Dorade box construction project

I've got a situation on deck where the starboard dorade box is looking a bit tired and dated, and on the port side all I have is a temporarily-patched hole where once there was a califont stack.



Existing dorade.  The spider cracking on the deck is made more noticable by the application of Capt. Tolley's Creeping Crack Cure - a wonderful gift from the gods.  Won't see it under the KiwiGrip and Perfection!

I have decided to use the existing dorade as a pattern to create two new boxes from some teak timber I located locally. 

The first step was to create some patterns from the existing, using a set of dividers to scribe the arc of the fore and aft pieces, which follow the cabin top. 

These three patterns represent the base of the dorade box.  The end piece is interchangeable between fore and aft.  I was surprised to find that the starboard and port faces are almost perfectly-vertical, but the end pieces (fore/aft) are canted inward slightly (perhaps 5 degrees).  This means that the long side pieces are actually parallelograms, not rectangles.

I did not measure the top piece, as this will simply be constructed to fit the base.  I will say however, that I will be using teak, not lexan, for the construction of the lids.  I know why they used lexan originally (there is a solar-powered vent inside the dorade), but it isn't a good look, and I beleive properly-costructed passive ventilation will be better than the current set-up.  The solar powered vent does not function (they ALL breakdown eventually as the rechargeable batteries wear out), and the intake vent itself is far too small.

I am preparing to use a scoop like this one:

 Update 24/8/13 - Construction

The teak timber I am using is probably thicket than required, but it's what I had and it will be extremely-robust.

A very good quality jigsaw makes short work of cutting out the pieces once they have been laid out with the patterns

You may see 5 end pieces instead of 4...there will actually be six when I'm done, 2 of which will be shortened vertically to become baffles.

You pay good money for teak flour at the shops...don't throw it in the bin!

Initial fit-up, lots of sanding and fine-shaping to be done.

What the picture above doesn't capture are the multitude of compound angles and miters involved with building this dorade box.  Because the end slope inward, and because the cabin top is curved, almost all edges needed some form of shaping.

I'm sure there is a tool in the New Yankee Workshop to do this, but I reply on my razor sharp hand plane as I always have:

Did you know that Ron Hickman, the inventor of the WorkMate, also designed the Lotus Elan?  Black & Decker have sold over 30 million of them around the world.  I have owned 3 myself.

For some unknown reason I touched the piece with wet fingers just before taking this photo...I suppose it was to show you the grain...yeah..that's it...

UPDATE: 23/10/13

I've glued one box together and checked the fit on the boat.  It needs some tweaking and a lot of sanding, but given the various compound angles and such, I think it has worked out fairly well so far.  Now I need to buy a dozen teak plugs and devise a method of securing the boxes to the deck.

These halyards and reefing lines will be shifted inboard a bit when I install the new deck
organizer

Refinishing salon table

When I realised the salon/dining table was going back in (although not having it creates a lot of space, it seems necessary to have), I decided to refinish it.

I'll post some pictures of the process, but its essentially sand 320 grit, 4 coats varnish (gloss), light sand between coats. 

Update: 1/10/13

Attention to detail:  Refinishing the hardware associated with the table, though aged and worn, it shines up pretty well.  You will note that I have revised my methodology to satin-finish.  Once again gloss didn't look right in the cabin.

There are a lot of surfaces, lots of careful sanding and prep.



The old hardware is worn, but it shines up well.  Even the screw heads benefit from a few seconds on a polishing wheel


 

Painting the 'nether-regions'

Of all the tough jobs on a boat, painting bilges and the interior of lockers might be the most un-rewarding.  Perhaps this is because nobody but you will ever know how much toil went into this...who looks in your bilge?

Most places in the world, when confronted with this need, you would walk into your local supply house and pick-up a gallon of Interlux Bilgekote or Pettit EZ-Bilge...well not in NZ.  I have asked dozens of people in the industry and they all look at me like I am from Mars ("Canada actually").

My bilge is very clean, but the gray gelcoat on the hull, and the gray enamel on the plywood ribs is worn out and looking old.  The interior of my lockers are all a bit dull, and in need of some attention.

I have therefore been looking for an all-around primer and topcoat that will treat all of these areas, as I do not want to end up with a lot of half-empty paint tins.

I also have the challenge that the inner surface of the bilge/hull is almost impossible to sand, as it is heavy mat, complete with a waffle-like pattern.

I stumbled around for quite a long time until I cam across a company called Zinsser (a division of Rust-Oleum), who produce a product called "Bulls Eye 1-2-3 Water-based Primer"...here is what they claim:

About Bulls Eye 1-2-3® Water-Base Primer

There’s a reason Rust-Oleum Zinsser Bulls Eye 1-2-3® Water-Base Primer is our most popular primer. This premium, whole-house primer-sealer provides outstanding performance indoors and out, with low odor, great flow and leveling and a flexible, acrylic formula.

• Water-base primer-sealer
• Interior and exterior
• Sticks to all surfaces without sanding
• Seals stains, graffiti and tannin bleed
• Mold & mildew resistant film
• Rust inhibitive – great for new metal
• Fast 1 hour dry time

Note the bit about "...sticks to ALL surfaces without sanding...".  You can use it to prime ceramic tiles if you want...should work wonders on the glossy bilge gel-coat.

I am pretty excited that this primer will deal to the variable surfaces I want to treat.  It has a very high solids count, and is even anti-mold and mildew!

In terms of a top-coat, I am going to use a gloss-white marine enamel everywhere, for ease of clean-up and identification of any leaks or problems. 

I'll use this post as the work commences...so watch this space!


UPDATE 25/8/13:

I have decided to buy some white-tinted polyester "flow-coat" to apply to the actual bilge area, from the keel bolts up the the turn in the bilge.  I want to guarantee improved water-resistance in this area, which can be subject to standing water for periods of time.

This is a purpose-built product for this sort of application.  Following the flow-coat application I will prime and paint as described above.  It is essentially a polyester resin that cures hard instead of tacky.  Flow-coat is gel-coat with a wax added.  The wax seals the product at the top of the layer and allows it to harden fully.

Before:

An incredibly-clean bilge

I spent several hours scrubbing the bilge with Simple Green, then a strong solution of sugar soap.

UPDATE 31/8/13 - Painting the Flow-Coat

I gave the entire bilge a final sand a wipe down tonight, then mixed up 100mL of polyester flow-coat and hardener.  I used a disposable brush and applied the flow-coat the the very lowest portion of the bilge (where the keel bolts are), and up the sides 3".

I didn't consider painting the entire bilge with flow-coat because it would have required a lot of material (it goes on very thick, and does not spread very far).  I also decided not to flow-coat everything because it is a horrible product to work with (as are all polyester and epoxy resins), you must work quickly or even 100mL on a chilly night will kick in the cup.

The only place water will ever sit for more than a day is at the very bottom of the bilge, which is where I have applied the added protection of polyester resin ~ Flow-Coat.

Update - 01/09/13

I have sanded boat bottoms to gel coat with a hand sander, I have had a holding tank spill onto my head as I lifted it out of a hull, and I have put a sailmakers needle through the palm of my hand...but I have never done anything so difficult and unpleasant as painting the bilge...it is incredibly exhausting and trying. 

This is the progress so far on the primer coat, removing hoses as I go to avoid a total hack-job. 

Update 5/9/13 - Almost finished

I have applied a coat of gloss enamel this evening, so all but the last "section" below the companionway is complete.  I will have to come back to this section as otherwise I would have painted myself into a corner (literally).

The end result is as good as I expected, but as mentioned before the effort was perhaps disproportionate with the benefit...not sure.

AFTER  

An incredibly-clean bilge

Final touch ~ bilge pump re-installed.  I bedded it in silicone, no more screws into the f-glass

Check your zinc!

There is a big label on my heat exchanger that says "Check Zinc Monthly".

Monthly...what about bi-monthly?  Or tri-monthly?

Nope...monthly...here's why:

Exchanger zinc after 3 months...it was pitted but intact the last time I looked at it.

At least no damage was done, a bit of a good clean up due.  Chance to change the end-cap gasket as well.

LAZY! LAZY!!!

A clean up due, new gasket and some touch up paint.