Cabintop surgery

[Kiwipete]

OK, so here's the problem: previous owner (of my 70s Swedish boat) removed the original portlights and replaced them with acrylic ones screwed into the cabintop sides. These are now so scuffed up you can hardly see through them, plus they make the boat look awful. She Who Must Be Obeyed wants opening portlights.

I can't source any reasonably priced ones that fit the cutouts. Option one is to forget the the opening ports and just replace the acrylic. Option two is to fill in the existing openings and just cut out new ones to fit the reasonably priced Vetus ports I have sourced. The cabintop and decks have already been painted with Interlux Perfection so it will be easy enough to repaint the cabintop sides.

Has anyone done anything like this? Am I taking the long way around a short problem? I am keen to keep SWMBO invested in the boat (hence the water heater, deck showert, fridge, alcohol-propane conversion)and if it takes opening ports then that's a small price for domestic harmony. On the other hand I don't want to this to turn into the project from hell! I would not call myself a skilled boatbuilder by any stretch of the imagination, but I am pretty experienced with epoxy etc.

The cabintop sides appear to be straight balsa sandwich about 5/8" thick.

Would be grateful for any adivce.

[Poda]

A guy did something similar (installing smaller ports into a larger opening) for his boat and documented it..

http://www.wbryant.com/StellaBoat/Proje ... /index.htm

Not sure if that helps or not, but it's always nice to see how people attack a given problem..

[Hirilondë]

Operable ports in the main salon do almost nothing for ventilation. Forward facing hatches and an open companionway are the best source of cooling when under way (if in fact the weather allows you to keep a hatch open) and adding a wind scoop for the forward hatch at anchor does more than anything I have ever seen short of air conditioning. The natural light from large fixed ports may very well be missed more than she realizes. Consider all the parameters of comfort and think it through together before deciding. I would never consider changing from my large fixed lights in the salon.

[Rachel]

That's a good point, Hirilonde. When I was in the tropics (hot and muggy!), I was on a boat with 10 opening ports, but you know what? We oftentimes didn't even open them. On the other hand, if you had tried to take away our forehatch and windscoop.... woe be to you!

As you say, we got an amazing amount of ventilation through the open forehatch/windscoop + open companionway (or even just open drop boards). I have no idea of the actual figures, but it seemed like about 100 times more air than ever came through the ports.

The other thing is, on a boat one is always opening and closing things due to rain/end of rain/more rain/leaving the boat/arriving/going out in the dinghy for a row/going to bed/etc. With opening ports, you have quite a few things to rush around and dog down (and more "living room" for the first rain to soak) and then open again later. It can get to be a pain. With just the forehatch to deal with (we had a dodger over the companionway), we didn't think twice about opening it back up even if more rain was threatening. We could have it closed back down in a heartbeat, even at 3 a.m. A windscoop is easy to add, and costs less than $50, if you want to try one.

The other thing about our opening ports is that they were relatively small. This made sense, as it was a bluewater-type boat. But we sure didn't sit around and enjoy the view out them, like you can with (typically) larger fixed ports. Also, if it's a smaller boat (what kind of boat do you have?), there can be some head-banger effect with the hatch dogs - they can be *really* hard!

I could see that opening ports might be more beneficial if one were at a dock, vs. head to wind at anchor - although you can move the windscoop around to make up for that. And of course maybe you just want opening ports, which is fine. But I just thought I would add a bit to what Hirilonde said.

Rachel

PS: Hmm, maybe I got carried away there. I see you want to replace your ports regardless. But... maybe new fixed lights would be a good way to go. Perhaps with frames, or maybe there is a way to make yours look better (new lenses, black paint around the outside edge, etc.) It sure would be nice to know what kind of boat you have, and maybe to see a photo. For me at least, that would get me to mulling much more than just a vague idea of some scuffed ports on "a" boat.

[Triton106]

Kiwipete -

I feel your pain!

It seems to me that you want advice on how to maintain domestic harmony more than you want advice on how to install an openning port. I am afraid most of us don't have the training to render that professionally. If you want to forge ahead despite Dave and Rachel's advice (and these two really know what they are talking about when it comes to boats - although I cannot speak for their skills in rendering advice on domestic harmony) you can find some material here:

http://www.boatus.com/goodoldboat/bronze.asp

[Hirilondë]

although I cannot speak for their skills in rendering advice on domestic harmony

I won't even pretend to know anything on this subject ;-)

[Kiwipete]

Thanks for the replies, and for the links to other poor souls' experiences. Believe me, I would rather not get involved in a project like this when there is (to my mind) more pressing stuff to be done. There is only one opening hatch and that is in the forecabin. Those Swedes were more concerned with keeping Baltic and North Sea weather out than letting fresh air in. It would be easier for me to put a pair of opening hatches in the heads and saloon than to mess about with dratted portlights. But that would not address the request for an opening port above the propane stove I have just installed to entice her on board for longer cruises!

[Hirilondë]

. But that would not address the request for an opening port above the propane stove I have just installed to entice her on board for longer cruises!

I guess you have to do what you have to do, but a wind scoop will do far more for ventilating cooking fumes than a port near the stove. Just because you have an opening does not mean you have ventilation.

[Rachel]

And if you must have an opening near the stove, you might also consider something like a mushroom vent above it. That seems like it would be more likely to vent heat/fumes, and less likely to blow out the flame. I think they can be opened when raining, too.

But (as we sound like broken records here, sorry!) "just" a forehatch and a windscoop will ventilate the saloon as long as you have an opening aft, such as the companionway. We would get a right wind coming through with only those two open.

We did also have a very small hatch in the head. This was nice as we could leave it open when not onboard; it was too small to allow human ingress, and any water coming in would go right into the toilet (barring a massive storm). Neither the opening ports or the forehatch could be left open when not aboard.

Rachel

[Kiwipete]

Thanks all for your commonsense replies, we have reached a compromise in which the head and saloon each get a small opening hatch and I make replacement portlights out of acrylic!

The 2 hatches plus acrylic will still be hell of a lot cheaper than opening ports and much much less labor intensive. And domestic harmony reigns.

[Hirilondë]

A pragmatic solution and domestic harmony. It doesn't get any better than that.