H260 leaking companionway hatch

[Bob 04 H260]

With all the rain the past few days I have had quite a bit of water coming in the hatch. I was just over to check the boat and put up a boom tent looks like it will stop it for now. The water appears to be running forward on the Plexiglas and dripping down on to the floor. Is there a fix for this ? has anyone installed a piece of weather stripping on the bolt-on piece on front of the Plexiglas ?
I now have water under the cabin sole, I can hear it squish as I walk on it. Looks like the sole is just held down with some silicone rubber around the edge. Has anyone removed this to dry it out and reseal it ? I'm thinking a piece of dental floss run under the floor would cut the rubber away without the danger of damaging the wood (like taking out a windshield) ? bad idea ??
thanks, Bob

 

[BrianW]

Bob, my H26 which is very similar to your H260 also leaks at the hatch. I understand this is common for the whole line these Hunters. The previous owner of my boat made a cover out of Sunbrella that covers the whole upper sliding hatch and vertical companionway hatch covers. It is held in place with about 10 snaps. BrianW

 

[John23883]

waterproof hatch

Here are a bunch of solutions, I just used foam tape and brass strips as shown. Cheap and easy, never leaks.
http://hunter.sailboatowners.com/index.php?option=com_kb&Itemid=267&cat_id=20&aid=6250&page=article&mn=260[/url]

 

[George H260]

I agree with Brian, the Sunbrella cover fixes the problem for good. However, there is a wood stopper at the back of the hatch that can come loose and allow water to drip into the cabin. Re-attach the wood piece and the boat will be very dry except when heavy/blowing rain is too much for the drain.

I purchased the cover from the chandlery and had a sailmaker add a couple of loops to keep the water from pooling on the hatch. Got this idea from Jim Seamans.

Squishy deck is also an old problem. The sole is put down with 3M5200. Over time the seal around the edge of the sole breaks away and when water gets in, you get water trapped under the sole.

Don't try to pull it up as you'll break it. There is a 3M5200 solvent that you can use to disolve the caulk, but unless you are really, really anal, I'd just let it dry out good and the problem will go away.

Although I have to say the idea of using a line to break the seal is attractive, and worth trying if you have a several days to devote to the task of getting the sole up cleaniing all the caulk off the underside and then re-gluing it down again. Even then unless you have a perfect seal, the next time you get water in the boat, you'll have to start all over again. If you do remove the sole, I hope you add this project to the H260 knowledgebase.

 

[Bobbi Ullinger]

My H 23.5 use to leak at the companionway, too. During a rain storm I sat in the boat to see where it was coming in, and what I found was that the water was running around the edges of the plexiglass hatch and running across the underside of the plexiglass, held there by sufrace tension until enough water gathered to form a drop big enough to fall to the cabin floor. The fix that I did was to remove the hatch cover, and with a router, route a small "V" groove along the port and starbord side of the underside of the cover, outside of where the hatch slikes along the cabin top. This groove will break the surface tension, and the water will drip into the drain groove outside of the cabin.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

thanks for the ideas

I have not been in the boat in the rain so I'm not sure where it comes in, from what I see it appears to be from the front of the sliding plexiglas top, not from the hatch boards. There is a piece on wood on the bottom of the sliding plexiglas that is quite water stained, there is also a piece on plexiglas 1'x1/4" on the top surface that should be directing the water to the side drains. I was wondering if this is where there should be a rubber seal to meet the turtle cover when the hatch is closed. It must mean the hatch is tilted down toward the bow, maybe the boat needs more weight in the stern to trim it properly. I'll pour some water on it tomorrow to see if it flows forward.

Maybe I'm being anal but I am concerned that the water under the sole will grow mold before it dries out. If the entire surface under the sole is glued down with 5200 and only the seal on the edge is broken why is there water under it ? I think it is only sealed on the edges. If I do take it up what should be used to seal it down ? Whatever was used around the edges looks like silicone rubber, it does seem to stck well in some places and not in others, is it possible they did not take all the mold release off before trying to glue it down ? Maybe it is possible hold it down with velcro tabs so it can lifted and dried out as required ?

Bob

 

[BobSail]

Re: thanks for the ideas

Ditto George. The teak strip that you mentioned was loose on our boat. Both were in fact. I removed them and re-applied a silicone bead for the length of the strip and screw holes. That stopped the leaks. We also got a cover from this site to control the deluges. George has the right idea with the loops. We keep meaning to do the same, but end up tossing a plastic water bottle or two between the plexiglass and canvas to maintain a pitch for drainage.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

Rob sounds right

Rob that makes a lot of sense, I suppose I could accomplish the same thing with a couple of small beads of silicone rubber run down each side of the plexiglas just under the edge.
thanks, Bob

My H 23.5 use to leak at the companionway, too. During a rain storm I sat in the boat to see where it was coming in, and what I found was that the water was running around the edges of the plexiglass hatch and running across the underside of the plexiglass, held there by sufrace tension until enough water gathered to form a drop big enough to fall to the cabin floor. The fix that I did was to remove the hatch cover, and with a router, route a small "V" groove along the port and starbord side of the underside of the cover, outside of where the hatch slikes along the cabin top. This groove will break the surface tension, and the water will drip into the drain groove outside of the cabin.

 

[George H260]

I agree, the hatch boards are probably not the source of the water.

Bob, why not pry it up the sole and tell us what you find? When I tried it I found plenty of 5200 under there. Others have tried to pull it up and all they did was break it. The caulk is not applied evenly but in a random bead, that how water gets trapped under there.

Hunter uses 5200 everywhere on the boat and it sure looks like 5200 to me that is used to glue the sole down.

Of course you could have water leaking from a number of places other than the sliding hatch. For more on leaks go to this link: http://h260.com/leaks/H260_leaks.html Note especially the entry on "related issues" that discusses squishy deck.

Unless you have leaks elsewhere the water is probably leaking past the wood strip at the back of the sliding cover.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

thanks George

you are probably right, make perfect sense, I'll check it out this morning, Bob

 

[BrianW]

Additional Benefit of Sunbrella Hatch Cover....

The previous owner of my boat made a cover out of Sunbrella that covers the whole upper sliding hatch and vertical companionway hatch covers. It is held in place with about 10 snaps. BrianW

When installed, my Sunbrella hatch cover also allows me to keep the hatch open in a light rain while underway or on the hook, without the rain getting inside the cabin. All I have to do is extend out the part of the cover that covered the hatch boards to the horizontal position, bungee it to the bimini and it forms a companionway awning. This keeps the cabin cooler in stinking hot weather. BrianW

 

[Bob 04 H260]

I'm sold I'm going to order one this week......

maybe I will get the deluxe pop-top enclosure too, looks like it would be nice to have the whole top up at anchor, does anyone know if it is really bug proof ?

Right now I have a blue tent fly stretched over the boom as a tent, it goes from the bimini to the mast. Keeps the water away and allows me to keep the hatch completely open in the rain. I will pull the hatch off and seal those two strips with some silicone and see how that works and put something down each side along the bottom surface of the hatch to stop any water from seeping under the edge.

Bob

 

[George H260]

H260 Pop Top Enclosure

I"ve seen the poptop enclosure on one H260 and the owner reported that it kept the bugs out. Spraying around the edges of the enclosure before retiring for the night is an extra step.

My only reservation about the enclosure is where to store it when not in use. I use bug screen that is folded up into a small package and stored below the v birth where the water tank is.

More here: http://h260.com/screens/screens.html

 

[Mergatroid]

Man I wouldn't screw with the sole. Give it lots of air and let it be.

My 26 needs the sole replaced due to water leak over a winter.

I have the companion way cover and it still leaks.

Buy a 11.98 tarp at Walmart and lots of bungee cords. That works.

 

[Mergatroid]

Here are a bunch of solutions, I just used foam tape and brass strips as shown. Cheap and easy, never leaks.
http://hunter.sailboatowners.com/index.php?option=com_kb&Itemid=267&cat_id=20&aid=6250&page=article&mn=260[/url]

John, your link does not work, fix it if you can.

 

[soling42]

$20 worth of sunbrella, a couple hrs on a sewing machine and a few snaps will permanently cure your hatch leak. Then set a small a/c unit in the companionway and let it run a few days to dry out the interior nicely. After especially wet cruises or long periods of high humidity(which Fl certainly has) my little $85 home depot a/c pays for itself in spades.

I'd pass on pulling up the veneer on your floor unless you're sure that you're ready to replace it with a new one. If a piano string or steel wire won't get under it then some kind of wrenched floor scraping tool and lots of elbow grease would be required so I'd try to dry the interior with an a/c or dehumidifier for a few days. I'm sure it'll work fine.
Good luck
Mike & Kelli
Sarasota, Fl

 

[Bob15530]

Put a swim noodle under the cover

Another option to adding a loop or plastic jugs under the cover is to cut a piece of those swim noodles and put it on top of the plexiglass. They come in two diameters & the bigger one works better. You might only find the larger ones at pool supply stores.

 

[Bob 04 H260]

I sealed the wood strips.......

I used caulking on the two pieces of wood on the sliding hatch. I still have the old tent fly over the boom. It has completely stopped the water leaks ! I went ahead and ordered the Sunbrella hatch cover and a boom tent from Hunterowners.com. I was missing a galley port screen, so included one of those, and I also ordered a pair of their stern seat covers.

I like the boom tent idea, it really keeps the sun off the boat and the interior is much cooler and you can leave the companionway open in the rain.
The floor has dried up on its own once the water stopped coming in. I will leave it a while longer to be sure it well dried out and then reseal the edge. I'm so happy I don't have to lift the floor.

It seeems the water was coming in because of those two pieces of wood were not sealed on the plexglas hatch.

thanks for all the help and suggestions, Bob

 

[cephius (Dave)]

I used just a few sq feet of sunbrella on my H260. Slightly larger then the plexiglass. I suspend it just above the winches from the boom and stays and raise the center for a tent.

It keeps the rain out.

 

[sea_casper]

Re: Put a swim noodle under the cover

You can also use a small pool-pillow under the cover and inflate it enough to keep water from pooling. I use a large one under my inflatable cover for the same purpose. When deflated they take up a minimum of storage space.