Rainwater Leaks: Part 3 (Mast Boot)

--Blogpost written by Bob

After all the rain we had while Hurricane Joaquin passed by us and the discovery that we had a major leak in the mast boot area, I disassembled the interior trim ring from the ceiling.  The trim ring still contained rainwater a day after the rain stopped.  Water dripped from a couple of bolts that hold the exterior deck collar in place, even though it may have been because they were immersed in the water that remained in the trim ring.

The exterior mast boot area where rainwater leaks are originating. The deck collar 
is the brown metal ring where the turning blocks (pulleys) are mounted.

As I was installing the black LifeCalk around the mast boot area and squeezing
the tube to force the sealant through the nozzle, the bottom of the tube
ruptured and I lost half a tube of black LifeCalk on the boat's white deck.

 

This photo shows light coming down from the main sail track (in the center of
the photograph).  Silicone was previously used in this area as a sealant--it
was cracked from age.  I think this was the major source 
of the rainwater leakage.

I replaced all the old silicone in the bottom of the main sail track with
black LifeCalk using a cable tie as a sort of trowel.

This photo shows how there is now no more light coming through the main
sail track--hopefully no water will come through either.

After a recent rainstorm, it was clear that the leak had been fixed by replacing the 30-year old sealant!

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