Leaky Seals on 2002 282

[sluggoe]

I have a 2002 282 and have some minor leaks and want to fix it {or get someone else to do it}.

My suspicion is that water is slowly leaking into cabin from the four legs that are bolted to deck on the flat part below the winshield. I think that over the years, the seals /sealant has degraded to the point that they need replacing.

The windows are also leaking a bit and probably need to be re-caulked.

Has anyone done one or both projects themselves and could opine on the difficulty of said jobs?

Sluggoe.

 

[bc282]

Leaky windows on Grady's are unfortunately a bit too common.
Issue on most stem from the window opening being cut poorly fitting for window.
Fixed mine by re and re the window. Had to grind some fglass to shift window to get better fit and eliminate gap where water came in and sealed her up better than before. Used window installers butyl tape and marine silicone caulking seal.

Mentioned possible leaking thru deck fasteners, I think unlikely, check windows. Look for tell tale signs of corrosion from moisture around window.

 

[ayacht]

I have a 2006 and one of the hardtop legs is leaking. The sealant does fail on them. Pull the inspection plate in the cabin and you will easily see which one has the water coming from it. It is on my project list for this week I hope to fix. It does not look that hard to do. Clean the old sealant out and re-seal the holes. I think 4200 should do it maybe others will have suggestions or say 5200. My hardtop is off now so mine may be a bit easier to do.

 

[ayacht]

Don't pay for this job too easy.

As I suspected the caulking was non existent on three of my hardtop legs. We removed the access plates and the nuts on the bolts. We DID NOT remove the bolts and I do not recommend doing that. The top will be a pain to get back in place. Just get them propped up an inch and you can clean under them fine. Get a friends help and the job will be done in about 2 hours. One of my legs would not come loose from the deck so we did not reseal that one. For that one the bolts popped right out so we filled the hole with caulk to add some extra to it.

The job is really easy and we used a bunch of 4200 under them and in the holes to make sure we have a good solid seal. You will need.

3M 4200 Caulk (Any marine store)
GE Silicone II Door and Window Caulk Almond (Lowes)
Acetone
Denatured Alcohol
Hand tools
Plenty of rags
Scraper

1. Remove the access plates on all the legs. Look for rust on the screws and water staining in the areas. If you see either then you probably have a leak.
2. Remove the nuts and washers.
3. Now one guy can release pressure from each leg above while the other taps the bolts up from below. Being careful not to tap them all the way out of the deck. Raise up the deck plate only as much as you need to get under it.


4. Clean all the loose caulk from below the plate and on it. Clean the area with acetone well.
5. Put caulk in the hole from above and below. Also all around the plate and under it.
6. Push the plates back into place and the bolts down and clean the caulk off the bolts with the denatured alcohol.
7. Secure the legs by tightening the nuts.
8. Clean the excess caulk up with denatured alcohol immediately.
9. Put the access plates back on resealing with GE Silicone II Almond caulk.

Done and water tight. If it takes you more then 2 hours I would be surprised. Hope this helps.

 

[sluggoe]

ayacht -- thanks for your help.
I could not ask for a better description of how to do this -- awesome!
slugg.

 

[ayacht]

ayacht -- thanks for your help.
I could not ask for a better description of how to do this -- awesome!
slugg.

I just read my instructions and I forgot to detail that the 4200 was for the legs outside. You can go 5200 because it should be permanent but just in case I stepped down to 4200 in the off chance you had to remove it again. 5200 is brutal to remove and a bigger process. Did you find the leak yet?

 

[ahill]

Don't overlook the windshield wiper post seals or the windshield washer supply hose & connections.
A water leak is a cruel mistress.

 

[sluggoe]

ok, thanks.
Are the wiper seals and washer hose seals available from grady?
Any other spots where water could be coming in -- places i got so far are: hardtop legs, wiper post/washer seals, windows (i removed the horn and put trumpets on top).
Maybe the seals around the windshield where fiberglass meets the windows?
--slugg.