Considering sewing a new cover

[Bad Obsession]

A few years ago my companionway leaked some during a hurricane. It caused a bit of a mess by soaking a lot of my cushions. Needless to say, it also caused me to do a ton of work on the cabin of my boat last spring.

This last year I covered the top of my companionway with a tarp that was tied tight down. It survived the touches of a hurricane and all winter without having any issues.

Based on this I am really considering creating a cover out of sunbrella that covers my companionway. I have a cover that covers my hatch boards but the new cover would cover them and it would also cover the top of the companionway. It would protect the wood as well.

Has anyone else done this?

Does anyone else have strong wind drive rain into the companionway once in a while? if so, what is your counter for this?

 

[Nahart51]

I have the exact same issue. I'm going to fabricate a cover and use snaps to keep it on. Sunbrella of course.

 

[foolproof]

I sewed up a cover out of Sunbrella, and put about 4 pounds of lead shot in a pocket on the bottom. The weight pulls the cover tight and doesn't let the cover blow around. Be sure to cut the material to the correct rounded shape!

Attached is a picture of my cover shortly after I made it, while I was still rehabbing my boat.

 

[Joe]

I'm not sure I'd want a canvas sling with 4 pounds of lead flying around....I didn't say it was bad, just that I'm not sure.....

Most people use sometype of stainless or nylon fastener.... here's some examples on the boat canvas supplies site You might take a look at Sumner Patterson's web pages... he and his wife did a lot of canvas work.... but what you're looking for is pretty common. I had snaps on my cover, but will convert to the directional type when I replace it....

 

[onecoolair]

I sewed up a cover out of Sunbrella, and put about 4 pounds of lead shot in a pocket on the bottom. The weight pulls the cover tight and doesn't let the cover blow around. Be sure to cut the material to the correct rounded shape!

Attached is a picture of my cover shortly after I made it, while I was still rehabbing my boat.

Having an insulated main companion way sunbrella cover is standard practice here on the Republic of Texas Coast. Don't forget the battens to keep the cover from collapsing for when coming and going out of the main hatch way .... You don't want to let the cold air out with your minimum of 3 air conditioners set to maximum ..... In the winter it helps to keep the heat in and freezing sleet out !
BTW .... You will want insulated sunbrella covers on all your other hatches and skylights as well.

 

[Anonymous 121765]

Hey BAD,

Was up pal? I always had a problem with water thru my companion slats. The problem was from the orig. design.

Rain came in thru down from the top hatch spaces to the boards. Another was the louvers angle. Another was the foot step area.

When I re-did the wood with the Sensibuilt faux wood product, I made as close as possible fit up cutting down on spaces where the water intruded. I also redid the foot plate where a lot of water came in.

Putting a cover on is questionable in that a lot of water flows down from the top hatch. How would you seal this? Another problem is that you won't be able to vent as much moisture from inside the boat. Hence mildew buildup.

Temperature changes will cause moisture buildup in your cabin. So unless you have a vent on top somewhere, you may find that you create another problem.

I know some will disagree, but there's never ONLY one way to fix a problem Sunbrella will breathe somewhat, but how much? Here's a pic of the new slats for reference. the fit up is much tighter than the orig. design

Good luck finding a solution. I don't get much water on the floor, but if it blows hard from the stern, I still get some.

CR

 

[Bad Obsession]

I don't get the rain in the hatch when my dodger and bimini are up.

The design I am thinking of will be two pieces. The first piece will be similar to what I have now over the hatch boards. The next piece would attach to that with snaps and then go over the top of the companionway all the way to the place where it stops.

I agree with the ventilation comment, but I put chemical dehumidifiers in the boat anyway and there are a few vents. Someday I would like to put a solar fan on the hatch for the main cabin.

 

[RS_Grampian]

I made something out of Sunbrealla to cover my bright-finished hatch-boards and wooden handrails on the cabin-top -- after all the time I spent stripping, sanding and varnishing them, I don't want to be doing that every two years!

Unfortunately this is the best pic I have of the setup. It's actually two pieces; one covers the cabin-top and the other covers the hatch-boards. Velcro holds them together where they meet at the edge of the hatch. It's held on by about 12 snaps around the perimeter.

 

[onecoolair]

Hey BAD,

Was up pal? I always had a problem with water thru my companion slats. The problem was from the orig. design.

Rain came in thru down from the top hatch spaces to the boards. Another was the louvers angle. Another was the foot step area.

When I re-did the wood with the Sensibuilt faux wood product, I made as close as possible fit up cutting down on spaces where the water intruded. I also redid the foot plate where a lot of water came in.

Putting a cover on is questionable in that a lot of water flows down from the top hatch. How would you seal this? Another problem is that you won't be able to vent as much moisture from inside the boat. Hence mildew buildup.

Temperature changes will cause moisture buildup in your cabin. So unless you have a vent on top somewhere, you may find that you create another problem.

I know some will disagree, but there's never ONLY one way to fix a problem Sunbrella will breathe somewhat, but how much? Here's a pic of the new slats for reference. the fit up is much tighter than the orig. design

Good luck finding a solution. I don't get much water on the floor, but if it blows hard from the stern, I still get some.

CR

The new companion way boards look nice.... Have you thought about making companion way doors out of the same material? Put them on with removable hinges so that the doors can be stored below while sailing. Mine are on hinges just outside the track for the existing boards so boards can still slide in place without having to removing doors if I needed but since I got the doors the hatch boards have not been brought out of aft cabin for any use for a good 5 years now. The doors get taken below only when out in rough weather sailing with cluts crew on board. The insulted sunbrella hatch cover then get used to cover the companion way If the need arises to keep spray out of the cabin. The lead weights sewn in at the bottom of hatch cover makes it easy to roll up cover and let it rest on top of companion way when sailing.

 

[jrowan]

Hey BAD,

I always had a problem with water thru my companion slats. The problem was from the orig. design.

Rain came in thru down from the top hatch spaces to the boards. Another was the louvers angle. Another was the foot step area.

CR

We have an aluminum plate screwed over the slats in the hatchboard to prevent water from leaking through them over the winter. I can unscrew the cover when I want to. I find that installing Nicro auto vent fans makes a bigger difference in positive airflow then passive louvers can. I'm assuming that y'all leave the hatchboards in place under the Sunbrella cover, as otherwise its an invitation to get ripped off from light fingers. Plus if the Sunbrella rips apart during a storm you would have serious water ingress without the hatchboards in place.

 

[centerline]

in my opinion the only water that will get into the boat from the sliding hatch will either be from the rear, or from under the leading edge (front).

its not a common occurrence from the rear, unless someone has neglected to secure it properly, but on some boats there is a strong possibility of water dripping (or pouring) into the cabin from the front edge of the slider during wind blown rain, waves washing over the boat, or when using a garden hose during wash down
you can build a cover for it to keep the water from getting to the slider or you can fix it so what water goes under it wont enter into the cabin.
the cover idea works well when idle at the dock, but maybe not so much when underway...

the front edge of the slider is usually a close fit with the coachroof, so only a limited amount of water can get under it at any one moment in relation to the amount of pressure the water has...

at the front edge of the opening in the coachroof under the slider, there will be a coaming (slightly raised edge) that is intended to shed water to the side drainage and prevent it from dripping into the cabin..... but its a gently sloping, and not very high coaming. it has to be raised.

if you were to remove the slider and get some 1" high, self sticking bulb seal to apply to the top, forward edge of of the coaming for the entire width of it, your problem will be solved. situated as it is, it will foil a good flow of water and prevent it from going over and into the cabin
I can use the water hose during washdown, blowing on the crack between the slider and the deck at a low angle, and it now sheds all the water to the side drain rather than entering into the cabin as it used to do.

the bulb seal does not contact anything but just sits there acting as a dam to prevent the water from making its way over the coaming

before removing the hatch to install the bulb seal, close the hatch all the way and mark where the leading edge is so when its removed you can get the bulb seal placed correctly without interference. (keep in mind and allow for the thickness of the front edge of the slider)
it may also work good to have 2 strips of it. one placed where the slider would lightly contact it when closed, and th eother at the top of the coaming as a backup in case a dribble would flood over the first one. i have never had any dribbles but some boats may not have such a tightly fitted slider as mine does, but its a great thing not to be worrying about shipping water thru a closed hatch.

 

[DanM]

Bad,

I made up this cover with two layers of Sunbrella and in the middle is a layer of that radiant barrior / bubble wrap material you can get at Home Depot by the roll. I like the rigidity and padded look that it gives to the covers, it's easily sewn through, it adds an insulating property (I'm trying to hide from the heat here in Texas) and it doesn't mildew.

I keep my boat sealed up pretty tightly with no leaks and since I have easy access to power being on a slip year round I also run a dehumidifier inside the boat to keep her smelling sweet. Without that mildew could be an issue.

Take care, DanM.

 

[Dave Groshong]

We offer custom companionway covers, just need a full sized template, call me if you're interested.

They usually run about $189