New Companionway doors

[Florida sail]

Just finished the new companionway doors. Decided to make my own when I saw how much the commercial ones cost. I'm going to really miss the old hatch boards, especially when I am going in and out with the A/C running.

>>ron<<
S/V Serenity II

 

[Ross]

It always astonishes me at how far down into the cockpit the companionway reaches. Such a long step down from the deck. Take a wave over the stern and just six inches of water would down flood the cabin. The doors are nice.

 

[woodster]

nice work on the doors FS........as for the companionway being low i have the same problem...for now all i can think of is to keep the bottom hacth board in place....i have been thinking about maybe glassing in a higher bridge deck at some point....

regards

woody

 

[Ross]

I built a water tank in that position flush with the cockpit seats and brought the bottom of the companion up to the level of the coamings.

 

[woodster]

I built a water tank in that position flush with the cockpit seats and brought the bottom of the companion up to the level of the coamings.

thanks Ross that is a very good idea..as i have been thinking about adding a drinking water only tank anyway.....that just may be the ticket...

regards

woody

 

[Cool Beans]

My companionway is the same, tall and narrow. Very nice looking!

Just what kind of gnarly weather would it take to generate waves big enough to poop the cockpit like that? Mind you, my preferred sailing weather is 5-10 with 1 foot or less seas

 

[Ross]

Plan for the worst, hope for the best. The cockpit on my Islander when I got her would hold 2 tons of water with 3/4 inch drains. The lazerette locker lid would allow flooding with six inches of water in the cockpit. That would happen if two leaves blocked the drains and we got a storm with a foot of rain. I modified the cockpit to half the size and converted to space to a lazerette that I can climb into and work without getting stuck.

 

[RDS2012]

Can I ask what material you used for your new doors? They look awesome!

 

[Styx]

Ross - do you have any pictures you can share?

 

[Chris Patterson]

Mmhmm. I've always liked those doors, and yours look first class mate.
I looked at a Lancer a short bit ago that swings the doors. It had a hinged bottom about six or so inches that hinged on the bottom of this particular piece, supposedly to keep swung and latched up if the cockpit 'flooded'.

And yeah, material and sources. ?? The removable hinges are the trick, huh? And that offset so the doors will sit back in their frames. Tricky work. Ya done good.

 

[Ross]

Ross - do you have any pictures you can share?

I will get some.

 

[Florida sail]

I used Plexiglass for the doors. My decision was based on the ease of use and the fact that I could glue up the vertical overlap in the center. This is something that you can't do with Lexan. The fact that all the cockpits on WW II fighter airplanes were PLexiglass was good enough for me. Oh yeah, Plexiglass is a heck of a lot cheaper than Lexan despite the additional cost of different drill bits and a different band saw blade. Ross, I have retained the lower hatch board on the boat to use , when appropriate, because of the relatively short height of the bridge deck.

 

[wufibugs]

Dumb question: What is the reason for not mounting the doors on the outside of the companionway frame so when they are closed they would tend to prevent that big following wave from flooding the cabin?

 

[RDS2012]

What glue did you use?

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

Sure you can glue Lexan. In fact, ONE kind of the glue is available at WalMart. Made by Loctite. There are others too.

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/13/7/epxy_plstc_s/overview/Loctite-Epoxy-Plastic-Bonder.htm

 

[Ross]

water tank bridge deck and raised companion.