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Engine hatch


Holby

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Hi All, 

i have just joined, I don’t have a canal boat persay but I do have a sailing boat berthed up in the Scottish Islands.. 

i am trying to help a friend out she has recently bought a Hallmark 40ft as a liveaboard, she is now finding problems with it.. 

the previous owner put over the engine hatch ( situated on the stern deck.. ) a plywood hatch cover, not even marine ply.. not surprisingly it has collapsed.. I will be making a temporary hatch out of marine ply to fit in the hole.. but should it be a metal hinged hatch and is this something that has to be specially fabricated or can it be bought of the shelf?

many thanks, look forward to some assistance on this..

PS I will, I think be looking in 3-4 yrs time to move into the canals, and it will be interesting to help with things like this..

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Many narrowboats use phenolic ply board such as Hexagrip.

 

https://www.slhardwoods.co.uk/products/sheet-material/hexa-grip-birch-plywood/hexa-grip-birch-plywood-2440-x-1220mm

 

It is often used by companies that fit vans out, so if only a small piece is needed it is worth checking in any local van fitters have suitable offcuts available at giveaway prices.

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No it can't be bought off the shelf.  Every boat is different.

The problem with a metal hatch is that it may well vibrate and it will be much less effective at damping engine noise. Hence some firm of timber deck is used.

The usual recommendation is Buffalo Board which is plywood with a phenolic coating and a non-slip pattern moulded into the surface. After cutting it to shape the edges should be coated with epoxy resin to prevent water ingress into the plies and stave off delamination.

Even so, if the back deck is open to the elements all the time, any timber deck is going to have a limited life.

 

You should also clean out ( and derust and paint) the channel on which the board sits, so that water which passes between the deck panels can drain away.

Edited by David Mack
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33 minutes ago, Holby said:

look forward to some assistance on this..

Pretty much every narrowboat is 'custom hand built' (even with the volume producers such as Liverpool boats, no two are identical), so to answer your question - no you cannot buy 'off the shelf'.

 

Many years ago we had a 40 foot Hallmark boat, from memory there were 3 pieces of plywood, one down each side and a larger one in the centre covering the engine. These simply 'sit' on top of the U-shaped drainage channels.

 

Ensure that the channels do not get blocked with leaves and 'fluff & stuff' or the boat will sink.

When we bought ours it was a "sunk and recovered" boat purely due to blocked drainage channels. It was a 1999 boat and we bought it in 2001. We bought it for a 'pittance', re painted and refitted some of the inside, added a bath, and sold it for a good profit after a couple of years. I saw it back up for sale again a few years ago.

 

 

The Hallmark are good solid boats although towards the bottom of the 'price / quality range' (sort of the Lada of the boat world) and if you take care and look after it it will seve you well. I think they are a good starter boat.

Depending at what price you bought it - looked after, you should not lose any money on it when you come to sell.

 

Good luck.

 

 

 

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Edited by Alan de Enfield
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20 minutes ago, David Mack said:

 

The usual recommendation is Buffalo Board which is plywood with a phenolic coating and a non-slip pattern moulded into the surface. After cutting it to shape the edges should be coated with epoxy resin to prevent water ingress into the plies and stave off delamination.

Even so, if the back deck is open to the elements all the time, any timber deck is going to have a limited life.

 

I've had a similar problem with de-laminating ply on top of the engine housing.  I've been experimenting with rubber checker plate matting on top of ply as an alternative to Buffalo Board.

It's early days yet, but so far it seems to be doing the job. I agree you need epoxy resin round the edges.

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Checker-Rubber-Flooring-Matting-Listing/dp/B01GU3745Y

 

1604273839_20190824_191201(1).jpg.f20878af7354ec90586ed1ea679bd584.jpg

 

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We only ever had two boats.  Both had wooden deck boards and both failed.  Both failed mainly because of water getting into the core of the wood via holes cut for budget-lock keys, lifting eyes or lifting holes.

 

Grebe had a modern plywood composite with a bobble finish  like rubber top surface.  We replaced the entire rear decks with marine ply, all epoxied and track mastr on top and sound indultion underneath.  A great job but not for a restricted budget.  They were still great after 10 years.

 

Make sure the holes are sealed!!

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6mm aluminium might be ok rather than phenolic ply if it's not a large area. Available on ebay. Easy to cut to size with a jigsaw and won't rust or rot around the edges.

 

Key and paint with an epoxy etch primer, undercoat and non-slip top coats - or just stick strips of that non-slip grip tape over it. If vibration is an issue then just stick some neoprene tape underneath in appropriate places.

Edited by blackrose
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