flex seal on inside of hull

[newtoboat101]

ripped out my hull headliner and carpet had some small spots of water coming in from the rubber rail can i put flex seal around that connection of top and bottom of boat boat is 1988 thompson 240 rub rail is very high above water line did not want to redo rub rail just seal inside with flex seal what u think

 

[CV16]

Can't hurt to try!

 

[newtoboat101]

i hear that has anyone else done this

 

[DeepBlue2010]

The rub rail need to be sealed every few years anyway as the old seal deteriorate over time and lose its ability to keep the water out. Even though the rails is above water line, waves, splashes, boat washing and sea spray makes this area volatile to water intrusion.

Take the rubber insert out and seal inside and around the rivets heads. Also, run a bead of sealer above and below the metal rail itself where it meets the hull.

It will help if you apply painters tape on the rail and the hull to avoid making a mess and waste a lot of time cleaning it up.

 

[newtoboat101]

thank you

 

[boatman37]

my concern would b even if it is sealed from the inside, if there is any coring in the sides of the hull the water will still get to that. any wood at all, including the 'batten' strips that the rubrail screws go into,will still get wet

 

[newtoboat101]

No Title

took rub rail off and want to know what i should use to fill and seal area behind rub rail before putting back on pics included

 

[Watermann]

I would clean the area up real well and remove any old sealer material if there was any. Get a construction tube of 3M 4200 to seal it up for as long as you'll own the boat. No handy man in a can stuff will have the longevity of the 3M product. I would go as far as using a scrub pad to make sure the surface is clean and prepped well before application.

 

[newtoboat101]

thank you so much watermann

 

[DeepBlue2010]

3M 4000 is a better choice for this specific job - IMO - since it is exterior and parts of it (the top edges of the rail specifically) will be exposed to UV

 

[newtoboat101]

just so happens i have 2 tubes of 3m 4000 uv at home so gonna go with that thanx

 

[boatman37]

i used 3M 4000 UV on my rubrail and side windows this past spring