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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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rain shield for crib boards

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Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Initially Posted - 07/31/2004 : 11:53:52

I have the crib boards for my C25 that have the multiple ventilation slots in the top board. I've installed screening on the inside to keep the wasps out, but when it rains hard (as it has been doing a lot this year), the water leaks through the slots. I don't want to eliminate the ventilation (mildew, etc.), but I've had no success in finding a suitable portlight rainshield in any of the marine stores or catalogs.

Have any of you solved this soggy problem?

Brooke

Edited by - on

lcharlot
Master Marine Consultant

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Antigua and Barbuda
1301 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 12:52:13

You may have to fabricate your own rain shield out of whatever material you deem suitable. You can buy strips of teak at most any marine store or lumber yard. Keep in mind that if you make the rain shield a permanent installation on the hatch board, you won't be able to stack the boards flat against each other, if that's how you store them now. Does it rain in any month of the year at your location, or only in winter months as in California? If you only get winter rain, then dry the rest of the year, you could just cover the louvers with a thin sheet of acrylic or Lexan from December through February when most of the year's rainfall occurs. If you have one of the older C-25's with the clamshell vent scoops on the coaming aft, these are also a source of rainwater getting into the boat and you may need to cover them in winter. I have heard than the most helpful thing to keep the mildew down is to have a fan or two inside the boat to move the air around during winter layup, and have at least one exhaust fan that sucks air from the interior of the boat and blows it outside through a vent somewhere. This keeps the humidity inside from reaching 100%, so the interior surfaces don't condence water vapor, denying mildew the moisture it needs. I used to have a special companionway hatch board, made of 1/2" plywood coated with polyester resin to make it water resistant, into which were installed three large 12V computer fans. The holes that the fans were mountefd in were covered on the outside with vinyl clamshell scoops from West Marine to keep rainwater out yet allow air to flow. These fans moved about 1200 cubic feet per hour, yet used very little power. The 30 watt solar panel on the boat was able to keep up with the fans even in winter. This hatch cover went with the old boat when I sold her, so I don't have it anymore to take a photo of it for you. But I never had a mildew problem on that boat. Here in central California, the rainy season is generally from November through March, so we only have to think about mildew for a couple of months a year. I guess boat owners in the southeast, where they get those regular summer thunderstorms, have to deal with high humidity all year.

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 13:23:23

Larry, this is Virginia. We have precipitation year round, but in the dead of winter it's often frozen. The only time I covered the vents with acrylic was during Hurricane Isabel. The rest of the year I need that airflow from the companionway to the Nicro solar vent in the v-berth. I don't have vents on the stern. The water is coming, largely, from the companionway slots and pools in the galley where's there's a low point.

This is a humid part of the world, and mildew is a very real issue.

Yes, I know I can fabricate something, and I may have to do that. Before I cut up teak or acrylic or kryptonite, I wanted to see if someone had a better solution.

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 20:51:19

Since installing my bimini, which over hangs the companionway and is left up all season, I have not had any water come in through the hatchboards. Not only does the bimini keep the water out, the full time shade it provides keeps the interior of the boat cooler and also prevents the sun from baking my finished teak which greatly extends the life of the finish.

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 21:04:46

Sure, Don, make fun of my bimini setup! That would work, but doesn't it age the bimini more quickly?

Brooke

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dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 21:30:49

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Brooke Willson
 Sure, Don, make fun of my bimini setup! That would work, but doesn't it age the bimini more quickly?

Brooke
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Oops!

I forgot about your mainsheet mod and bimini setup.

As far as the bimini aging prematurely, I haven't noticed any discoloration in my inexpensive vinyl top and it has been up for the last three seasons.

Edited by - on

Doug
Captain

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USA
457 Posts

Response Posted - 07/31/2004 : 23:04:03

I find it odd rain is actually coming in enough to pool. I have the large vents cut in the top board, and the boat floats uncovered 9+ months of the year in the lovely but wet Pacific Northwest. Not sure I've ever had appreciable rain enter though the vents. Don’t take this the wrong way, but are the boards being put in backwards? If I put my boards in backwards the slot would slant down and in to the boat, so water would run down the boards and flow in. Otherwise I’d have to have wind driving rain almost sideways to get in the boat.

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 08/01/2004 : 08:09:39

No offense taken, Doug. It's a good question, but the answer is no. The slant is level or negative.

The water is not gallons -- after hard rains I might have a half-inch puddle in the galley footwell. There's a possibility water is coming in the small gaps where the companionway sliding hatch doesn't quite meet the hatchboards on either side of the companionway -- but that seems to happen much more in driving rain. I was working on the boat last week as a shower passed through, and watched the water come through the hatchboard vents.

In physics, there's a principle called the Coanda effect, in which a slowly moving liquid will adhere to a surface rather than break cleanly from it. It's why the teapot dribbles. Catalina may have outsourced my hatchboards to Coanda.

Brooke

Edited by - Brooke Willson on 08/01/2004 08:10:54

OJ
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
4382 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 00:42:02

How 'bout one of them there aftermarket fiberglass air intake cowls they make for the older muscle cars

? You could even paint it to match the color of your wife's toe nails

Edited by - OJ on 08/02/2004 00:47:09

Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 09:05:19

I thought the Coanda effect was the principle behind my wife having to buy one in every color, no matter what she is purchasing. "anda blue one anda red one anda....."

There is usually a little water puddled on the companionway steps in Wind Point after a heavy rain but I assumed it was one of those "that's just the way it is" situations since it didn't seem to collect in a big way.

On the other hand, I bought a package of Damp-Rid bags (you hang them in the boat and remove them when they have filled with water from absorbing moisture) and am amazed at how much moisture is pulled out of the air in what seems like a relatively short period of time - about 10 days. So maybe I'm getting more water in the boat than I think.

Steve

Edited by - on

thacket3
Navigator

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USA
101 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 09:39:27

I had this problem too. I went ot the office supply store and bought a wall mount file folder. One of those dark tinted plexiglass tapered things. I installed it upside down over the vents on the top slat. Works great, cost about 8 bucks and allows air to continue to circulate.
Tim

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2004 : 09:58:33

That's brilliant, Tim. Thanks!

Brooke

Edited by - on

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