Caulking Windows Seals

[2dreamers]

I'm not sure of the correct terminology related to my question. The rubber seals on the exterior of the windows seem fine, however there is a black substance/seal that extends a quarter of an inch onto the fiberglass body that is drying out and curling. Should I trim off this curling excess with a razor blade along the windows edge, clean, let dry, and reseal. If so, what product should I use to re-seal? A good silicone sealant?

[MaverickBBD]

It may be the butyl tape that is used to seal the window during installation. Take a look at http://daverootrvglassrepair.com

[LadyFitz...]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaverickBBD It may be the butyl tape that is used to seal the window during installation. Take a look at http://daverootrvglassrepair.com

That site did not impress me. Besides being too wide for small monitors (poor web design) and having spelling errors (not very professional), I have a problem with them suggesting using silicone sealant (and even including it in their kits). Once silicone has been applied somewhere, it is almost impossible to completely remove and, unless completely removed, nothing will ever stick again where it has been. Paint and fiberglass are permeable and silicone will penetrate below the surface so the only way to get it all is to remove the surface of the material. While silicone has a long life, it will eventually fail then good luck resealing where it was. There are other sealants better suited for the job, such as the acrylics or polysulfides.

[Clay L]

Most/many manufacturers use butyl tape. That is what I would reseal with. It is necessary to remove the windows though. There are some screws on the inside frames that have to be removed to get the windows out but it doesn't appear to be too tough to do.

The tape may still be doing a good job of sealing. I used a thin bladed sharp plastic putty knife to clean up the excess tape on mine. The plastic putty knife was easier to control than a metal knife or razor blade and didn't damage the fiber glass

[Hikerdogs]

Be careful when you remove the windows. Be sure to make a cut with a razor knife around the entire window frame before removing it. We just had ours done and some of the sealing tape stuck to the graphics. When they pulled the window away from the body it made about a 2" x 1/2" tear in the graphic. Now they're replacing the graphic.

[2dreamers]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2dreamers I'm not sure of the correct terminology related to my question. The rubber seals on the exterior of the windows seem fine, however there is a black substance/seal that extends a quarter of an inch onto the fiberglass body that is drying out and curling. Should I trim off this curling excess with a razor blade along the windows edge, clean, let dry, and reseal. If so, what product should I use to re-seal? A good silicone sealant?

Thanks for everyone's advice. It was in fact butyl tape that was curling up. The windows weren't leaking, but we were afraid the curling material would start collecting water. So we've carefully removed the excess material and caulked the windows using Proflex RV Flex Seal. Hopefully this will help prevent a problem down the road.