480 DB Owners Club

My port side windscreen was leaking so I pulled both sides, replaced all Taylormade gasketing and re-bedded it all last winter. Still have some minor leaks but mostly from wash water and the way my zippers are arranged.
Did you just buy the raw material or specific gasket pieces? And what were they~ from Taylormade Direct?
 
I disassembled the frame and replaced the following rubber window glazing, which was probably overkill but much of it had shrunk in the corners leaving gaps for water to enter. The majority of my issue was fixed by re-bedding the frame and re-caulking the seams.

From Taylormade:
8233980 $8.70/ft
8233990 $2.80/ft

They also hit you with the ridiculous $25 handling fee plus shipping.
 
Noticed this past weekend I have quite a bit of water gathering in the aft bilge area around the port rudder. Boat still on hard and have seen a ton of rain. I could see drips coming in from what I am guessing is the rubrail meeting the transom area and the vertical caulked seem of the transom to the port side of hull. Anyone have pointers on how to rebed these areas? thanks, Dave
 
Noticed this past weekend I have quite a bit of water gathering in the aft bilge area around the port rudder. Boat still on hard and have seen a ton of rain. I could see drips coming in from what I am guessing is the rubrail meeting the transom area and the vertical caulked seem of the transom to the port side of hull. Anyone have pointers on how to rebed these areas? thanks, Dave

This is the exact issue I'm getting ready to dig into on my port side also. Where the upper rubrail ends at the transom trunk there is a small plastic end piece. I can see gaps in the caulking all around this area which is directly in front of the vertical seam where the trunk and hull are bolted together. I have witnessed rain water trickling into the bilge between the two sections above the gen muffler.

My plan is to carefully pull a couple feet of rubrail (a little past the bend) and fill any gaps in the corner with caulk while rebedding the rubrail screws upon reinstallation.
 
Hi Keith,

As you probably know, the port and stbd bilge pockets in the lazarette overflow into the two troughs which then flow forward into the engine room forward centerline bilge. If that's what's happening in your boat, then there are several potential sources of rain water intrusion. Most of them are caused by external caulk breaking down. Here are the rain water leaks I've fixed in the 10 years I've owned my 2001 480DB:

*Rod holder drain lines come loose
*Rod holder caulking
*Cablemaster penetration through the lazarette overhead
*The two vertical caulk seams joining the transom to the hull
*The port and stbd stern rub rail bullet caps screw penetrations though the hull
*The stern rub rail screw penetrations through the transom
*The joint where the port and stbd rub rails meet the transom
*The swim platform shower hose door

The stern rub rail and stern rub rail bullet leaks can be sea water from the wake as well.

I've also had a fouled common drain line which caused A/C unit raw water to back flow into the bilge past a malfunctioning bilge pump check valve.

My dripless shaft seals have also dripped a couple of times. They stopped leaking when I rotated the shaft by hand or ran the engines.

And my most recent adventure was a leaking galley ice maker line. The water somehow made its way aft under the salon floor all the way to the forward lazarette bulkhead.

Hope this helps.
Steve
Thanks Steve. You have given me several places to start tracing the issue. Of course, I did not check the aft bilge when I checked the forward bilge. I still have not ran the boat yet this year and can eliminate a few things listed. I am not convinced the water was from me washing the boat twice to remove the excessive winter crud and pollen.

It looks like I may be the caulk master this weekend :)

Keith
 
I approached those corner pieces a little differently. I pulled them to find large holes and rather than always recaulk them, I laid up epoxy and put those pieces in them as it is now completely sealed. terrible design in those rub rail corners.
 
I disassembled the frame and replaced the following rubber window glazing, which was probably overkill but much of it had shrunk in the corners leaving gaps for water to enter. The majority of my issue was fixed by re-bedding the frame and re-caulking the seams.

From Taylormade:
8233980 $8.70/ft
8233990 $2.80/ft

They also hit you with the ridiculous $25 handling fee plus shipping.
How many feet did you buy? Was it a big project?
 
Yes, it was a pretty big ordeal. I did it over the winter and the most time consuming part was removing the old silicone that the PO used which new caulk wouldn't stick to. I only worked on the two side pieces.

8233980 $8.70/ft - 5? ft
8233990 $2.80/ft - 22 ft
 
Yes, it was a pretty big ordeal. I did it over the winter and the most time consuming part was removing the old silicone that the PO used which new caulk wouldn't stick to. I only worked on the two side pieces.

8233980 $8.70/ft - 5? ft
8233990 $2.80/ft - 22 ft
Thank you, was thinking the same, the front is bowed out so I wouldn’t think it’s an issue for leaks. My P.O. also siliconed everything - I think I will plan this for winter, under cover.
 
Replacing some TV's this coming weekend. I think all the parts are in place for a smooth upgrade for the staterooms. I have an old Direct TV system that is coming out. Is there a switch for cable and Direct TV on the boat? My old boat had one and I cannot locate one on this boat.....if there is one.

Thanks,
Keith
 
I approached those corner pieces a little differently. I pulled them to find large holes and rather than always recaulk them, I laid up epoxy and put those pieces in them as it is now completely sealed. terrible design in those rub rail corners.
When I recaulked my rub rail corners I also drilled a small drain hole in the bottom of each rub rail near the corners, so that any water running aft down the inside of the hollow rub rail would drain out before it got to the corner.
 
Replacing some TV's this coming weekend. I think all the parts are in place for a smooth upgrade for the staterooms. I have an old Direct TV system that is coming out. Is there a switch for cable and Direct TV on the boat? My old boat had one and I cannot locate one on this boat.....if there is one.

Thanks,
Keith
 
Keith, there is a switch on ours that is inside thebstarbiard cupboard just behind the island. Its located on the outside wall above the shelf. Not the easiest place to get to but that's where we found it.
 
When I recaulked my rub rail corners I also drilled a small drain hole in the bottom of each rub rail near the corners, so that any water running aft down the inside of the hollow rub rail would drain out before it got to the corner.
That is a good idea as well. I might drill there as well. won't hurt.
 
I was having a problem with the fridge consistently frosting up and not cooling correctly. I had read somewhere on the forum that a few washers behind the exterior door latch (the one with the short rod to the fridge door) would fix the problem. It did. I stacked two small skinny washers behind the fridge door latch (two on each screw) and one behind the freezer door latch and.....boom. Both the freezer door and the fridge door sound like suction cups now when I open them. Just a small amount of compressing the door gaskets fixed the problem. I am not sure who to thank on here, but thanks. I was leaning towards having to buy a new fridge since mine was not cooling properly. Now just to "train" the admiral, kids, and the swabbies to latch the doors when they retrieve a snack or cold one......I will let you know how that training turns out :)
 
I was having a problem with the fridge consistently frosting up and not cooling correctly. I had read somewhere on the forum that a few washers behind the exterior door latch (the one with the short rod to the fridge door) would fix the problem. It did. I stacked two small skinny washers behind the fridge door latch (two on each screw) and one behind the freezer door latch and.....boom. Both the freezer door and the fridge door sound like suction cups now when I open them. Just a small amount of compressing the door gaskets fixed the problem. I am not sure who to thank on here, but thanks. I was leaning towards having to buy a new fridge since mine was not cooling properly. Now just to "train" the admiral, kids, and the swabbies to latch the doors when they retrieve a snack or cold one......I will let you know how that training turns out :)

My wife thought of that after I had given up and fortunately before I replaced the freezer.
 
Has anyone found a source for the SS “bullet” end caps on the lower aft rub rail above the water line?
 

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Still learning the boat. What are the digital gauges for when you scroll up on the helm? I think I know a couple of them, but not sure.

Ga-1
Ga-2
Ga-3
Ga-4

Keith.
 

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