Best caulk sealent

[upbings]

We are heading to Canada this Tuesday but won't get the caulk from the factory in time for the window leaks. Any suggestions for other caulk we can use in the meantime? We could go to camper world tomorrow. Just getting really frustrated with leaks and want to CAMP. so PLEZZE let me know what to get in the meantime. Karen

[ScubaRx]

Go to Lowes, Home Depot, any Big Box Store and look for a Marine Grade Caulk. 3M 5200 is a good one. I've used in on the OOII with good success. It states on the tube that it takes 7 days to cure. It will be tack free in 24 hours and it will cure under water (I guess that's in case your Ollie is at the bottom of a lake or something ). Clean up is NOT with water. I used a little charcoal lighter fluid to clean out the application nozzle so I could replace the top on the tube. I bought it in a small 3 oz tube but I believe it is also available in a caulking tube. Avoid any silicone based products and if any previous owners have used any on your windows, scrape it off first. The factory did not use silicone.

 

Caulk your leaky spots, quit worrying and head out for Canada.....

[SeaDawg]

If you don't have the time to pull the offending window and use the butyl rubber tape, I wouldn't use 3m 5200. You'll have a dickens of a time pulling the window when you want to do it all in the right time frame. 3m does make a solvent for the 5200, but 5200 is a heavy duty adhesive, as well as a sealant. It doesn't have a ton of "movement."

Camping World sells a caulk especially for RVs, which would be easier to remove later. Ask your rep there what they have. I think it's called ProFlex. It's not silcone (which will pull off easily, but leave a lot of unseen residue), not very expensive, very flexible.

I"d give that a try before I got into even 3m 4000, which is also an adhesive.

3m 5200 is used extensively on boats, and was used extensively on our sailboat. We have personal experience in the removal difficulty.

Try the EZE RV gutters, with the ProFlex first, would be my suggestion, if you don't have time to do the butyl tape. That's our first line of defense. Stays flexible and useful for a long, long time, but it is a lot of work for two people to pull a window and replace the butyl tape.

Sherry