It really pays to research what you need

[sailortrash]

So after a phone call to the maker of my hatches and port lights the gasket kits average 50 bucks per hatch and 3 tubes of sealant at 30 bucks per tube for a estimated cost of 1340 if i do the work myself. Ouch. So i did some research and found the gasket material for 35 bucks for a 100 foot roll and the sealant for 9 bucks per tube. that is about 8% of what the hatch company wanted to charge. Oh well i'm happy as I can be about the money savings and next week I am going to get this project done. One more thing off the list refit budget not taking the hit I thought it would. Apparently the gasket kits are precut to length but for over 1200 in savings I think i will be happy to cut them myself.

[davidpm]

Sounds good. Who was the hatch and port light maker?
Where did you source the gasket material sealant?

[Minnewaska]

Congrats. These examples can and do happen. Some just gouge. Although, it can be understandably related to selling these small pieces in low quantities and the cost of sitting on the inventory, along with the payroll to process can be a significant percentage of the price. Some may also be trying to encourage an alternative, like replacing the entire light.

However, what also happens is the OEM specs a different material for their product that isn't as obvious to the eye. Maybe more UV resistant as an example.

[eherlihy]

While I agree with your point, I am confused...
The initial total of materials was $1340
Less the 3 tubes of sealant (3 x $30) $90 = 1250
divided by $50 per hatch = 25

Do you really have 25 hatches?

[JimMcGee]

Are the gaskets on your hatches cracked or just shrunken and no longer sealing?

All four portlights on our boat leaked badly when we got her. I washed each with dish soap and paper towels to remove all the accumulated dirt. Then spent about 10 minutes per seal working Vaseline into the gasket material. Really work it in. Let it sit for another fifteen minutes, then wipe off the excess.

The Vaseline swells the seals and no more leaks. After four years I touched them up again this year with a little Vaseline. Just a quick wipe down this time when one was starting to show a slow drip.

Cost for one of those little travel containers of Vaseline is under $2. I learned this tip years ago to get convertible tops to seal. But if the seals are dried out to the point where they're cracking you're doing new seals.

Cheap, easy and if you find the seals are too far gone you're no worse off than before you started.

[CapnBones]

I just read a post, which I cannot find now about redoing port lights with butyl tape. That is on my list in the next 2 weeks. Going to run the buffer and get a good coat of wax on while they are out

[Minnewaska]

Originally Posted by eherlihy

While I agree with your point, I am confused...
The initial total of materials was $1340
Less the 3 tubes of sealant (3 x $30) $90 = 1250
divided by $50 per hatch = 25

Do you really have 25 hatches?

That's a good question. I didn't try to to do the math. Can't all be hatches.

Got me thinking. If you include both port lights and hatches, we have 26.

[hellosailor]

trash, I would just second Minne's thoughts: Make sure it is the SAME material, not just something that sounds similar. Sometimes dealer pricing is a rip-off, but sometimes the deals you find on the web are too good to be true. A big problem with "foam rubber" type products in general is that there's a lot of cheap stuff on the market, that looks identical to the good stuff, and you won't know until five or ten years down the line when it either turns to goo or dust.

Whatever you do, if you use something like ArmorAll on the "rubber" a couple of times a year, you'll find it lasts many many years longer.