  The externally applied silicone caulk is secondary and is there primarily to keep dirt out of the joint and improve cosmetics.  If you must use adhesive removers do so carefully using only as much as is absolutely necessary.  If you soak an existing adhesive joint excess adhesive remover residue is likely still down there doing its job.  

[jd1923]

30 minutes ago, Jim and Chris Neuman said:

If you must use adhesive removers do so carefully using only as much as is absolutely necessary.

Thank you, Jim & Chris. Good advise! When I sprayed some the first day, I followed up with soap and water per the instructions. Day two, I sprayed the marine solvent at a sponge in a container and sponged it on the surface only.

30 minutes ago, Jim and Chris Neuman said:

The butyl caulk / tape holding the window frame to the hull is your primary moisture barrier.  The externally applied silicone caulk is secondary and is there primarily to keep dirt out of the joint and improve cosmetics.

I've always believed this and never have seen it written so clearly. Thank you again. I've spent too much of my life removing what others think "improve cosmetics" which in essence just collect DIRT!

If you're going to caulk (not me), trim back the old caulk first! Caulk on old caulk is not cool.

There is no reason for this silicone caulk, period! The sealant is under the mounting frame. They even caulked the refrigerator vents on our hull, OMG! These vents allow highway speed rains to run right through them! Go figure?

These pictures show an ugly mess, that btw is no longer there! 😎

Edited Sunday at 05:56 AM by jd1923