Forehatch seal

Hi all,

 And another quick renovation question ( or two)

My forehatch leaks, and I know its the seal which is the issue. So, two questions

1. Should the seal be on the lifting part of the hatch, and shut down on to the main fixed lp, or the other way round, and

2. Any idea of rough dimensions of the size? I suspect many car door seals will so. So its just a question of size!

Thanks

Perry

Hi Perry,

Perry wrote

1. Should the seal be on the lifting part of the hatch, and shut down on to the main fixed lp, or the other way round,

The standard boat doesn't have any seal on the forehatch, so what you have has been retro-fitted by a previous owner.

The hatch should have a lip all around that matches the height of the upstand all around the edge of the hole in the foredeck. The hatch should therefore neatly wrap over the hole - and that's it!

Obviously, due to manufacturing tolerances with GRP laid-up by hand, there's plenty room for gaps around the edge, but mine has never let rain in. Being a Broads sailor I can't say I've experienced waves over the bow sufficient to make it's way into the cabin, so I have never bothered to seal my hatch and it leaves your second question redundant.

Tell me more about your problems. Could the seal itself be drawing water over the hatch lip by capillary action, syphoning or osmosis?

Hi Perry,

GregSeaHawk wrote

Obviously, due to manufacturing tolerances with GRP laid-up by hand, there's plenty room for gaps around the edge, but mine has never let rain in.

I should have added that while rain and spray doesn't get in, there's plenty of room for air, spiders, and in the autumn, twigs and bits of dead leaves, to get in through the gaps.

I do occasionally find water in the bilges but that can always be attributed to a combination of temperature, lack of wind and condensation, usually after a previous night spent boiling rice or brewing tea.

Greg,

Thanks for that...I can see you are going to become my boating guru! So, nature of the problem is "there is a badly fitting seal on there now, so I assumed it was meant to be there, but wanted to change it for a better fit"

Now I know it doesn't need one, I will either remove it entirely, or get a much smaller one to put on the upright, just to prevent aforementioned creepy crawlies

Thanks

Perry

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