Hatch Lip
 

Rebuilding a 23 floor, whats the best way to put a lip for a floor hatch to rest on .

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Welcome to the site bb!!

As far as rebuilding ...Is the deck going to be completely new ??Do you have anything old that you can model after?

You may want to consider putting a gutter in also... Capt Chuck did that so hopefully he will chime in.

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Its down to the stringers putting in new 3/4 marine ply. Still trying to decide if I should make a tank hatch or just close in the new tank

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Make a mold. I would make a mold for the entire floor with built recessed areas for the hatch.

strick

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Marine ply is still wood. If I had done all of the work to remove the entire deck I would consider buying or making foam core floor panels that will never rot. You can make a hatch lip mold and add where you want. The hatches are easily custom made to fit. I just covered the tank on my 20' with Divinycell floor panels that I made and added recesses for the tank access plates,made a hatch and reciever mold for the bilge access that I modified for the new anchor locker access.
http://www.hermco.net/gallery2.htm

Re: Hatch Lip
 

HermCo

Can you expand this a bit ? How would you go about making a in deck lip mold? Rich

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Many ways to do it but here a couple,
http://www.hermco.net/Deck01.jpg

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Don

I have a related question after looking at your pictures.

How would you recommend closing a larger than normal side to side gap between a hatch and the deck? My existing fish well hatch has a gap that in some areas is nearing a 1/2 inch. Not only does it look bad but it takes too much 4200 to seal up. Thanks Rich

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Add to the deck or hatch. I would think adding a strip of flat fiberglass cut to fit around the hatch would be the easiest because you can take the hatch out to work on it,then putty and finish to suit.
http://www.hermco.net/Drawing3.jpg

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Don

Got it and agree that adding to the sides of the hatch is the easiest since it has already been removed, from the boat. What finished gap dimension would you recommend? 1/8" to 3/16" max? Rich

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Your going to seal it down so leave enough room for a good bead of sealant. I would not put any sealant under the hatch just the seam from the top so it is easily removed by cutting the sealant with a razor knife. :D
Sorry no drawing this time :)

Re: Hatch Lip
 

what he said about sealing just the gap, from the top, with silicone. Silicone does get dirty after a few years, but then take it out and do it again. With a new piece, wax it up real good on both side of the gap, and the silicone will always come out. I once was re-doing a 284 Intrepid and they were meticulous about their gap, wax, and silicone bead...the floor hatches came out in minutes and then the extra silicone was really easy to strip off both sides. Natural inclination is to bed the whole darn thing in sealant, but you will only do that once.

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Rich

If you cannot make a lip or add a strip as Hermco has suggested, as another alternative you could try this stuff. I have used it to fill in the gaps. It is waterproof and flexs with the deck. You can get it at Home depot in 20' lengths for under $4.
Just stuff it in the gap after screwing the hatch down and then caulk over. I think Tom's idea of waxing first makes sense :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...back/caulk.jpg

Re: Hatch Lip
 

I worked for Intrepid for 13 yrs. Plug work,R&D,rigging,electrical,assistant foreman and then service mgr. Still do some warranty work for them now and again.... ;)

Re: Hatch Lip
 

I don't know Capt. Chuck, that looks like a "stop gap" measure to me but it definately makes it a one beer job! :D

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Your right Don, it's just a filler.
On the original deck hatch with the pry out hatches that housed the batteries underneath became a pain in the arse to remove and then reseal everytime to service the batteries. I then made a new hatch with a gutter which worked until the transom redo...

Here's a prior picture of the deck hatch with the gutters before the splash well removal. I used to screw around with that darn thing all the time when it was in it's original config.. :mad:

http://www.classicseacraft.com/captc...edium/0007.jpg

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Whats up? I don't see any beer bottles in that bilge! :D

Re: Hatch Lip
 

Don / Other Tom

The wax idea does make sense as I have already taken this hatch out 3 times over the last 2 years and it is a PITA with such a large gap, to remove all the caulk. Thanks Rich

Re: Hatch Lip
 

I was preparing to use a composite board but I was concered about not being able to secure the T-Top to the floor properly with glass and foam stringers below the deck I convinced myself that doubleing the plywood in the holding points would be better.