Bulkhead Sealer

[Joseph Washburn]

I have a 1988 Catalina 22 swing keel. At the end of this past sailing season I discovered that the small bulkhead, between the stove and the V-berth, was suffering from pretty major rot. Since this is where the upper shroud chain plate attaches I began making plans to replace it. My PLAN was to use 3/4" marine grade ply wood and use West Marine's Wood Pro since I had some left after doing my outside teak work. But alas, as with many plans, this failed. The 3/4" plywood prevented access to the storage compartment and did not fit correctly with all contact points. Plan B is to use 1/2" regular ply wood and seal it with something. Being short on money, or just plain cheap, I picked up a small piece of ply wood out of the cull bin for $.51. The only draw back is one side is painted blace. (But for $.51 I can live with that!) I cut it and drilled all holes and it fits great. What would be the best product to cover it with? I am not sure that the wood pro would be good because of the paint. I had also thought about something like West Sstem epoxy resin. I just do not know what to use. Would like to avoid haveing to spend another $50 dollars because all safety equipment needs replacing as well. Any thoughts would be appreciated. (Maybe I need a cheaper hobby?)Joseph Washburn"Disciple Ship"1988 C-22Wilmington, NC

 

[Ted]

Try CatalinaDirect.com

You should check with the folks at Catalina Direct, which is an independent supplier of parts for the Catalina 22. They may actually be able to sell you the replacement piece. At a minimum, they should be able to offer some technical advice.If I were in your shoes, and was wearing clean socks, and wanted to Do-it-yourself (D-I-Y) this is wwhat I would do.1) Take the original piece out as best I could.2) Use it as a template to fabricate a new one out of marine plywood or suitable material.3) test fit the new part. Make any adjustments.Regards,Ted

 

[Herb]

my thoughts

Joseph first things first . Have you rebeded the chain plate so you can stop the leak that allowed the water in? if you have then find something that looks nice and go with that. For you to not use marine drade anything here should not be a problem if it is dry. You would have years if ever before it became a problem again if you took care of the leak.

 

[Joseph Washburn]

Correcting leak

I have not rebedded the chain plate yet. My first order was to get the old bulkhead out because the rot was so bad. Having done that and formed the new one, my attention turns to the chain plate. Being new to this I may have my images/words wrong. I believe what I need to do now is re-caulk the chain plate. After removing the old bulkhead I noticed that the piece that passes through the deck would move freely. Is there a differnce is rebedding a fitting and recaulking around where this piece passes through the deck? I have always thought of rebedding to mean attaching something to the deck. What it appears need to do is caulk where one metal piece passes through another. But again, I am not sure if have all that right.

 

[Andy]

bulkheads

Joseph,to prolong the life of your new bulkheads, seal at least the top edge that faces the deck with one or 2 coats of epoxy. If water runs through the deck fittings it will not seep between the layers of plywood and start rotting from the inside out. The faces of the bulkheads you can "paint" at will - but looks cost...The gap between the chainplate and the oval metal-fitting needs to be sealed with a very flexible sealant -I used silicon- due to the twisting and flexing of the rig. It is tough to keep that spot sealed for a prolonged period.I have fabricated a small plastic cone that sits upside down over the oblong deck plate, sealed at the shroud with some rigging tape- helps to keep the water away from that trouble spot. Before restepping the mast, loosen the adjustments of the shrouds, especially the one where you replaced the bulkhead, so that your mast can rise to vertical before the shroud is to tight. You need to readjust all the shroud tensions when you are done with your project.Best of LuckAndy

 

[Jeff]

Re-surface the bulkhead

Since you have the bulk head down go to a hardware store buy a sheet of laminate (white of ivory) and a can of laminate glue. Sand the painted surface apply the glue to both the laminate and the board,let dry, apply the laminate and cut the edges. Turn it over and do it again on the otherside. Looks great and updated.Jeff