[alberg30] Inspection Hatch / Deck Plate

[Tom Sutherland]

From: Tom Sutherland <sutherlandt at prodigy.net>

Guy ... Excuse my being a bit late but my computer has been in the shop.

I can shed a bit of light on this subject in that my boat (#412) came to
me with an inspection hatch in the cockpit floor. I believe it was by
Bomar. It was Poly Carbonate and had two latches which would dog it down
and remain flush. It was low profile, didn't look too bad, and about the
right size. The problem was ... it leaked like a SIEVE!  The lid portion
had warped over time and would not seal down very well.

My first thought was to buy another just like it and only use the lid
portion, which was the portion which was warped. This would obviate the
need to replace the frame and should be an easy fix at least for the
short run. Well to make along story a bit longer ... West or Boat/US no
longer had this model and the closest thing was a bit smaller which
negated my being able to use my existing cut out . Out of frustration I
called Bomar to see if they had anything either the same size or a bit
larger and they did not. However They enlightened me to the following:

1) The Poly Carbonate inspection hatch was NOT intended to be placed in
a cockpit floor. It would NOT be water tight in this application.

2) The Cast Aluminum was far better for my given purpose.

3) Hamilton Marine of Maine probably had the best selection.

I believe I am going to bite the bullet and spring for the Cast Alum in
a powder coat white. I may have to pull my engine and I think this would
be the time for the project. I plan to go with their Model.No.
Bom-C4T1416-W which calls for a cut out of 15 5/8" X 17 5/8". which
would require me to open up my current opening a little bit. I might
also add that the current hatch has not weakened the integrity of my
cockpit floor in any way that I can see. I feel that the cast alum will
be just fine with the slightly larger opening ... sorry for the length
of my post.

Tom S
A30  #412
InCahoots

Guy Lalonde wrote:

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