Replacing Ports

[mregan]

Halfway through replacing all the ports with new Lewmar opening ports.  Got a great deal at the Defender sale.   These were Beneteau OEM Lewmar ports which were originally on sale at $100.  Then during the spring sale 2 weeks ago were dropped down to $50.  Was originally only going to replace the 2 in the aft berth but at that price decided to replace them all.   They were all fogged over and all would leak periodically.

[mregan]

New Port.  Ordered new trim rings also to cover the aluminum frame.  Should be in next week.  Hope to have the last 4 installed next weekend.

[anaisdog]

why will the beneteau's not leak?  i like (LOVE) the replacement and i hate the design of the becksons so I'm very interested!

[Stu Jackson]

The Beckson portlights can be replaced.

Most of them leak for two reasons:

1)  The factory didn't bed them properly

2)  The rubber seal is either dried out or was not installed right in the groove

I've replaced two or three of my Becksons.  Chuck Hughes, who used to own #223 (one earlier than my boat) simply replaced his interior plastic lights and they looked like new.

Lewmars leak, too, because some of the four hundred and sixty nine different sizes they used over the years had a break on the outside trim ring, among other details like O rings and the like.

Beckson still makes the same exact size port.  Only change was the improved inside dogs.

Your boat, your choice.  

Beckson Portlights 101 ("removal tool" with pictures and guides for sealants)

http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,3241.0.html

[anaisdog]

fair.  I replaced two gaskets, on my becksons and rebed 6 of the 8 ports, since they all leaked.  i just hate the design where everything accumulates on the screens

[Stu Jackson]

I don't have Lewmars (obviously from my hull #).  But the reason water accumulates is not the port design but the slope of the cabintop.  From that geometry alone, one would be inclined to believe that ANY port would do so if there was even the slightest lip on the bottom outside edge.

I'll leave it to the Lewmar skippers to comment on their experiences.

[mregan]

I installed Lewmar on my previous C-30.  Didn't have any accumulating water, or leaks, like I did with the Beckson.  That was one of my main reasons for replacing.  After a rain there would be water collected in the port, since it's on an angle.  Wouldn't realize it when we got down to the boat.  Would open the ports and water would come in.  The Lewmar are more flush so you don't get that water accumulation.

Also my kids were constantly banging their ankles on the ones in the cockpit and at the price, it was an easy choice to make.

Like Stu says, your boat, your choice. 

[Exodus]

Mreagan,

Are the portlights you bought the following:

Item #:     901142
Brand:     Lewmar
Model #:     393129951

Are these an exact match in size?  If so that is a really good deal!  I may have to look at replacing mine as well.  I pulled them all and rebed a couple years ago and already have one leak again.

[mregan]

Yes.  Currently they are $65.  About 2 weeks before the Defender sale they were $100 then at the sale they dropped to $50.  They don't come with an interior trim ring so they will look like the ones in my pictures.  You can buy the trim rings for around $23 a piece if you want them.  Even with the rings added, they are still about 1/2 the cost of the standard Lewmar opening port.

The ports are slightly larger than the current ones so you will need to do some trimming.  About 1/2" all the way around.  Once I got a system down it took about 1 hr to get the old one out, hole cut and new one installed.  Would have been less but I kept having to re-charge the batteries on my cordless tools.  If you had corded tools it would probably take less time.  Also depends on how the original ports are sealed in.  A couple of mine, the sealant came apart pretty easily.  Some others, I'm not sure what the PO used but they were a pickle to get apart.

Also, because of the different thickness of the cabin I needed to order some #5 x 25mm hex head screws.  The screws they give you are metric.  I ordered the longer ones through Grainger.  HD and Lowes doesn't have them. The ports come with #5 x20mm screws.  When I pulled the ports in the aft cabin, the wall thickness at the bottom of the port was less than the top.  I was able to use the factory screws on the bottom and the longer ones on the top.
In the main cabin, I needed the longer screws in some areas.  Although once I started tightening the frames and compressing the butyl, I was able to replace most of the longer screws with the factory shorter ones.

The two ports in the forward cabin were good with the factory screws.

[Noah]

Definitely a deal on price! I just replaced my 6 Old Standard Lewmars.  I went the "easy and expensive" route. Purchased Lewmar "New"Standard size #1 the updated replacements for "Old Standard". Defender didn't have the smoked lense version, just clear. West Marine was was cheaper, but back ordered, so I purchased from Go2Marine for more money ($215 ea.!) with trim rings. Pricey, but was tired of old cracked trim rings (not replaceable), leaky gaskets, etc. and was ready to do job NOW. Easy install with butyl tape.  It generally boils down (to me) about what I value my labor/time at vs just getting it done and away from the dock. Some projects are more enjoyable than others, too. BTW: The new style latches/dogs took a little getting used to. I personally like the operation of the Old Standard dogs better as the new ones are kinda of hard to snap shut, but it may just be me.  At least now, no leaks (yet) and all look shiney new. Still have original Beckson in aft cabin and they are fine--no plans to replace.

[ChrisOB]

My Beckson ports leak from the frames.  I pulled one yesterday and it seems to have been installed with multiple types of sealants, 5200 being one of them I believe.  Cleaning the sealant from grooves in the old port itself looks to be nearly impossible without damaging the plastic (Tried wire brush in Dremel).  If all of the ports are this bad, I would consider buying these Lewmars for the price compared to new Becksons.

MReagan- Have you had any leaks since install?  What type of saw did you use, Rotozip? 

[mregan]

I had one leak after installation.  When I popped the port out, I could see where I didn't install enough gasket and it didn't compress out of the frame.  Added more gasket and secured it back in.  Had a massive rain storm about 3 days later.  No leaks.

Cutting the holes was a bit of a bear.  First I tried a jigsaw.  Worked okay but due to the thickness of the fiberglass the blade would bend a bit and I wouldn't get a straight cut and it took quite a while.

What I ended up doing was along the top and bottom straight sections, I would use a small cordless circular saw to make the straight cuts.  Then I would use the jigsaw to make the curves in the corners.  Then I would use a sawzall to cut the short straight vertical section between the corners.  Or you could use a sawzall for all the straight sections and use the jigsaw for the corners.  The sawzall cut through the fiberglass easier than my jigsaw.  Although the circular saw was the fastest.

Once I got a system going, it started moving a bit quicker.  One of the biggest issues was getting the old ones out.  The PO had some heavy duty sealer on some of them.  I ended up using a oscillating multifunction tool with a scraper blade.  Was really easy to scrape the old sealant out and get the outer frame off using it.

One of the things I really liked was with the one that leaked, once I unscrewed it, I was able to pop it out, re-gasket and pop it back it and tighten it up in probably 5 minutes.  You can't do that with the Beckson.

[Ed Shankle]

I'm looking to replace my crazed Lewmar port lenses. Catalina direct has 2 versions, the Z2430 upgrade and the Z2384. The upgraded is supposed to be a closer color match to the original and is .023" thicker. Pricing is about $29 and $35 respectively. Anyone have experience with either of these as an alternative to replacing the whole unit as discussed in this thread?

thanks,
Ed

[Fuzzy]

I replaced my old ports with the plastic type from New Found Metals.  The quality is very good and come with decent screens.
We have been very happy with them.  The only downside is they hold water after a rain but we solved that problem by using
a plactic drywall tray to catch the water when we first open after a rain.  Not too bad of a problem though.
Larry