Putting in a floor hatch.

[KJM]

I'm putting in a 40 x 10 inch hatch in the middle of the floor I'm replacing. I cut the hole this morning. What I'm wondering is do you put CSM on the cut edge of the plywood or just seal with resin? Also is there a best way to secure it to the floor using screws so that it won't become a place for water intrusuin and rot in the future? I considered just sticking it to the floor with maybe chauking or thickened resin and not using screws at all. The add for the hatch said it could be stood on but I'm a little dubious, anybody ever go thru one of there plastic hatches?

 

[Chris1956]

Seal the edges of the decking with resin. That will be fine.

Drill and fill the screw holes with silicone caulk, before installing the SS screws.

The plastic hatch will allow walking on it, until the sun weakens it.

 

[KJM]

Seal the edges of the decking with resin. That will be fine.

Drill and fill the screw holes with silicone caulk, before installing the SS screws.

The plastic hatch will allow walking on it, until the sun weakens it.

Thanks for the advice, as for the sun weakening the hatch, that won't be a problem where I live. We are at about day 8 of rain, drizzle and fog, with another week of it in the forecast!

 

[todhunter]

I sealed the edge of my plywood with CSM. I also put in mahogany where the screws will go so that I wasn't screwing directly into the deck. See this post here.

 

[KJM]

I sealed the edge of my plywood with CSM. I also put in mahogany where the screws will go so that I wasn't screwing directly into the deck. See this post here.

I just looked at your thread, that's very impressive work! My 2 main stringers under the floor were ,mahogany, they were wet but no rot in a 42 yr old boat. That stuff lasts forever! I may try CSM around the edges, just not sure how good i can get it to conform to the edges.

 

[todhunter]

Yes, mahogany is great stuff for boats.

Put on 1-2 heavy coats of resin along the edge, allowing it to cure between coats. The edges will drink a lot of resin. Next, if there are any voids along the edge, mix up some PB And fill them, then while the PB is wet, wet the edge again with resin then lay on the CSM. You may have to babysit it until it starts to gel to keep it in place. I prefer a chip brush for applying the glass along the edges. Leave it wider than the edge you're laying it on, then go back and trim it after curing. Only way to get it to roll around the edge is to round the edge - it won't bend 90 degrees around a sharp edge.