I have a 1987 Catalina 30 and for as long as I've had the boat (~ 20 years) it's been as dry as a bone. I recently replaced the teak railwood pieces that run along either side of the main hatch top. I put an ample amount of silicone sealant under the wood when I put them back on. It was a nice, clean, beautiful job, or so I thought. We had a rain storm recently and when I checked the boat the interior had taken on a bunch of water. Some of my seat cushions and the carpet were soaked (fresh water). Apparently the deck pocket where the hatch slides in had filled up with water and overflowed down into the interior. The ceiling liner doesn't appear to have any leaks. All I can think is that somehow I clogged up an invisible drain when I sealed the area under the railwood. The hatch rail slides appear to tip a few degrees downhill going forward. I recently took a turkey baster and sucked about 3 gallons of water out of the hatch pocket. That will work until it rains again. Does anyone have any ideas on what I did wrong, or how to fix this?
Main Hatch Leak?
- Thread starter Chuck32
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I didn't get any help from the forum, but I did fix the problem. Apparently on the forward inboard end of the railwood, there is a drain. You wouldn't know it to look at it, but apparently I sealed it up with silicone when I replaced the railwood. The key is to avoid putting silicone on the forward end of the railwood when you re-install. That will clog things up and the hatch pocket will fill with water. Hope that this explanation is clear.
Damn, no I didn't spot that either, but makes sense. Luckily, those were the only two I did not remove when I sanded and revarnished, I just sanded and varnished right where they were. But this explains where another neighboring boat should look for his annoying leak. Many thanks.
You mentioned that you actually replaced these teak rails running along the hatch; are the replacements exactly the same size, thickness and dimensions? Any variation / difference could also account for the leak. I know that a lot of items I've bought from Catalina Direct, etc. are not the exact same dimensions as the originals, such as hatch dogs, hardware, etc. I wish that all replacement parts being sold out their for C 30's were cast directly from the originals. It would make things a lot easier. A lot of folks seem to like that epoxy-butyl rebedding tape to prevent leaks, and it is removable.
Chuch32, I suspect my hatch rails are leaking, and I want to rebed them. How difficult was it to get the rails off--and back on? Any advice?
Bob
"Valhalla"
Lake Champlain
Bob
"Valhalla"
Lake Champlain
Since the P.O. on my boat insisted on blasting the deck & teak with a power washer, my teak is now about half its original thickness with all the screws protruding from the remaining wood & there are chips missing out of the gelcoat. :cussing:
If I can find it thick enough, I am replacing mine with PVC board, as I've done with the sliding hatch trim (along with an SS handle) & the hatchboards. I may need to laminate two pieces together. Hopefully, I'll have all the wood off the outside of the boat (except for the tiller!
) by the end of the season..I need some nice long stainless hand rails to replace the teak ones too.
Thanks for the tip on the drain..
I probably should reinforce the curvature in the hatch 'housing' as well..it is sagging a bit, I guess the rebar is weakening a bit. :cry:
Yay, boats!:dance:
If I can find it thick enough, I am replacing mine with PVC board, as I've done with the sliding hatch trim (along with an SS handle) & the hatchboards. I may need to laminate two pieces together. Hopefully, I'll have all the wood off the outside of the boat (except for the tiller!
) by the end of the season..I need some nice long stainless hand rails to replace the teak ones too.Thanks for the tip on the drain..
I probably should reinforce the curvature in the hatch 'housing' as well..it is sagging a bit, I guess the rebar is weakening a bit. :cry:
Yay, boats!:dance:
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